You Bought A Rental Property With No Parking Area: Now What? | Nexus Property Management® Franchise

17 April 2024

USE CAUTION WHEN BUYING A RENTAL PROPERTY WITH LIMITED PARKING OPTIONS

One major goal everyone should have as property owners is to create hassle-free tenant experiences. If you’re providing the value you promised, tenants aren’t upset and that means there’s limited conflict and you can rest easy. The worst-case scenario is that there’s some issue that you just can’t fix, something that lingers, that just won’t go away and let your tenants forget that you exist. More often than not, lack of designated parking is that unscratchable itch.

HOW WILL NO PARKING AFFECT YOUR PROFITS?

There’s no doubt that tenants having to negotiate parking each time they come home will lead to headaches, but:

Will it affect your bottom line?
Is it going to make your property worth less?
Is it going to make it harder to rent?
Is it going to make it harder to keep tenants long term?

The answer to all of these…is YES! Your property is worth less because it will be harder to find qualified tenants and those that you do find will run out of patience and eventually find something that better suits their needs. The need to do rent ready turnovers more frequently will hurt your bottom line. It’s also very likely that the dissatisfaction tenants feel will lead to more maintenance requests. As Nexus’ Vice President of Franchise Sales, Greg Rice, puts it, “No parking is probably the worst thing that you can have working against you”. Based on his experience in leasing, as an office general manager, and as an owner of over 80 rental units, parking is typically the first question potential tenants have.

If you have a property without parking you MUST consider that you’re going to have higher turnover, lower rent, CONSTANT COMPLAINTS, and it’s going to haunt you.

LEARN MORE: HOW TO HANDLE TENANT PARKING DISPUTES AT YOUR RENTAL PROPERTY

WHAT’S THE SOLUTION?

As is often the case, the best solution is to plan ahead and this means being cognizant of how the parking situation will affect your income potential BEFORE YOU PURCHASE the property. Markets will ebb and flow and headlines might suggest that you can get a certain amount just because of recent trends, but there is a ceiling for every property. Be it bedrooms that are too small, the absence of closet space, no parking, or some other functional obsolescence, you need to consider how the shortcomings of a property should affect the purchase price. Limited parking solutions is something you can better tackle if you’ve paid a price that takes into account that perpetual conflict.

Additionally, effective communication and empathy around this issue can help you build a relationship with your tenants that reminds them that you are well aware of this inconvenience, but it’s just one with limited solutions. Anything you can do to create any added consistency around this issue will go a long way.

LEARN MORE: THE HIDDEN VALUE OF UNDERSTANDING A LANDLORD’S RELATIONSHIP WITH TENANTS

AND THE OTHER SOLUTION: HAVE AN EXPERT IN YOUR CORNER

This is an issue Nexus Property Management®, and other professional property managers, tackle regularly if they manage rental units in urban areas. Hiring, or even consulting with, a professional is a great way to benefit from the experience of others. We want what’s best for property owners and their tenants so please reach out to any of our offices to learn more.

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Mick Lefort is the Vice President of Operations for Nexus Property Management®. A National Property Management Franchise that manages all types of rental property from single family homes or condos to large apartment buildings and complexes.

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