1.Target vacation rentals sites that attract a lot of visitors : The larger sites invest more in advertising and hence are likely to attract more visitors. Generally, the more traffic a site gets, the more enquiries you will get, so it is worth considering the larger sites e.g. vrbo.com .You can use Google or one of the other search engines to get an indication of the most “searched” vacation rentals sites, but it’s worth also cross checking this with other indicators. For example, you can get an indication of the level of traffic that a particular site attracts at alexa.com .

However, keep in mind that a site with 10,000 listings need to attract 10 times as much traffic as one with 1,000 listings in order to have the same number of visitors per listing.

2.Ensure that the vacation rentals site addresses your target customers / geography : Some sites specifically target travellers to a specific region / country e.g. www.relaxinfranceonline.com. If your property is in an unusual location, you may want to consider a site that specializes in properties from that location. Also, some sites target potential renters in specific geographies, either through their advertising ( e.g. owners direct advertises to the UK market ) or by offering specific language support ( e.g. homelidays offers support in 7 different languages)

3.Consider vacation rentals sites that are user-friendly for renters. Some sites offer neat features, such as the ability to save “favorite” properties or search for properties that are available for specific dates. Some also allow renters to post and read testimonials e.g. homelidays . Some allow users to search by keyword ( e.g. vrbo.com ).

4.Ensure that the vacation rentals site is easy for you to use and update as an owner / advertiser. Most sites offer the ability for you to modify your listing and photos and allow you to update your availability calendar. Most also offer tracking of statistics, including the number of times your site was searched or viewed, as well as the email that you have received. This can be really valuable in assessing how effective the site is at attracting potential renters. (Of course, you still need to be able to convert those viewings into paying renters !)

5. Ensure that the vacation rentals site is cost effective: In general, you will pay more for the well established / larger sites, with annual advertisements typically around $125-$150 per year. This will easily pay for itself with even one successful rental, but you may want to shop around to determine the best value option. Some sites offer free trial periods and it it certainly worth trying those to determine if they result in enquiries. Rentalsfrance.com has an unusual pricing model that allows you to pay per enquiry or per week rather than the normal annual subscription.

6.List your vacation rental home on several vacation rentals site: Our research indicates that most vacation home owners list on at least 3 paid vacation rentals sites, as well as several free vacation rentals sites. Consider listing on one or two of the larger sites, plus perhaps a couple of specialist regional vacation rentals sites. An annual budget of $300 / year is still very cheap compared with other advertising options. Don’t forget to take advantage of sites offering trial offers, although usually these are “once in a lifetime” offers, so you won’t be able to this more than once.

7. Before renewing your vacation rental subscriptions, compare your cost per enquiry / cost per booking : This is the most effective overall measure of how effective an owner holiday / vacation property rental site is for your particular property.

1. Realize your Potential- In order to succeed as a real estate agent, you need to see that you have the potential to reach your goals.

2. Don’t Look Back- Everyone has failures or mistakes from the past. To have success in the real estate industry, you need to learn from those past mistakes and learn valuable lessons from them. After doing so, simply move forward and make better, more educated decisions from the lessons learned.

3. Dare to Dream Big -To succeed as a realtor, you need to have big dreams and aspirations. Be honest with yourself as to what you want out of life and what you want to give of your life. Allow your mind to dream and think big!

4. A Powerful Business Plan- Create a powerful business plan that will organize your strategies. This plan will be the blueprint to your success. The business plan should include prospecting, listing strategies, prospect follow up techniques, networking ideas, and ways to boost customer loyalty.

5. Don’t Give Up- To reach success as a real estate agent, you must persevere through difficult times. Even Thomas Edison had to learn this. When he was inventing the incandescent light bulb, it took him more than 10,000 times to get it right. Keep striving even when the challenge seems to be overwhelming.

