Hi I’m a first time landlord I advertised my flat 10 days ago & so far I’ve had 8 viewing requests but 6 of them haven’t bothered to turn up & the other two weren’t eligible.
I’ve got a 1st floor flat with a pensioner living below. I would like someone who’s working so why do people keep saying they’re interested, booking a viewing then not bother to turn up.
Hi Stuart,
It’s disappointing to hear you have booked viewings with tenants and they have not turned up.
One thing we recommend doing (if you aren’t already) is booking viewings using your enquiries page:
https://www.openrent.co.uk/listingmanager/properties
The tenant is then notified of the booking details you enter, as well as receiving a reminder around 2 hours before the scheduled viewing time. They also have a facility to cancel the viewing, which you would get notified of.
There is no charge for using this facility, and it typically reduces the number of no-shows.
Please do let us know if we can help with anything else.
Kind regards,
George
Thanks George, all enquiries were booked through the app as appointments with date & time. I even spoke to 2 of them who seemed keen but then didn’t turn up.
I tried texting to see if there was a problem but no reply.
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As a tenant I am sorry for this happening. Some people are just jerks with no manners. Myself, went to view a place and the landlord double booked… Not fun seeing a place with someone else interested. Needless to say, didn’t get it.
Wish you luck in renting and your next tenant
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Hi Stuart,
Sorry to hear this - I’m sure it’s quite frustrating.
If you don’t already do this, it’s always best to check in with prospective tenants in the hours leading up to ensure that they’re able to visit the property. In the event they don’t, the ‘Reject Enquiry’ button is the way to go. You can always revive the enquiry at a later date if the tenant touches base and you’re happy to re-arrange.
Any questions about how enquiries work, just let me know.
George
Thanks Saul, I may drop the price a bit to get a few more enquiries & hopefully a decent tenant…
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Yes that happens all the time to me. But no love lost as tenants who don’t turn up probably won’t make good tenants, also not serious enough. Sometimes a tenant may have fallen out with their partner and think they want to move, before making back up.
Stuart is right by saying call or text them in advance and make sure they are on there way.
I also ask questions before I allow them to book as it saves wasting time on unsuitable people.
Questions…
Where do you live now and who with, or general living conditions
Do you need to give notice
Confirm you will require references if they choose to go ahead with the rental
You can general get an idea of who is serious about moving and the time scale they have.
If they seem hesitant I ask if they want to have a think about it and call me back.
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Thanks Tracey, some useful advice.
Stuart
Just a follow-up for anyone who’s interested. After the initial couple of weeks of no shows the weather got better & I started getting viewings.
All were impressed with the condition of the flat & it appears the photos which I took myself looked a bit dark & dingy so lesson learned I’ll get them done professionally next time.
I now have a nice young couple early 20’s as tenants. he’s a postman & she’s studying finance & banking at Uni.
Hi Stuart, thanks for the update — really glad to hear you found some nice tenants!
You make a good point about the photos. It’s true that landlords can often let a property perfectly fine by taking some sensible pictures of the property after tidying, etc.
But professional pictures have less tangible benefits and I think that tenants keeping viewing is one of them. Great pictures get tenants excited about the property so they’re excited to view it.
Interesting to here your theory about the weather, too. Not thought about it before, but I think you could be right!
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