Working with real estate landlords can help real estate agents build successful careers. However, unless you know why landlords want to work with a real estate agent, you will never know how to market to them or serve them. The following are some of the most important things landlords look for when choosing a realtor to help them lease their property.

Guidance

Whether a landlord has been leasing properties for their entire lives or this is their first home to rent, they may look to real estate agents for guidance and advice. After all, you have learned many aspects of renting a property that they likely have not studied. You may have learned these things in real estate school, online real estate courses, or in your daily experience as an agent. You can share your knowledge and insight with the landlord.

• Advice on how to follow the Fair Housing Act
• Recommendations on how to do their legal duties
• Guidance in marketing and writing the real estate ad
• Suggestions of what to put in the real estate leasing contract
• Tips on how to use social media in their leasing business
• Information and insight into the real estate market

As you make a presentation to a landlord, you need to remind them of all these types of advice and counsel you can offer them.

Assistance

One of the reasons tenants want to hire real estate agents is that they are busy people. They want someone to assist them with various parts of the leasing process. Remember that landlord clients will choose you more often if they know what you can do to make their life easier.

• Assistance with marketing the property
• Help with scheduling showings and showing properties
• Aid in screening tenants
• Help with leasing luxurious or upscale homes
• Oversee the lease agreement signing

When working with landlords, you may find that they are really not prepared to deal with all the many challenges of leasing on their own. They may not have the time or knowledge to cover all their bases. If you offer the right kinds of assistance, they will not only come to you again, but they will also refer their friends to you. If you make their business easier, they will return the favor.

Objectivity

Real estate agents can offer landlords something that they cannot manage by themselves – their objectivity. You can show landlords why your unbiased perspective can benefit them. Then, after they hire you, remember to weigh in on subjects that seem too close to the situation to understand fully.

• Recognizing the true condition of their property and the need for specific maintenance and repairs
• Realizing whether they are following the Fair Housing Act
• Seeing the true state of their local real estate market
• Insights into the value of their property based on facts rather than feelings

Connections

Landlords, especially new landlords, know they can benefit from a real estate agent’s network. Let them know about your connections in the community and among landlords and tenants. Show them how your relationships with related businesses can help them accomplish their goals. Consider everyone you know who could potentially help the landlord meet their objectives. Keep your database up to date and handy and show the landlord how you use it for them.

Professionalism

Landlords want to work with real estate agents who are true professionals. They want someone who dresses and behaves appropriately. They know that otherwise, the best tenants will reject their properties. They want someone who does things competently the first time. Landlords know this makes them look good, but they also recognize that mistakes can bring losses or legal issues.

Be a professional whenever working with real estate landlords. Start with real estate training courses and then hone your real estate skills even further. When you do, you will show your professionalism more naturally every day.

Results

What landlords want most from real estate agents are results. They may forgive other failures, but they will never want to work with an agent again if they don’t get acceptable results. The bottom line is that they want to lease their properties to people who will be good tenants. Help them get those results, and your own business will grow.

• Get responses to their marketing campaigns
• Bring in the most qualified tenants
• Fill all their vacancies
• Save money by only paying for results

Real estate agents can bring a wide range of benefits when working with landlords. You need to go farther than merely getting a real estate license to offer them more than the basics. You need to continue with real estate courses like Roadmap to Success: Landlords. Then, continue to build experience every day. In the meantime, show every landlord why you have what it takes to give them what they want.