6. Have an Unstoppable Attitude - You need to have determination in order to succeed as a realtor. Be wary of close friends or family members that feel it would be better if you focused your attention in another direction or career. Uphold your unstoppable attitude, determined to succeed.

7. Stop Complaining - You might think there is no correlation between complaining about you difficulties and success, but there is in fact a connection. When you spend time complaining about the obstacles you are facing in you real estate career, you’re wasting so much time being negative that you are actually missing out on chances to move your career forward. Don’t think of challenges as problems, think of them as opportunities.

1.Realtor.com – The number 1 real estate web site bar none. It is comprised of all the local MLS realtor board listings. It has all the visual and virtual tours and more photos than the local MLS systems allow. Local real estate agents will pay to get good positioning on the web pages for advertising when their local area is requested you see them first or at least in the top six. You can also request information about any of the listings on the site and you will normally receive a response within 24 to 48 hours from the better agents. One draw back is that realtor.com is sometimes 3 to 5 days behind the actual listing date.

2.ColdwellBanker.com – The number 2 real estate web site. Has easy access to its real estate listings around the world. The “Personal Retriever” feature allows you to enter in your criteria and will notify you of any updates or new listing you can select to have the emails sent daily or weekly. Coldwell Bankers “Lead Router” system is state of the art in high tech features when you request information on any of their listings your request goes one stop and then directly to the agent’s phone who listed the home.

During normal business hours you should get a return call within minutes with all the up to date information directly from the listing agent. No other real estate company or lead source has anything that approaches this system.

3.Remax.com – The number 3 real estate web site behind ColdwellBanker.com. Still has a long way to go your basic site allows you to search listings has local information available from the local franchise sites. Doesn’t approach anything like the “Lead Router” or “Personal Retriever” of ColdwellBanker.com. You can get easy access to their Remax listings.

4.Realtor Pay for Leads Sites –These companies sell you to real estate agents and mortgage brokers. You log on to the web site select the city and the zip code where you want to buy or sell a house and enter all your required personal information. The agents who have paid for you at $200, $400, $600 per month or $40 to $80 per lead decide based on your zip code and price range if they want to work with you in buying or selling a home. The pitch to you is that you pick the agent and there is a little truth to that because you do get to chose between 2 or 3 agents. The fact is that many people filling out all this personal information don’t get to choose an agent at all.

The agents don’t take the leads because you are either buying or selling in the wrong price range or zip code. Its one of those little steering or redlining things that slips under the federal and state government’s radar.

5.Realtor Association and MLS – Searching local realtor associations by entering a search by state for realtor association this will bring up the state association and all the local associations within the state. Then you will have access to the public side of the local MLS. Some are now directing you to Realtor.com to see the listings.

6.All the Other Sites – Miscellaneous sites, sale by owner sites, agent sites, smaller real estate company sites, local company sites all have useful features but can’t give you everything you are looking for.

7.Your Real Estate Agent - When you get down to working with an agent, the internet savvy agent will have all you need. They will set you up on a VIP Buyer or Seller program very similar to Coldwell Banker’s “Personal Retriever” and your access to your agent will be better than “Lead Router” because you will have all of the agents contact numbers. Searching for your home on the internet can be easy if you take your time and don’t get sucked into any on-line site that sells you and your information to the highest bidder. Remember local Chambers of Commerce, School Districts, and City web sites have great information about the local area. Keep a file in your favorites of all the websites you find useful.

Here are 7 reasons why options are ideal for real estate investors, beginner or advanced.

1. Since you don’t own the property, you are not obligated to make house payments. You also don’t have to deal with repairs, holding costs or tenants. Imagine how flexible you can be if you don’t have to deal with monthly mortgages or on going repairs.

2. Getting started with real estate options doesn’t require a lot of cash. In many cases, we have controlled a $100,000 property for $10. This is especially important for a new investor since start up capital is often an issue.

