Renting During Holidays: The Untimely Notice by your Atlanta Property Manager

Why is the tenant giving notice now! Renting During Holidays is impossible! This may be your first reaction if you receive a notice to vacate from a tenant during the holiday season. The first thought is that no one will rent a property in November, much less in December – the holiday month. There is the prevailing belief that the property cannot possibly rent until the first of the year or possibly even longer which gives the myth of renting during holidays some truth.  

As your Atlanta property management company, we have experience with tenant placement and while it is true that it can be slower during the months of November and December and the rental property may be vacant until January, it is also a fact that properties rent every month, including the month of December. There are many reasons that a property can rent, even on the twenty-fourth of December! People receive job transfers, receive a notice from their landlords or the property is in foreclosure, they need a larger home because they are having another child, their lease is up, they want to move to another neighborhood, or they prefer another school district. There are a myriad of reasons why tenants move is the same, as the list of reasons to move we encounter through the entire year.

People rent properties as dictated by their family and employment circumstances or needs and that means it does not necessarily fall on the first of the month or avoid the holiday season. This has been one of the biggest misconceptions about rentals since the beginning of time. When their job transfer comes through, it can be any date. The same follows through for all the different reasons that motivate a tenant to give notice. There are people who plan a nice tidy transition on the first of the month or in the summer, but if you take a poll from Atlanta property managers, you will find that properties rent all through the month and for many different reasons. There are not just the same numbers of people who move during the holidays as the rest of the year, so it requires a different perspective.

 

Take the positive approach

 

Thinking negatively does not help the situation – you need a positive approach for any pending notice to vacate, but especially during the holiday season. Take the time to look at your rental property objectively to reduce your losses and rent the property as quickly as possible.

• What incentives can you offer during the holidays to entice applicants to choose your property? Perhaps you can offer a gift certificate at a local market or shopping center for holiday expenditures.
• What maintenance will improve the rental property while on the rental market? Perhaps a yard cleanup will negate the effects of the winter season. A fresh coat of paint can do wonders and may be less expensive than during the summer months.
• What tax benefit will you gain for the current year? If there is any loss of income or maintenance expense, think of it as an additional tax advantage.
• Will this improve the tenancy? There are times when a notice can lead to better tenants.

If you do receive a notice to vacate during the holiday season, do not despair. Our Atlanta property management company will work as diligently as we do during any other month of the year to rent the property as quickly as possible, and renting during holidays is not a problem for us.

• Unless there are extenuating circumstances, our Atlanta property managers will immediately put the property on the market for rent.
• We will employ all available marketing means to rent your property such as Zillow, Trulia, Hotpads, Realtor, Free Rental Site and many more search engines, utilizing over 50 syndicated search engines to market your property.
• We will use any incentives authorized by you to rent the property.
• If our Atlanta property managers do encounter any difficulties with renting the property, we will keep you advised.
• We will always seek qualified tenants even though we are trying to eliminate or reduce any vacancy period.

While we recognize that the holiday season can present challenges, as professional Property Managers in Atlanta and an Atlanta Property Management company, we will work to overcome them and believe in taking the positive approach. 

Marina Shlomov, a managing partner at ALH|Podland Realty & Rental Homes Property Management is the author of many articles on Landlording, Atlanta Property Management, and Real Estate Investing. A residential builder in the state of Georgia since 1999, Marina is an investor herself. Her Atlanta property management company is intended “For Investors” and “By Investors” for a simple reason – she knows what investors’ goals are and she works hard to reach their goals. In her spare time, Marina likes to spend time with her family, friends, garden, read and travel. Check her out at www.alhpodland.com. You can find Marina’s articles and comments at @rentalhomesatl on Twitter, on Facebook, Google+, Blogger. and YouTube, Bigger Pockets and REI CLub, ActiveRain and LinkedIn.