What do you think are the two biggest concerns for a Landlord, Manager or Property Owner? These are the two things that are first and foremost on any Landlord's mind when they are considering you as a potential Tenant.If your first thought is "What do I care, I got my own problems!" then let me remind you that this is Tip 4 Tenants... I have a Tip to share that benefits YOU.
It is probably pretty obvious that one of the biggest concerns a Landlord has when renting a property, is determining if you can afford the rent and have the ability to pay on time.
The second one is whether or not you will take good care of the property. Of course I realize that you may be thinking that all Landlords don't even take good care of their properties, and this is true. But that is not what I'm talking to you about this time, I'll talk about that another time.
So, you have two major concerns on the other side of the table, receiving the full rent on time and having tenant that does not damage the property. How can you benefit from knowing this? This Tip says "it's OK to negotiate", that doesn't mean that there is a loser and a winner. This is about both sides winning! Let me give you a possible way to benefit as a Tenant, simply by doing what you are supposed to be doing in the first place. Pay on time and take care of the place.
No honest Tenant ever plans on missing their rent payments or damaging a rental unit. But there is a reason these are big concerns for the Landlord, it happens. So, here is my negotiating tip;
Offer to give, before you receive!
If it is a discounted rent you are looking for, instead of saying "If you could lower the rent by $X per month, then I'll take care of the little maintenance issues that come up so you don't have to and I'll never pay late", try turning the same situation around by asking something like this; " If I am not late on any rent payments for X months in a row and your inspection shows that I have taken care of minor repair and maintenance issues instead of calling you to do it, would you then give me $X off of my future rent as long as I continue to pay on time and take care of the minor maintenance that comes up?"
Try this the next time you are applying to rent a property, and see for yourself that many Landlords are willing to agree to concessions simply because they aren't very optimistic that it will actually happen. They don't know it yet, but you are different... you are a HomeOwner in Training!
P.S. Always get agreements IN WRITING.
Try this the next time you are applying to rent a property, and see for yourself that many Landlords are willing to agree to concessions simply because they aren't very optimistic that it will actually happen. They don't know it yet, but you are different... you are a HomeOwner in Training!
P.S. Always get agreements IN WRITING.
