Study Reveals What Renters Want: A Must-Read for Landlords

As a landlord, you must often wonder “What do renters want in an apartment?” In fact, this is a question you need to be asking as you search for a profitable rental property for sale and as you set up your management plan.

And while you may think you have a good grasp on what renters want in a rental property and what they’d be willing to pay more for, a new study reveals that landlords and tenants are not always on the same page. 

Millionacres, a real estate investing service by The Motley Fool, set out to answer the question of what renters want as well as determine if landlords really do know what is most important to renters. 

1,500 renters and 136 landlords from across the US rental market participated in the survey and here’s what Millionacres uncovered:

What Renters Want – Landlords Were Right About a Few Things

Landlords were asked about the following features and property amenities and if they thought renters would be willing to pay higher rents for each of them:

• A convenient location and nice neighborhood
• A pool or gym on the premises of the rental property
• A larger rental property
• Parking
• Modern building and appliances
• Air conditioning
• Utilities included
• Safety and accessibility features

As it turns out, their answers mostly matched those of the tenants surveyed.

Related: 6 Neighborhood Amenities for a Successful Residential Investment Property

But Here’s What Landlords Didn’t Know About Renters’ Desires

This is the must-read part – there were a few things that landlords assumed renters didn’t value or would pay more for when, in reality, renters felt differently.

The renters surveyed said the following was important to them:

• Convenience and flexibility when it comes to rent payment options
• Parking for their guests
• Flexibility when it comes to lease agreements

The renters surveyed revealed that the following was not as important to them as the landlords thought:

• A pet-friendly rental property
• Close proximity to good schools

The study also revealed something interesting: tenants would rather pay more for the amenities and features they desire. Meaning, they would sacrifice affordability as long as the rental property offered certain desirable amenities.

The Bottom Line

What do renters look for? As it turns out, you may not always be on the same page as your tenants. Owning a rental property and successfully earning an income from it relies on knowing your tenants and what they want. Keeping up with current trends and tenants’ needs and wants will go a long way in helping you with rental property management and finding the right tenants for you.

Know what tenants want but still need to find that perfect rental property for them? Find it in 15 minutes with Mashvisor.