What do tenants look for in a rental property?

Understanding what will boost the value of a rental property and attract tenants is crucial, whether you’re looking to purchase an investment property, or considering upgrading your current property.

When it comes to what tenants want, the time is ripe to evolve an investment property for the needs of today. Investors should consider more than just the location of the property, but tenant-attracting factors like sustainability features or hybrid-work flexible home offices.

Let’s explore some of the tried-and-true factors that tenants look for in rental properties and ways you can transform a space for the modern renter.

What tenants look for in a rental property

• High-speed internet

Having high-speed internet connection availability for your investment property is a no-brainer nowadays. When you consider the rise of remote working, ensuring your tenants can comfortably work from home with fast, reliable internet is key to keeping happy renters.

There are a multitude of NBN technology connections in Australia. While Fibre to the Node (FTTN) is the most common connection, Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) generally considered to be the highest performer. You could speak to a technician about upgrading your investment property’s internet for the benefit of potential tenants.

• Electric Vehicle infrastructure

Electric vehicles (EV) are growing in popularity in Australia. With new charging infrastructure being rolled out nationally to support EVs, and the ACT recently banning the sale of new petrol cars from 2035, it’s safe to assume that facilitating a tenant’s EV will be an expectation from renters moving into the future.

• Solar power

Let’s be realistic. It’s hard to understand the advantages of solar panels on an investment property as they appear to only benefit tenants by reducing their electricity bills. However, with energy prices rising sharply across Australia and unplanned outages from power stations forecast frequently in the news, this could be a big draw for tenants.

In fact, a survey by Origin Energy shows that not only could tenants be willing to pay more rent for a property with solar, but it could increase the property’s value. Of those surveyed, over three-quarters (77%) of Australians think a house with solar is more valuable than one relying on electricity. Over half (55%) of renters say they would pay up to $10 a week more in rent for a property with solar.

• Pet-friendly spaces

Australian pet adoption reached a record high during the peak of the pandemic. Research conducted in 2021 by Animal Medicines Australia shows that 69% of households now own a pet. And when you consider that nearly a third (30.6%) of Australians are renting, at least some of these households could be your future tenants.

Victoria, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory all have laws in place allowing tenants either the right to own a pet, or to request in writing it be allowed in a rental without unreasonable refusal. Many other states are considering their laws to be more flexible for tenants as well. If your investment property is not accepting applications for pet-owners, you may be missing out on a growing market of tenants and higher rental returns.

• Return of the home office

It’s no secret that more Australians are working from home or have shifted to a hybrid remote-work model since 2020. While it can be challenging to consider with a property with smaller square footage, look at ways you can maximise the existing space to offer tenants an easy way to work from home. Consider installing wall-mounted desks or office/study nooks in the underused corner of a room. Knowing you can easily work from home in a property could be a big draw for your future tenants.

• Internal laundry

For an investment unit, most tenants prefer internal laundry to shared laundry. Thanks to the pandemic, your tenants may be looking to avoid shared spaces with other unit tenants more than ever. By not having an internal laundry you could be limiting your tenant pool and rental returns. If your property has the capacity to extend its space for a washer and dryer, it may be worth making the improvement to offer your tenants an internal laundry.

• Location, location, location

While sustainable infrastructure is great, there’s one factor of a rental property that tenants will always prioritise: location. If you’re looking to purchase your first or next investment property, the location understandably makes a significant difference in your potential return on investment. Consider looking at properties in the catchment areas of good schools, nearby green spaces, close to amenities and with reasonable public transport access.

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