First Rental Listing - When to drop the rent?

Question

I listed my first property 2 weeks ago at 1750 (a little wishful thinking) and heard crickets. After a week I dropped it down to 1600 and made sure it was listed on all major platforms.

After the first drop, I have been contacted by about 30 prospective tenants (only 3 from Zillow, everything else from Facebook)

Only 4 of them filled out the pre-screening form. Of those 4, only 1 was qualified and they ghosted me on the day of the showing.

We're house hacking this property so I'm being careful about screening, which may be a turn off for some potential tenants. (6 questions pre-screening form, followed by a short phone screen and set up showing before requesting application)

We aren't in a crazy rush to get this filled, as the mortgage is manageable and we're using it as our residence, but after a week at our lower price I am considering dropping it again.

Another concern I have is how 90% of the inquiries I get are from Facebook. I assume there are more people casually looking on Facebook that take it less seriously. 0 leads from the other big platforms besides Zillow is leading me to believe that my rent is still too high for serious applicants.

Thanks

Russell Brazil · Answer

Sounds like that 1 price drop got you into the right pricing bucket.

Clayton Plummer · Answer

@dylangreytak - If you haven't already, I would look into an app like rentometer.com and see what similar units are renting for in the Tampa area.

I think BP offers a similar tool if you are a Pro.

Try to find the same beds/baths as the one you are trying to rent.  Rent yours for like $5 cheaper than the market average.  So, if the average is 1500/mo, go for 1495. . .  You're not really giving anything up and it makes yours more attractive.

Definitely agree with sticking to your guns on the tenant that ultimately rents your place.  Don't settle (it doesn't sound like you will).

Otherwise, good luck!