3. Options are great at generating quick cash. Once you have the option locked up, you can market the property to create quick cash. You should focus on making at least $5,000 per option deal, and there’s no practical upper limit to how much you can make (one of our colleagues made over $300,000 on a land option deal)…all without having to deal with tenants, repairs or holding costs.

4. Using options is a great way to enter the luxury home market or control properties in hot markets. Since these are higher priced homes, you should expect to pay a higher option fee. We have controlled $500,000 properties using $100 to $1000. In many markets, a $500,000 is a starter home but the point is that you can control a lot of real estate for a very modest fee.

5. Options are scalable because a single real estate option can be used to control a small deal or a large one.

6. Options offer multiple exit strategies. You can either exercise the option to buy the underlying property; you can sell or assign the option to another party; or you can ensure that the seller has to pay you off because the option creates a flaw in the title.

7. Using options allows you to convert dead leads into viable ones. For an experienced investor, this alone can add tens of thousands of dollars to his business because most deals that are not viable with other techniques (foreclosures, short sales, etc.) are often great candidates for real estate options.

8. BONUS REASON: Real estate options are very flexible and can be used with all types of properties including single residential homes, multi-units, apartment buildings, commercial properties and land. You can also specify the option period, which offers additional flexibility. In many cases, you can even extend the option period, often for an additional modest fee.In summary, using a real estate option is an ideal investment technique for beginners because options don’t require much cash and can generate cash quickly. For advanced investors, using options to convert dead leads into deals can add tens of thousands of dollars per month.

1. Free Information Newsletters are free. For that reason alone, active real estate buyers and investors should be on the mailing list of major real estate firms and associations. Most newsletters will definitely have sections on “free tips” in the intent of firms to show that they have a genuine concern to help consumers and in a way, demonstrate their company’s expertise in the field. Such free articles are also a way to attract readers, and get them hooked to read on to the sales pitches, which is the primary intent of issuing the newsletter. Nevertheless, anything that is free and informative at the same time should always be the searcher’s first stop.

2. Credibility- In general, newsletters have more credibility than the usual ads. The real estate firms that publish newsletters use it as a venue to establish their company’s leadership and authority in the profession. Thus, they most likely will publish reliable, well-researched and relevant market information, geared towards the benefit of the consumer, in order to maintain their credibility. Get historical real estate market trends, sound predictions and reliable leads through information in the newsletters.

3. In-depth Information -Real estate newsletter articles provide more in-depth information than real estate ads. The intent of real estate newsletters is to have a venue to better educate consumers about real estate details that are not covered in advertisements like construction quality assessment, safety, after move-in support, etc. Having such information will allow you to look into more details about the property that you intend to buy.

4. Financial Information -Aside from real estate leads, newsletters also provide other information that are related to the industry. Financial information such as mortgage rates, mortgage calculators and bank or lending institutions contact information are among the additional information that you can get from a newsletter. Occasionally, real estate newsletters will publish full-length articles on financial information such as “How To Compute Amortization” or “The Benefits of Refinancing.” Watch out for those articles and make sure to clip them for future use, unless you are into the habit of compiling the newsletter itself.

5. Locations - Aside from financial information, real estate newsletters also feature full-length articles and facts on hottest real estate locations as well as uncharted lands that have yet to join the boom. Depending on the profile of the property you intend to buy, such information will be beneficial for your search.

6. Seminars and Viewings - Information on real estate seminars and property viewings are also in newsletters. As a buyer, this is your opportunity to have first-hand experience on the property or the real estate firm without any financial commitment from your end. Most seminars and viewings are free, transportation and meals included and at times, discounts are handed out for the select who signed up. Now that’s one opportunity you should not pass up!

7. Testimonials-Testimonials are an essential part of real estate newsletters. Use such actual consumer experience to understand the capabilities and extent of service of the real estate firm. If, based on the published first-hand experience by actual customers, their profile or the rundown of their properties fit the portfolio of service you are looking for, then the company should be able to support you and give you good leads.

