For Rent Advertising

[Matt S]

Anyone do anything different then craigslist and zillow? And have let neighbors know it is available and offered a referral fee. I have a fairly nice 3/2 for rent in a decent part of town and am not getting a lot of activity on it. I thought things would pick up closer to June 1st but they haven't.

I don't do yard signs. And I don't put the address on the internet postings. Any other ideas on increasing activity?

[Aly W.]

I create my ad in www.postlets.com, and it syndicates the ad out to all kinds of sites - Hot Pads, Trulia, Zillow, etc. Sites I've never even heard of. You get the option of copying/pasting the HTML from Postlets into craigslist, to make a really sharp ad.

I never post the property number, only the street and the cross street, for my SFRs. Since they're vacant single family homes, I don't want people scoping them out, possibly trying to break in. I don't use For Rent signs either for that reason.

When someone calls for a viewing, I tell them to call again half an hour before their appointment time and then I'll give them the address. Making them confirm saves time in going over there, cuts way down on no-shows, and only the serious ones will do it.

Check craigslist for comparable properties and what they're renting for. I had about 30 people come and see my recently listed property, and it was rented in 2 weeks. Make sure the images you post are high quality, not blurry or dark.