This year, and the last year, presented challenging and unique reasons for a tenant leaving their home. Be it a natural calamity or a global pandemic, the number of tenants changing their minds about their dwellings is becoming an alarming problem for landlords around the country. Having the best property won’t ensure you succeed in an uncertain market.
These are situations you don’t control. As a landlord, you’ll face problems you didn’t expect beforehand, which may impact your tenancy services. That said, to prevent a problem, you must first acknowledge its existence.
Here are four reasons why tenants leave.
- They Can’t Afford the Rent
Financial concerns are often the number one reason tenants leave a house. As a landlord, it may be in your best interest to increase the rent of your house. However, are you aware that it’s more expensive to look for a new tenant than keep one on the same rent? To look for a new tenant, you have to advertise your property and repair damages previous tenants left behind.
Moreover, you’ll also have to pay your house’s bills and all other dues since no one is living in the house. Sticking with the current tenant can be more cost-efficient in some cases, so how does one find the middle ground?
If you have a vacant home available at a more affordable price, offer your tenant that unit instead. If they want to live in that same unit, however, strike a deal where you offer to lower their rent for a few months and bring it back up again. This way, they’ll have the time to save for the raised rent price, and you won’t lose money by losing a good tenant.
- Their Apartment is Too Small
A tenant may also move because their apartment is too small. Childbirth, marriage, starting a business, or adopting a pet can all be good reasons a tenant wants an extra bedroom, one more bathroom, a bigger kitchen, or more storage space in their backyard. There are two possible solutions to this problem:
- Offer them a larger unit: If you have larger options available, let the tenant move into one and let them know the space bump comes with a rent bump, too.
- Offer them an upgrade: Even if their current unit is small, you may persuade them to stay by offering to upgrade their existing apartment. Redo a bathroom, swap out or remove a carpet, or add stainless steel appliances in their kitchen. This may get them to overlook the smaller space.
- Not Happy With the Condition of the Property
Yikes!
A lot of property managers are saying that as a landlord, this is one situation you must avoid at all costs, especially if you want to continue renting it out in the future. The silver lining in this story is that this problem can be easily fixed. Moreover, a tenant highlighting this issue can prove to be a wake-up call for your business. That said, you must listen to them!
Offer to solve any of their concerns and implement a consistent maintenance program to stay on top of the small inconveniences before they become major catastrophes.
- Relocating
Some tenants may want to move because they’ve received a job offer in a different state or a country. This new job may be giving them a higher salary because they may want to move. This reason can force a tenant to move out. This can be a good thing in some cases if the person relocating is coming to you.
However, it can also be a bad thing if one of your tenants has to relocate quickly. In this case, there is little you can do. You will have to find another tenant in their place. That said, if your tenant is moving because they can now afford to a nicer apartment, you can offer to make improvements in their existing apartment for a small rent increase.
Wrapping Up
There are several other reasons tenants move out since 2021, provided many of them. That said, even in a catastrophic situation like such, it is possible to ensure your tenants stay put. Just listen to their complaints and solve the problems you can – no one wants to leave a caring landlord (or property manager)!