Modern day newsletters are already issued electronically; the e-newsletter, sent via e-mail or downloaded from the publication’s website, but offers the same useful real estate information without the hassle of piling paper. Whatever form you prefer, real estate newsletters are definitely promotional materials, but are of the informative kind. As a consumer, you should take advantage of all the available information, which can help you in the search for real estate leads.

In addition, all mortgage applications currently ask if you have EVER had a foreclosure. You’ll have to check “Yes” for the rest of your life.A foreclosure usually means that you won’t be able to buy another house for several years unless you agree to the exorbitant interest rates of “Bad Credit’ mortgages which can be twice the rate of regular mortgages.But what if you’ve experienced a temporary hardship? Life is unpredictable and we all experience circumstances in our lives that are unforeseen and that are out of our control. Often times these circumstances can prevent us from making our monthly mortgage payments on time. Some of the issues contributing to delinquency include:
• Job loss
• Medical illness or injury
• Divorce
• Death in the family

If you have experienced one of these situations it can severely impact your ability to pay your mortgage obligation. If you have experienced a temporary setback, you may have several options available to you to stop foreclosure. Here are several proven strategies to avoid a foreclosure:

1. Mortgage Modification- most often used if you have experienced a permanent reduction in income and can’t afford a repayment plan. In this case, the terms of the loan may be adjusted (the interest rate is lowered or the term is extended) so that monthly payments become affordable.

2. Forbearance Agreement- typically used if you have experienced a temporary hardship that is now over and you can resume making your regular payments. A popular option when you can’t pay all of your past due mortgage payments at once. Here the lender agrees to move your delinquent payments to the back of the loan.

3. Repayment Plan- the preferred method of most lenders. Here the lender agrees to let you catch up the back payments by adding a portion of the past due amount to each current monthly payment until the account is current again.

4. Mortgage Refinance- you may elect to refinance your delinquent loan with your existing lender or a new lender if you faced a temporary financial setback, had good credit prior to the setback, and can prove that you can now support the new mortgage payment. Usually not an option in other situation unless you agree to very high interest rates.

5. Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure- here you voluntarily convey the deed to your property back to the mortgage holder in order to prevent a foreclosure. By accepting the deed, the lender releases you from personal liability on the loan.

6. Sell your Home- you may choose to sell your house prior to the foreclosure auction. Lenders may postpone the foreclosure auction to allow you time to sell the home. If you are unable to work with your existing lender, or find a new lender, then it is time to get serious about selling. The longer you wait, the more likely you will need to sell your house quickly, most likely to an investor who will buy the house as-is and close quickly, but will pay less than fair market value.

7. Bankruptcy- filing bankruptcy will temporarily stop the foreclosure case. You can file anytime before the foreclosure auction. However, this should be your LAST option, NOT your first. Though it usually does not permanently end the foreclosure, it can interrupt the foreclosure procedure and buy you months or years without losing your property.

Statistics have shown however, that approximately 85% of all Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings FAIL to permanently save a homeowner from foreclosure. This is because the reorganization arrangement typically requires the homeowner to make plan payments that are much higher than the original payments that they could not afford!

Bonus- here’s 2 more!

8. Military Indulgence- if you are currently active in the U.S. military you are entitled to relief under the Soldiers’ & Sailors’ Civil Relief Act. Most lenders will not foreclose on you if you have been granted Military Indulgence.

9. Partial Claim Payment- there are a number of other programs available to you if your mortgage is FHA-insured. Under this program, HUD pays your lender the amount owed to bring your loan current. You then begin making your regular monthly payments. HUD records a 2nd mortgage against the property for the amount that they paid your lender. You do not have to pay the Partial Claim mortgage until you sell the house or the 1st mortgage is paid off.

In summary, the bottom line for stopping foreclosure is to know your rights and options; contact your lender and never ignore the lender’s letters and phone calls; and most importantly, take action immediately. Ultimately, putting your head in the sand will not make it go away.

