Keep your Long-Term Tenants.

Long-term tenants = long-term cash.

Now you have tenants in your property how do you keep them happy so that they will become long-term tenants?

The most effective way is by building a good relationship. It costs a lot of money whenever a tenant moves out so it would make sense to retain your tenant for as long as possible. It takes roughly 5-times as much to replace tenants, as it does to keep them, so put some effort into keeping your tenants happy.

Or think of it this way, if you have a tenant in your property for 10 years and they are paying you $2000 per month, that's $240,000 they have paid you! If they haven't paid off the property by themselves, then they have made a very large dent into the mortgage.

Respect their Needs.

If they have young children and the property isn't fenced, would it make sense to add a fence (investigate if this would add value to your property)? Or if you have a professional single woman in your property, adding security lights might be a nice touch. You don't have to go way above and beyond but if you are considering adding items to your property, then it might be wise to consult your tenants to see which they would prefer.

Maybe updated curtains, new light fixtures, or some help in the garden would be what the tenant would prefer. Make a list of what you are willing to do and let them choose.

Respect doesn't just mean you are doing improvements on the property.  It means being aware of who they are. When you are scheduling a house inspection make sure you understand what would be convenient for THEM. If they have children at school, don't schedule an inspection during the winter school holidays. If they are professionals, then 10am on a Monday morning probably wouldn't be convenient. 

Always keep in mind that this maybe your house, but it is your tenant's home. So act like a good Bartender!

Keep the property fresh. Winter is the miserable time of year and when mildew and mould turn a cosy house into something that looks less appealing and has your tenants considering other options. You might be surprised to find that tenants often will move because they think the property is dirty and unpleasant looking. 

Consider once a year to help out with a bit of a 'spring clean' -  attacking the garden, cleaning the mould and mildew and laundering the curtains. Cleaning these things can go a long way for good will. It also gives you the opportunity to get in there and perform any regular maintenance.

It really doesn't take too much to encourage long-term tenants. These things won't guarantee you will keep them - circumstances will change for your tenants. But by treating all tenants like potential long-term tenants, then you have a better shot of them actually turning into those long-term gems.

What do you do to try and encourage your tents to stay put?