Hey guys,
I’m looking to see if anyone has any advice for advertising? I’m starting have vacancies pile up. As it is, I advertise on craigslist and facebook, along with signs in the yards. Craigslist is swamped with ads, and facebook has the opposite problem: no one looks.
When the yard signs first went up, I had a bunch of calls, nothing really serious.
The area is low-income, but the apartments are decent. Rent is low-average for the area. I’ve even tried advertising one-month-free type deals.
Is it worth taking out ads in the paper? I get the feeling these people don’t read papers, as well as not having internet access. So how do you find your tenants?
I get them the ways you do with exception of facebook. I also take ads out in the newspaper if my signs or craigslist aren’t working. I’ve found that the people who respond from craigslist have no idea where the property is and are often not actually looking to rent in those areas when they find out where it is. Lots of out of towners that are moving here.
Low income tenants do look at the paper. Only when they are looking for a place to rent. I advertise for 1 day, only on Sunday, with no online newspaper ad.
And if you do section 8 they usually have a “book” that has property for rent that the section 8 people can look through. I get lots of calls from that. I just have to fax them specifics about the place and they print off a bunch of them and put it in the book.
Thanks for the reply Hooch. I’ll take out an ad in the paper this week. Do you advertise a specific house, or a more general “take a look at our houses” with a website?
I’d hate to spend the $45 for each property, but at the same time I know there is the “too poor for internet” issue.
$45 is high. I have negotiated $17 bucks with my cities paper, the Roanoke Times.
Remember, that your classified is negotiable. I once called them up to put an ad and they jacked the rates on me. They told me it will be $77. I was like, excuse me???, I can buy a sign for less than that (as if I don’t already have one) and I should consider moving all of my property strictly over to craigslist. And told them I get plenty of calls on craigslist when she said but how much is it going to cost you to keep your unit vacant for a longer period of time. I said that I decided to use the paper because I wanted to have boatloads of people calling me so I can be super picky but for that price I will be better off taking a different route.
She then said… OHHHH, I thought you wanted to advertise online too. (she already knew I didn’t as the first thing I say when I call is just in the paper, not online.) I have a special rate for you of $17.00. I used to always pay $26… Those dirty bastards.
And I keep it short within their minimum charge which is 3 small lines. 2br, 234 Adam St. $550 Call 555-5555. I then have a prepaid phone that tells all about the place because I don’t like saying the same thing over and over. The rent is $550, you pay the gas and electric, I pay the water, sewer and trash, bla bla bla. It then tells them to leave a message if they are interested in seeing it. And tells them that they should go and take a look through the blinds prior to calling me. I don’t like to waste my time. This weeds out all of the calls I get that don’t want a gas bill. Or the people who have no idea where it is and when they get there they realize it may be a little rough of an area. Or they are white and it is in an almost 100% black area. Or vice versa.