5 key tips to grow a lettings business
In this post, Owner of Synergy Forward and Managing Director of Ultralets, Spencer, shares his 5 top tips for growing a letting agents (in order of difficult to most difficult 😂) Let’s get to it - over to you Spencer!
It’s probably nothing you don’t already know, but focusing the mind on them has helped me massively over the last few years.
1 - Attract existing landlords to move other properties in their portfolio to you
This can only be achieved by working on the quality of your service over time and tempting them when the time feels right, not pestering. It’s a slow burn but a solid way to grow high quality business. You’ll be shocked about how many of your clients have other properties either self managed or with other agents.
2 - Take stress away for self managing landlords
Self managing is becoming more and more of a pain, and is usually done to save cost but with legislation increasing and rental incomes on the up it’s becoming easier to justify the cost of using an agent to manage property. In my experience these landlords tend to be impressed by hassle free solutions (works teams, compliance tracking, legislation updates) Not ability to let houses fast.
3 - Create your customers (my favourite)
There are a lot of people with a lot of money out there, you have access to a property market and an infrastructure (your business) that can enable an investor to drop the money into the market and let you drive the profits for them.
Find the people…
Demonstrate the opportunity…
Attract them to invest ✅
4 - Takeover management from other agents but be careful
Landlords are surprisingly loyal to their agents, even ones that they have had sustained bad service from. Sometimes it's better the devil you know…
Make sure the process of switching is hassle free, and explain how, regularly.
It’s likely you'll spend a bit of time in the early stages sorting problems out for them but in the long run it’s unlikely they will move if the service is right.
I spoke to a landlord recently who thought it was ILLEGAL to move agent if they had found a tenant for the property. This is false and proves there is a need for more regular info being shared..
Look out for hoppers 🐸⚠️ There are a small percentage of bad landlords that hop through several agents in a short space of time because well frankly, the agents aren’t the issue.
5 - Acquiring other businesses as early in your journey as you can
Probably the most difficult of them all, firstly you need capacity within your business to take on another full customer base overnight and deliver an equivalent or better service. You’ll need good established connections and relationships with other agents in your area
So slandering on valuations is a NO
And when going head to head for new business, being gracious in victory and defeat in equal measures is essential
Tbh just work with the wider agent community as if you are a team!
(Of course you need to know how to acquire and understand the process of due diligence and business transfer. It can all be learned though!)
Hope this helps!