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Getting a rental property ready for the market can be a complex, time-consuming process, but that’s where a professional property management company, like Focus Real Estate Property Management (“Focus”), comes in!
We help busy people in Central Park with their real estate needs, whether they want to buy, sell, rent or need help with property management.
Below we share a bit about how we, through our property management division, help our owners prepare their properties to attract the best tenants and command a higher rent for optimal profitablity for their invesmtent.
Professional Cleaning and Repairs
A property management company will oftentimes handle the coordination of all cleaning and necessary repairs to ensure your rental is move-in ready. They schedule trusted maintenance professionals, saving you the hassle of sourcing reliable contractors. Their expertise ensures the property is in top condition, which not only appeals to renters, but also reduces the risk of maintenance issues down the road. You should receive a detailed budget from your property management company before work commences to make sure you’re on the same page in terms of the cost. Typical costs incurred are items such as deep cleaning, painting, rekeying, yard work and virtual staging of photos (more on this below).
At Focus Real Estate Property Management, we help owners by going through the home and creating what we’ve dubbed a “Rent Ready Budget”. This detailed budget helps owners see all our suggested repairs and the estimated cost. They can then decide if they want us to just handle it all for them for a project management fee (typically project management fee is ~ 20% of project cost) or they can handle the repairs on their end using our preferred vendors. We provide a full explanation of this Rent Ready process to our new clients so they have clarity on how it all works. For now, just know that we have experience fixing up homes for rent so you can rely on our expertise and our vendors as much as you want!
Staging and High-Quality Photos
Property managers typically know how to make a rental look its best. We say “typically” because unfortunately it’s not always the case and some property management companies market some really rough, unpolished properties. Those poorly lit photos of vacant homes with obvious needed repairs attract the wrong types of tenants! At Focus, we strive to market our for rent properties as well care for, ready to move in properties with great photos and virtual staging. We want them to look just as good as our for sale properties. Here is a sample of our portfolio so you can see how we present our homes. Virtual staging is a low-cost approach that can have a big impact on the visual appeal of your home, so we often use that as a tool. We arrange professional photography, ensuring the listing looks polished and inviting—critical for making a strong first impression online. Below is an example of a professional photograph without and with virtual staging overlaid:
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Setting the Right Price
Pricing a rental property requires local market knowledge. A property management company will analyze local market trends and comparable properties to determine the ideal rental price—one that maximizes your return while keeping the property competitively priced. This eliminates the guesswork and ensures your property is priced to attract tenants quickly, avoiding costly vacancies. (More on the cost of vacancies here.)
Crafting a Compelling Listing and Marketing Your Property
Writing an effective listing is a skill. Property managers will craft a clear, attractive description that highlights your rental’s best features, ensuring it stands out from the competition. Their expertise in marketing ensures the right points are emphasized, drawing in quality tenants.
Property managers also have access to multiple listing services and established marketing channels to ensure your rental gets the exposure it needs. From rental websites to social media and local advertising, they maximize visibility, helping you secure tenants quickly without lifting a finger.
Handling All the Paperwork
A professional property management team prepares all the legal paperwork, including tenant applications and lease agreements. They ensure all documentation is compliant with local laws (as there are many in Colorado!) and best practices, giving you peace of mind that everything is in order before tenants move in. They should also guide you in ensuring you have a rental license as/if applicable for your property, which is often the case for properties located in Denver. Keeping up on legal changes and keeping your paperwork current should not be underestimated, this is becoming very time-consuming as laws constantly evolve. If you have a few properties it doesn’t make sense to strive to keep up with all this on your own unless you have a lot of free time (and a desire to constantly learn and adapt). Our ideal clients would prefer to focus on other areas of their life and leave this to a professional property management company.
Scheduling and Conducting Showings
Property management companies handle all aspects of tenant showings. They respond promptly to inquiries (for which there may be MANY), arrange showings at convenient times, and manage multiple prospective tenants efficiently. This reduces your involvement in coordinating schedules and ensures your property is shown in the best possible way.
Tenant Screening and Lease Finalization
One of the most valuable services property managers offer is tenant screening. They run background checks, verify employment, review credit history, and contact references. This comprehensive process ensures you end up with reliable, responsible tenants—reducing the likelihood of late payments or property damage.
Once the right tenant is selected, the property management team finalizes the lease. They go over the lease terms with the tenant, answer any questions, and ensure both parties are clear on their responsibilities. This guarantees a smooth start to the tenancy and avoids any misunderstandings down the line.
Tenant Move in Management
Once a lease is signed there is still work to be done. Property management companies will have a process for conducting a tenant welcome meeting. At this meeting the tenant will learn about the property, learn how to handle maintenance requests, learn how the utilities should be set up and more. This tenant onboarding process takes time and it takes a process, but it’s worth it to get off to a great start with the new tenant. The more comfortable they are with the property and the processes the better the relationship will go long term.
Conclusion
While the process of getting a rental property ready for market can be complex, Focus has defined and detailed processes and procedures for doing this. We find that a repeatable, yet adaptable process is critical to yield the best results, balancing a great experience for the tenant with financial responsibility for our owners always in mind.
If you are considering renting out one of your properties in the Central Park or surrounding areas, please visit our website or schedule a call now at a time that is convenient for you!
We’d love to help manage your property for you so you can focus your time and energy on what you do best.
