The end of the year gives most of us a chance to wind down and really kick into holiday mode, but the same can’t be said for many Australian renters and landlords.
January is consistently the busiest time on realestate.com.au for renters. In fact, in January 2019 we had over 20 million visits to our rent section, according to Adobe Analytics.
This emphasises the importance for property management agencies to have a clear attraction strategy and 2020 growth plan ready in time for the peak January period.
The way your listings appear remains the best way of attracting new landlords to your business. Our research shows landlords seek three key things when looking for a property manager:
- 38 per cent seek agents who have similar properties to theirs
- 25 per cent look for agents listing in the same suburb as their property
- 21 per cent look for agents with the best quality photography and presentation
As we move into this busy period, we’re encouraging our customers to ensure their listings are presented to the best possible standard, including the use of professional on-point photography.
Ninety-five per cent of prospective tenants will use photos to help decide whether or not they attend an open for inspection.
We also know that 84 per cent of landlords are willing to spend money on styling or renovating their investment property, so speak to your landlord if improvements need to be made before advertising.
To really stand out to the largest audience of landlords in this busy period, it’s also key to update your realestate.com.au agency and agent profiles. This will help to position you to potential new customers searching for a property manager.
To ensure a good experience for tenants and landlords, make sure you always think about convenience, speed and privacy. Consumers want personalised information and quick informative responses. They also share a lot of information such as personal details, address, contact details and bank details, and they want to know their data is kept safe.
At realestate.com.au, we’re doing everything we can to ensure the January peak is as smooth as possible for property management customers and renters.
1form is still one of the most powerful tools you can use to achieve this and has been a time-saver for both tenants and property managers for many years.
Last January, we saw a 13 per cent year-on-year increase in 1form applications. This is a great reminder that an easy online application process for tenants is key to delivering a great experience and securing tenants faster.
Privacy continues to be a major focus for our industry and we’re working to ensure that 1form continues to be one of the most trusted brands for tenants and property management agencies in Australia.
A key 1form change over the last few months was the addition of a two-factor authentication log-in process. More than half of all 1form customers now have two-factor authentication enabled on their accounts. If you’re not one of them, you can find more information on this change and how you can prepare here.
As we move into the new year, my advice would be to make sure you have your 2020 growth plan in place, as well as making sure you have 1form set-up and ready to do some of the heavy lifting for you.
Have a great start to 2020.
