Today’s blog topic is marketing a rental home, and there are a number of ways to advertise your property to potential tenants.
Online Marketing
In Grand Rapids, there is an organization called the Rental Property Owners Association. If you’re not working with a professional Grand Rapids property management company, it’s a good idea to join this association. You will get a lot of resources, including the proper forms to use, and you’ll get answers to a lot of questions that you might have, such as how to evict.
Another valuable resource of the association is the network they use for marketing. Any time you advertise your rental property through this group, it goes out to over 30 different websites, including popular sites like Trulia and Zillow. You’ll get exposure on small sites as well as large sites.
Craigslist is a little bit different because you have to keep up with your ads frequently. To stay on top of the rental list, you need to delete your ad and re-post it often. The Rental Property Owners Association has a Craigslist Helper, which turns this into a 30 second process and ensures your ad is reposted.
Yard Sign
A professional and attractive yard sign is also a good marketing idea. This will generate leads when people walk or drive by. You can go to a hardware store and buy a $2 sign and write on it with magic marker, but that can look tacky. The sign should represent what’s inside the house, so spend the money on a nice, professionally printed sign.
Neighbors
Let the neighbors know the house is available for rent. The people next door are going to want good neighbors that they like and get along with, so they might be able to refer people they know who are looking to rent.
If you have any questions about marketing, or you’d like to hear more about specific strategies, please contact us at United Properties for help.
Sergio joined United Properties in 2020. He is a graduate from Pickens Technical College as a Nurse Assistant and as a Small Animal Care Provider in 2010. In the past nine years, Sergio has had various jobs, all focused around customer service.
Eden joined United Properties in 2016. Eden graduated from Davenport University in 2015 with an Associate’s in Business Administration. She’s the Executive Assistant to the Owner of United Properties, with a focus on procedural documentation. She enjoys playing guitar, reading, and doing outdoor activities. Eden is trilingual and able to communicate in English, Spanish, and American Sign Language. 
David joined the United Properties team in 2019 as the Director of Client Relations and Business Development. In this capacity, he is responsible for leading all leasing, application underwriting, tenant relations, accounts receivable, process improvement, remote workers, and general office functionality (essentially anything outside of maintenance and service). David comes from a longstanding career at a Fortune 15 company primarily in a sales and customer service leadership role.
Tim VandenToorn serves as Managing Partner of United Properties of West Michigan, working closely with our owners and overseeing the day-to-day operations of the company. Tim also started United Realty, which serves as a brokerage for United Properties and assists investors with the acquisition of investment properties.
Matthew joined the United Properties in early 2020. He is a graduate of Lee University with a bachelor’s in Intercultural Studies and also a master’s in Discipleship and Christian Formation. Matthew serves as a project manager over the Rent Ready process. He has 20 years of construction experience and over 10 years of experience in leadership positions. He oversees a team of technicians and schedules outside vendors getting properties back to the United rent-ready standard so that they can be leased again.
Carla joined United Properties in late 2019 as a billing specialist. Carla ensures invoices are received from contractors and bills them out in a timely fashion.
Cristina joined United Properties as the billing assistant in October of 2020. She has experience as a technology professional, an English-Spanish translator, and has worked the past several years as the treasurer of her condominium.
Rick is one of the newest members of our team. He has an extensive background in customer service. He and his wife are raising their 4-year-old son. Rick loves beef jerky so much he makes his own.
Harriet joined United Properties as a billing assistant in February of 2021. She has experience as a bookkeeper and a Property Manager for a Real Estate account. She was a working student during her college days. Harriet loves cleaning because she thinks it is therapeutic. She also loves watching series during her free time, and she’s a fur mom of one dog. Her inspiration to work every day is her family.
Diego has an extensive background in customer service and, most recently in Maintenance and
My name is Paulina Gonzalez. I have been working for the company since early 2021. I studied social work and have 7 years of experience in customer service. I speak English and Spanish. I am very patient, and I like to ask a lot of questions to learn a lot. I enjoy small road trips and cold rainy weather. I have a 3-month-old puppy, and he is my favorite thing in the world.
Jessica has a Bachelor’s Degree in Financial strategies and public accounting and is studying a masters in Blockchain and Fintech regulation. She has previous experience as a customer service representative. She speaks English and Spanish. She loves taking long walks with her three dogs, hiking and road tripping during the weekends.
Chris Good is new to the United Properties Team since June 2022 as a Business Development Manager. With years of experience in both the construction industry (Master Electrician) and the Real Estate industry (Broker), he will closely work with new and experienced investors to facilitate their real estate goals.
Melba Alvarez
Enrique Vergara (Henry)
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