1 - Buy and Flip-This is a Method where you buy Real Estate at below Market Price and sell quickly and make some fast profits.

2 - Buy, Fix and Flip- This is Similar to method 1 except you would typically hold the property a little longer so you could do some fix ups, This method is designed to yield a higher profit then Method 1.

3 - Buy and Hold- You buy the property and find a renter. If you were to buy 2 Properties a year for 10 years you could have 20 Properties all earning you a positive cash flow when you retire. Even a modest positive cash flow of $500 a Month per property in Todays dollars would equal a $10,000 a month retirement income.

4 - Wrap Mortgages-This method works well with people who have a hard time getting a mortgage because of income or credit or both. You sell them the property on a contract. You keep the existing mortgage and stay on title. You then wrap the old mortgage with a new mortgage. Let’s say you have a 30 year mortgage at 6% for a $100,000 with a monthly payment of $599.55. You Give them a 30 Year Wrap mortgage at 8% for $125,000 with a monthly payment of $880.52. You could have provisions where if they refinance in 3 - 5 Years and pay of your mortgage and become sole owner.

5 - Lease Option- Lease with an Option to buy is similar to a wrap mortgage but they are renting the property at an above market rent. They do have a right to buy at some fixed priced in the future. As an Example you could rent them the property in Example 4 for $900 a Month. They will be able to purchase the property in 3 years at 5% below the appraised value (from an agreed upon appraiser). They also agree to keep the house in good repair. If they make all payments in a timely fashion $100 of each months rent would go towards the purchase price.

6 - Equity Share- Equity share involves and investor and a Homeowner. The Investor will put down the down payment and the homeowner will live in the house and make all the monthly mortgage payments. The investor will own 50% of the House and the homeowner will own 50% of the House. After 3 - 5 years you will either sell the house payoff the mortgage and return the down payment to the investor and then divide what’s left or the homeowner will refinance the house and buyout the investor. (Sometimes the investor will record a 2nd trust deed with low or no interest against the house to secure there interest).

7 - Buy Low Refinance High- Another popular method is to buy low and refinance high. You buy a property for $70,000 with $5,000 down leaving You a $65,000 mortgage. You do $10,000 worth of improvements to the property and then refinance it for $110,000. The Difference between the new loan at $110,000 and the old loan at $65,000 would be $45,000 cash in your pocket. Your net cash would be $30,000 since you have placed $15,000 cash in the property already. You can now use method 3 find a renter and hold the property long term.

You could also use methods 4,5 or 6 to have a positive cash flow now and lock in a profit in 3 to 5 years.The above are just some of the many 100’s of methods successful real estate investors use to earn money. The key component in any of the above methods is finding the right financing. A loan for the buy and hold method may be very different then the loan for the buy and flip method. The wrong loan could be the difference between a nice profit and a modest profit or maybe even a loss. (You wouldn’t want a loan with a large prepay penalty in the buy and flip method) make sure you work with an experienced loan professional who can Tailor a loan to meet your needs.

1.Real Estate Agent – your Buyer Agent should have in place a “VIP Buyer program”, “house-hunting service” or “buyer profile system”. These systems will match your criteria with all the available homes on the market and send you daily or weekly emails with complete descriptions and photos. This system can save weeks and months of home searching. If your Buyer Agent is not internet savvy and not incorporating one of these into their business you should move on to another agent who works in this century.

2.Paying Too Much – not knowing the market could cause you to fall for an over priced home. You should research the local market to determine the values that comparable homes have sold for, and make your offer based on that information. A professional Buyer Agent will help you with the comparables from the MLS and prepare a CMA (comparable market analysis) on the home before you make an offer.

3.Which House is Right for You – finding a home is simple, finding the right home is a lot of work. Determine your needs, schools, drive to work, shopping, recreation, neighborhood, home fix ups and maintenance. Putting in writing your needs and desires will help you and your Buyer Agent weed through the thousands of choices you will be making in your home purchase.

