If you have a house for rent, how do you go about determining the right rental price? On one hand, you want to make money on your rental. On the other hand, you don’t want your rental price to be so high that your house for rent simply sits on the market, empty. Read on for some tips on setting the right rent. These guidelines will help you determine a fair market value when you list your house for rent and will ensure that you get the best rates possible.

Where to start

There’s no better place to start when looking for rental prices than with your local Sunday paper. The classified section of the local Sunday paper traditionally contains multiple “House for Rent” listings and will give you a good idea of rental rates in your area.

Begin by surveying locations. Most classified sections group “House for Rent” listings according to geographic area. Location is your number one guide for value, so find the area of town where your rental sits and look at the corresponding classified section. Next, look for houses that contain the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms as your rental. Write down the different rental prices listed for each house. This will give you a rough estimate of the range for your rent price.

Location advantages

Once you have a range to work with, think about the advantages your rental property has based on its location. Is the house close to public schools? Are you near a trendy neighborhood or district? Is there a university within biking distance? Is your neighborhood particularly scenic? Are you close to a popular shopping area? Do you have easy access to the freeway or to public transportation? Is there a hospital nearby? All of these features have the potential to increase your rental price.

In order to determine which features are most likely to increase the rental price of your property, you need to think about who is most likely to rent your house. If your town is considered a college town with a particularly large number of students, then having a rental house close to the university is something that works in your favor. If your town is growing in its retirement population and the majority of renters tend to be in the over-60 crowd, then being close to things like hospitals or golf courses will help boost your rent rate.

Consider the market

Consider current market factors when listing your house for rent. If your city is experiencing a “buyer’s market” where interest rates are low and there are plenty of houses to choose from, then there may be a shortage of renters. When possible, most people prefer to buy instead of rent because of the equity potential and tax advantages. If you’re facing a buyer’s market, then you may have to consider listing your house for rent on the lower end of the range you’ve set.

If you’re in a seller’s market, the opposite is true. When interest rates are high and there is a shortage of available properties, more people will be looking to rent houses instead of buying them outright. This gives you the advantage of listing your rental rate at the higher end of your range.

Network with other landlords

It’s a good idea to join a landlord association or to meet up with your local apartment owners association so you can share rental rate information with other landlords. If you’ve set a rental rate but find that your property is still not renting, talking to other landlords may help you determine your problem. It’s possible that your rent rate is too high. If your rate isn’t any higher than the rates of other landlords you meet, then you can evaluate whether there is a separate problem with your property that is preventing renters from wanting your house.

Sprucing up your rental property

When you decide to list a house for rent, you need to first make sure the house is suitable for renters. For starters, the house needs to be clean. Give the house a thorough scrubbing, complete with washing the carpets and cleaning up the yard, before you even consider showing it to renters. Make sure the house is in a “finished” state. In other words, make sure face plates cover all light switches and that there are no unfinished projects that leave wires or pipes exposed in the house.

Evaluating your rental property

If your house is clean and in good shape but you continue to have trouble renting it – even after verifying that your rental rates are appropriate – then you need to consider other potential home improvements. It’s a good idea to have someone walk through the house with you to point out the things they do and don’t like about the house. Sometimes it’s hard to recognize faults in a house you know well or have come to love. Listen to your friend’s comments and make adjustments accordingly.  If he or she says your house is particularly dark, that may be the factor that is keeping renters at bay. Consider putting in a window or adding more overhead lighting. If your friend points out that your house is painted in bright or unusual colors, consider repainting it with neutral tones. Sometimes a little trial and error is all it takes to successfully put up a house for rent.