The New Landlord: Photographing your Rental

The New Landlord: Photographing your Rental Home.
Our marketing director gives a few tips on successful online rental property marketing.

Advertising your home properly will increase your annual rental income

Without a proper marketing strategy for your rental home, vacancy time can be one of your most costly expenses. The classic rental investment strategy includes a buffer of up to 10% of your gross rental income to be set aside for vacancy costs. For example- if your home rents for $1,000 per month, this could be up to (or more than) $1,200 per year in vacancy costs. 

Of course, your mortgage doesn't stop when your tenants vacate. Your best course of action is to begin advertising your home at least 30 days prior to the vacancy.

Proper Lighting can make
or break a photo! 

A huge majority of our Pensacola area renters and buyers first find their new home online. If you want prospects to be drawn in to your home over others (I think it’s safe to say we all do), taking plenty of attractive photos of your home is the first step in developing a successful marketing plan.

Top Photo Mistakes
We recently read an article from Trulia that gives us a look at a few top errors that could portray your property in a bad light. Here's a summary of the top 4 photo mistakes their experts see with examples.

1. Having one photo or no photos at all leave the prospect uneasy. Technology has advanced far too much for this! Renters will skip over your home and move on to the next. 



2. Improperly using light to showcase your photos can totally change the way it's interpreted. 

3. Missing pictures of any or all of the following leave people wondering and unsure: Bathrooms, Closets, Kitchens, Outdoor living spaces, Unique add-ons.

Cluttered rooms shouldn't be advertised

4. Not having rooms cleared out before you snap your photos may make the home appear chaotic which reflects bad on the owner/property manager.  See the dining room picture for example- This beautiful $1,200 home features awesome hardwood floors and an open floor plan. But you can't look past the random boxes and clutter to see that. 

Marketing your home properly can either make you (or cost you) income!  While pictures are only one part of the process, they are certainly vital to successful advertising.

Don't let this happen to your home! 

At Realty Masters, we list our Pensacola rental homes with a comprehensive online marketing plan for each home with 20+ photos of each home. Our homes rent, on average, in less than 30 days from the date of posting. In the past 60 days, we have rented 70 homes which makes us the #1 leasing company in Escambia and Santa Rosa county. If you or someone you know is having trouble renting your home or you just want a helping hand call the experts at Realty Masters! (850) 473-3983. 

Perfect lighting is necessary
for good advertising photos!

This is the second article of our new blog series "The New Landlord: Tips & Tricks for the Profitable Landlord."

Make sure to follow our blog for more free advice on how to be an effective landlord!  Do you have any questions for us? Feel free to ask us your Pensacola Property Management Questions!  Email them to Nicoles@PensacolaRealtyMasters.com or give our office a call at (850) 473-3983.

If you are looking for a Pensacola rental, make sure to browse our Pensacola rentals on our home website.

Thanks and have a great day,
Nicole St. Aubin, Broker Associate
Realty Masters of FL~ #1 in Pensacola Rental Homes!
4400 Bayou Blvd. #58B, Pensacola, FL 32503
Call us at (850) 473-3983
Over 45 Pensacola Rental Homes at www.PensacolaRealtyMasters.com
Like us on facebook ~ Follow our pins ~ Watch our videos