What’s the best way to communicate with your tenants?

If you use letting agents in Warrington to handle your portfolio of properties, you may hardly ever have to contact the people who are renting from you. It’s one of the many benefits of a full management package after all, and one less thing for you to worry about as a landlord. But there may come a time that you will need to liaise with tenants and knowing how to go about doing so can be uncertain ground if you’ve never had to do it before.

Of course, you want to be the best landlord you can be, but how do you provide support without breaking professional boundaries? Is it best to send a letter, text, email or just to have an old-fashioned call? Here, we explore the most effective and best-practice ways to communicate with your tenants.

But first, why does it matter?

We know what you might be thinking, who cares how I communicate, as long as it’s getting done? Whilst it may not be much of an issue if you have just one or maybe two properties, multiple properties in your portfolio mean that using different lines of communication with each can soon become confusing and overly complex.

And the bottom line is that poor communication will cost you time and money, especially if you accidentally drop the ball with one of your tenants.

For the most part, there is no right or wrong answer when it comes to choosing how you communicate with your tenants, and each method has its advantages and disadvantages, but consistency is key – so let’s dive right in.

Text messaging

Any letting agents in Warrington will tell you that one of the most popular methods of communication with landlords is text message. Why? Well for a few reasons:

It is easy to track what has been said if you ever need to go back through a conversation
It’s easy
It’s quick to send a message
It’s a way of getting an immediate response
In some cases, you can see if the tenant has received and read the message
Photos and videos can be shared easily
It’s often the preferred method of communication for millennial tenants
More personal than an email
Available 24/7 to offer support when necessary
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Of course, there are a few downsides to consider here too, such as:

Texting means that your tenant has your personal contact details
24/7 support can also lead to texts or even calls at any time day or night
It can be easy to accidentally text the wrong person
For some tenants, particularly professionals or older individuals, texting can be perceived as unprofessional

Email

Email is widely considered to be an old school method of communication when it comes to tenant/landlord relationships. However, if you aim to keep a professional distance from tenants, it may be an appealing option for you. Here are some key benefits:

Keeps things professional
Allows you to have a record of all conversations
Allows you to create individual files for each tenant for better record keeping and accessing old conversations
Easy to send a quick email
Ability to add a read receipt to emails so you know when a tenant has opened it
No divulging of personal information which could lead to nuisance calls

Some downsides, however, include:

It isn’t the fastest method of getting a reply, especially if tenants rarely check their emails
Not everyone uses email, especially younger tenants
It isn’t as quick to send as a text message
They can be impersonal

Phone calls

Of course, you could just call your tenants on the phone, just like you would have before technology was so advanced. But is it beneficial for business?

Phone calls are instant (if they pick up of course) making it the fastest method of communication
Phone calls are more personal and add a friendly touch
They give you the best chance of getting to know the tenants in your property
You can make arrangements quicker than toing and froing with texts or emails

Of course, there’s a reason why technology has come along and made the life of landlords so easy, so let’s see the downsides for calling your tenants:

Your tenant will have access to your personal number, leaving you open for calls at any time of the day or night
It is easy for tenants to dodge calls
There is no record of conversations
Many tenants prefer not to speak over the phone

Why not opt for a middleman?

We get it – knowing what’s best is hard work, especially if you have a host of tenants, all of whom have their preferred methods of contact. Our advice? Why not choose a middleman who can liaise with tenants on your behalf? Lettings agents in Warrington such as Easylet Residential offer this as part of their full management package, making your life easier and allowing you to only deal with the matters that really require your input. To find out more, give them a call today on 01925 633 011 or email at info@easyletresidential.co.uk