Finding Tenants

[Barrett Richie]

Howdy!

I am new to the real estate investing world and am seeking some advise on how to find tenants for a newly acquired property. Myself and two partners just recently closed on a duplex in Houston, TX. We plan on renting it out to lower income individuals, but this being our first purchase, we are unsure on the best method to market our new place. Any advice would be helpful!

Also, a contractor we have hired to oversee the rehab process recommended we rent the units out to Section 8 eligible tenants. I have tried researching how to begin the process on renting out to Section 8 tenants using HUD's website, but the website hasn't helped much. I would be grateful for any advice from those who have been through the process before!

Thanks in advance for the help!

Barrett

[Cuong Le]

Hi @Barrett Richie and congrats on your first purchase! Very exciting! The tried and true method we've always used is the "For Rent" sign and phone number. If you haven't already done so, setup your Google voice number so messages can go into your inbox in case you can't pick it. There are some blogs on BP about this which you can look into more.

Also, take lots of clean, clear pictures of the property so you can post them on Craigslist (which is free and will need to refresh every week so it can stay toward the top) and Postlets. Postlets is free and will syndicate your ad to other real estate venues like zillow, trulia, social media and more.

Honestly, this should be all you need if your property is clean, functional and priced at or below market. If you don't get any calls or very little the first week, your price is too high. Drive around and call other for rent signs if any to get a feel of the price or ask your agent to get recent rent comps within your area.

We don't do Section 8 but there should be a local housing authority that processes section 8 application/checks, etc. Good luck and let us know when you've rented it out.