How to Get Tenants to Renew Their Lease in York, PA

Filling a vacant rental property is not only a hassle, it’s costly.  After all, it takes time and money to prepare your vacancy, screen new tenants, and draft new lease agreements.

how to get tenants to renew their lease wooden house in York PA

And then, there’s always the worry that your new tenants won’t pay their rent or will damage your property.

On the other hand, knowing how to get tenants to renew their lease with you is one of the best ways to lessen the stress of being a new landlord.  Not to mention, it assures you a steady flow of monthly income for another year.

Did you know: It was estimated that over 20% of renters moved in 2017?

Of course, people move for many reasons.  For example, job changes, lifestyle changes (such as marriage or divorce), and finding a better place to live are the most common.

And while you can’t prevent all tenants from moving out of your rental property, you can make an effort to get some tenants to stay.

If you’re not sure how to maintain a low rental property turnover rate, read on to learn how to get tenants to renew their lease.

 

The Benefits of Lease Renewals

If you’re a new landlord, you may not realize why it’s so beneficial to have good tenants renew their leases each year.

After all, why not just place new tenants in your property if the current ones want to move?

We’ll tell you why:

  • Current tenants know and understand how you and your property manager operate. They understand your expectations and know how to pay their rent each month.  With new tenants, you have to work with them for a while to get them as comfortable as your existing tenants are.
  • Finding new tenants is costly and time-consuming. If you get tenants to renew their lease, you don’t have to go through the whole process of finding new ones.  This means you avoid property advertisements, showings, cleanings, application fees, and lease drafting.
  • Having a vacant rental property is not recommended. You’ll have to keep paying the mortgage, property taxes, and some utility bills. Your property will also be a target for thieves and damage.

As you can see, keeping tenants in your property is the best way to protect your bottom line and your property.

So, let’s take a look at some of the best ways to get tenants to renew their lease with you.

 

How to Get Tenants to Renew Their Lease

1. Welcome Them

Moving into a new home can be a stressful time for your tenants.  This is especially true if your tenants have changed jobs or their kids have to change schools.

You can help your tenants become comfortable with their new home by giving them a welcome package when they move in.

Get tenants to renew their lease with a gift basket in York PA

In this welcome package, you might include things like:

  • Take-out menus for nearby restaurants
  • Maps of the surrounding area
  • Lists of local entertainment hot spots and shopping areas
  • Coupons to use at the nearby grocery store
  • Cleaning supplies or small home decorations
  • A list of utility contacts

Lastly, give your tenants a copy of the contact information they’ll need if they run into any problems.  For instance, numbers for the maintenance crew, 24-hour emergency hotline, and your property manager are helpful.

Welcoming your tenants to your rental property shows them you care.  And this feeling will likely last until the end of the lease term, which can lead to a lease renewal.

 

2. Be Proactive About Lease Renewals

It can be confusing to know who should start the lease renewal process, especially if you’re a new landlord.

The last thing you want to do is force a tenant to find a new place to live because they weren’t sure you’d be offering a renewal.

Get tenants to renew their lease proactively in York PA

Be proactive when the end of your tenant’s lease nears by doing the following:

  • Send out a renewal offer in advance to let your tenant know you’d like them to stay
  • Give a tenant satisfaction survey so you can fix small things that might encourage them to renew
  • Ask to meet with your tenant so you can discuss any changes to the renewal lease agreement

In addition, research local rent rates to make sure what you’re charging is lower than similar properties.  This provides your tenants an incentive to sign a renewal with you rather than deal with moving to a more expensive place.

Need help deciding whether the rent rate you have is good or not?  Get in touch with your York, PA property management company and receive a Free Rental Analysis.

With a rental analysis, you can make sure you’re maximizing your ROI.  But better than that, you can ensure you’re offering your tenants a great deal they won’t want to turn down.

 

3. Keep Up on Property Maintenance

One of the biggest complaints tenants have is slow maintenance and repair response times.

After all, your tenants call your rental property home.  They don’t want to deal with broken appliances, worn out flooring, or leaky faucets.

Owning a rental property is not just about collecting rent each month and enjoying your financial freedom.  Your tenants want to enjoy their lives too.

Take it upon yourself to have a solid maintenance and repair process in place that you and your tenants can follow.

Proper maintenance helps keep tenants leased in York PA

In fact, follow these best practices when dealing with maintenance and repair requests:

  • Have a Rolodex of reliable contractors on hand to help with repairs
  • Use a property management company that has an on-staff maintenance crew
  • Make sure there’s a 24/7 hotline or contact tenants can reach out to in the case of an emergency
  • Perform routine inspections of your property and handle all the minor things before they become costly
  • Make it easy for tenants to request small repairs (g. use an online portal)

If you really want to make your tenants feel at home, you might even consider letting them make some temporary changes to the property.  For example, let you tenants paint their kid’s room or plant some flowers in the backyard.

These things can be easily changed if your tenants ever decide to leave.  But giving your tenants the freedom to make your rental feel a little more like home can get them to want to sign a lease renewal.

 

4. Provide an Incentive

Having a good tenant in your York, PA rental property is not always easy to come by.  To get tenants to renew their lease, try offering them an incentive to stay.

There are plenty of ways to convince people to keep leasing from you:

  • Offer a discount on the current rent rate
  • Give your tenant’s a deal on the first month’s rent
  • Pay back a small part of your tenant’s security deposit over time
  • Offer to pay a small utility such as the internet
  • Agree to replace an outdated appliance such as the washer or dryer with a new energy efficient one
  • Hand over some gift cards to a local restaurant

The type of incentive you provide will depend on how competitive the market is at the time.  After all, you don’t want to lose out on monthly income, but you also don’t want to lose a good tenant.

Sometimes the best way to get tenants to renew their lease is to reward them in exchange for a lease renewal.  Although you may seem some income loss, having a good tenant renew can be worth the cost of having to place a new tenant.

 

Final Thoughts

Are you looking for qualified York property management to help you get tenants to renew their lease?   If so, contact York H-G Properties today.

We know what it takes to generate a positive cash flow for our property owners.  We also know how to keep their tenants satisfied and wanting to sign lease renewals.  At York H-G Property Management, we have things like 24/7 on call maintenance crews, an easy to use tenant portal for paying rent, and friendly property managers dedicated to working with tenants no matter what they need.

Get Tenants to Renew Their Lease Again in York PA

No to mention, we’re knowledgeable about the current market, understand how to make your property competitive, and strive to make your tenants feel like home when they lease from you.

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Scroll to Top

Property Owners

Portal access for owners of rental properties managed by York H-G Properties

Tenant

Portal access for tenants of rental properties managed by York H-G Properties

Homeowners

Portal access for homeowners in an Homeowners or Condo Association managed by York H-G Properties