4.Mortgage Pre-Approval – Mortgage pre-approval can be completed over the phone or online in 20 to 30 minutes it’s fast and easy. With a pre approval you know what you are working with you now have the freedom of not second guessing if you can afford a particular home. Being pre-approved when making an offer gives the seller more confidence that the loan will close.

5.Legal Issues – can delay a closing if not identified early in the process. An accurate and up to date survey is not required by some lenders or title companies but it is the way to guarantee the boundary’s of the property and will identify any encroachments that will affect your ownership. Title report will identify any past ownership issues of your property such as tax liens, undisclosed owners, easements, leases and such that could affect your ownership. Mortgage lenders require a lenders title policy to protect their interest it is well worth the cost to buy an owners policy for yourself as well.

6.Undisclosed Repairs – a professional Buyer Agent will help you hire a licensed home inspector to thoroughly review the condition of your home inside and outside. They will inspect and test all mechanical systems (plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical) and provide you with a written detailed list with photos of all their findings. This inspection report will at the least help you make an informed decision whether to complete the home purchase. All items agreed to by the owner must be inspected to insure the work was complete. You and your inspector should do a final walk through before closing.

7.Closing Table Hidden Costs – there will be costs from the mortgage company, attorney, Title Company, insurance, survey, utility connections, home inspectors, pest control, taxes, escrows and possibly some old payoffs required by your lender. All of these can add up to a considerable amount. You must know in advance what these costs are and be prepared to pay them at or before closing. Review your HUD-1 statement and mortgage with your Buyer Agent before closing to insure that you know and understand all these associated costs and that they are correct.

hese are some of the major issues that will affect your home buying process. Working with a professional Buyer Agent who will help you identify the traps and how to avoid them is one of the more important choices you have.

Real estate investing is the perennial wealth builder, and the transition from working a job to achieving wealth through real estate investing is becoming increasingly well documented. You’ve probably thought about investing in real state yourself but you’ve not gone for it because you thought you needed tens of thousands in savings for a down payment, and perfect credit along with strong banking relationships. Well, you can get all that together if you want. It doesn’t hurt to have those resources. But it’s not necessary to have a huge pile of cash and perfect credit to buy a house cheap and resell it for a profit.

It’s especially not necessary in the pre-foreclosure market. Pre-foreclosures are houses in the default phase of foreclosure; where the bank has filed initial foreclosure papers but the Sheriff Sale or Trustee Sale where the bank auctions off the property, or repossesses it if no-one buys at the auction, hasn’t occurred yet. Buying during the pre-foreclosure period is one of the best ways for anyone to get involved in real estate investing. With little more than a few hundred dollars and some specialized knowledge you can buy a house at a substantial discount and resell it retail picking up a five figure profit check in the process. Don’t believe it? Well, let me give you seven reasons why it’s true:

1) When people are in default on their mortgage they have stopped making payments to the bank. So when you are negotiating with the seller, and the bank, right up until the point where you buy, no-one is making the payments. For novice investors worried about holding costs this is a huge advantage.

2) Pre-foreclosures are a very well defined niche market. One of the most deadly mistakes rookie investors make is trying to be a jack-of-all-trades, going after any and everything they can lay their eyes on. The result of this lack of focus is they are soon back at their jobs. By being a very defined market, pre-foreclosures allow you to develop focused marketing campaigns and standardized processes to get deals completed and closed.

3) One of the fundamentals of real estate investing is contacting and talking “only” to motivated sellers, and avoiding all the rest. Sellers in preforeclosure are some of the most motivated sellers you will find. Their world has been turned upside-down, they are about to lose their house, and their motivation is such that they just want out of the house and the bank off their back. By buying houses from people in pre-foreclosure, creating 30%+ equity spreads on houses often in good condition is not a difficult thing to do.

4) Buying houses in pre-foreclosure enables you to create unusually large equity spreads. Recent economic uncertainty has caused a lot of foreclosures, and rising rates will cause more in coming years. If banks had to take back all of the properties that went into foreclosure the FDIC would shut them down. They know this, so they try not to take properties back they don’t have to. By requesting the Lender discount what is owed on their payoff, large spreads of equity can be created on houses that are totally “maxed out” with loans. This can’t be done on loans not in default.

5) Because Lenders are under pressure to liquidate bad loans rather than take the property back, large discounts can be negotiated. After becoming familiar with the issues that cause Lenders to discount, larger and larger discounts can be achieved as you hone your negotiating skills.

6) If your plan is to buy and hold the property, having good enough credit and financials to get bank financing excludes a great many people from getting into real estate. On top of that, if you do get a bank loan, your financial exposure is at it’s maximum when everything is in your own name and personally guaranteed. Buying houses in preforeclosure allows you to simply take over the existing financing already in place. No qualifying needed. You can take title to the property in a Land Trust, begin making payments on the existing mortgage(s), and still get all the tax advantages, appreciation, depreciation without any of the risk of being personally liable for the mortgage and the property.

7) If you have ever bid at auction for property at the courthouse steps, you are only too aware of the competition breathing down your neck. Lots of mind games. The 40 thieves are talking trash to you trying to get you not to bid. If you are Larry Bird, no problem. Make sure you have $500K on your credit line though. However if you are not the ‘Bird’ and you don’t pack half a mil’ of credit, you can sneak in and avoid this NBA showdown by buying the house during the pre-foreclosure period… before the auction.

Make no mistake about it, there are many ways to make healthy profits in real estate investing. But when you look at how easy pre-foreclosure makes it to buy houses cheap and resell for five figure profit checks, all the while helping people out of agonizing life circumstances, it makes little sense to pursue real estate investing any other way.

1.) Newspapers - Newspapers are one of the most common methods. A nice ad that is properly worded can bring in great results. One must be careful though, because any newspaper ads over a week or so tend to get pricey. When using newspaper ads use the commonly accepted abbreviations for words like “bath,” “bed” and others. This will save lots of money.

2.) Flyers -This method isn’t often used and takes a person with a salesman’s mentality to carry it out, but if all other forms of advertisement haven’t got the property rented yet, one better roll their sleeves up and hit the streets.

3.) Property Signs - These are also one of the most common methods and often bare nice results. The twist that can turn this tip into a great method is by getting those new signs that many people use to sell their own homes (the ones with the little plastic tube that contains information about the property inside it). This saves the landlord lots of time because the potential tenant can get the property’s information instantly and often won’t call the landlord for a home viewing unless they are really interested.

4.) Word-of-Mouth (referral) - Word-of-mouth is an indirect, but good method of getting the word out that the property is for rent. Referral programs can be a great way to add to the benefit of this tip. If one has a tenant that is leaving, offer them a small amount of money if they can refer someone to rent the property once their gone. This trick works great in college and university towns where there is large turnover and most of the tenants either work or go to school together.

5.) Internet/Publications - The internet is quickly emerging as the best way to get a property rented. Internet “For Rent” web sites are everywhere, and often the first place a potential tenant will look is the internet. The best sites are those that are for the local area only. This ensures that every viewer of the web site is there to find a rental property in one’s local area, not for a property across the country.

6.) Television/Radio - Not necessarily practical for the small-time investor or owner of single family homes, but can be of benefit for larger operations or those that own one, large apartment building with many units. This method is also by far the most expensive and often reaches and audience that isn’t necessarily looking for a property to rent.To conclude, all of the above tips are legitimate methods for getting a rental property rented. One must determine what their budget is and what has worked for them in the past. If this is their first rental vacancy, stick to the newspaper, local online “For Rent” sites, and the sign in the front yard. Unless it is a depressed market, those three will almost always bring results within a couple of months.