Do you have a commercial unit that you are looking to fill with tenants? You might have a warehouse unit, office space, retail unit, or workshop to rent, perhaps your current tenants are leaving, or you have newly acquired the unit. Every commercial landlord tells us that each day that a rentable commercial unit is sat empty, it is losing money through not receiving rent, so finding the right tenants, quickly, and at the right price is essential.

Here at Boxpod, we understand your pain. In this article, we are going to discuss the best ways that commercial unit landlords can find the best commercial tenants, in order to give you the best rental income, and therefore, ROI.

Many commercial unit landlords reach for an agent when they are looking for new tenants. They can take a lot of the work out of finding and (sometimes) managing tenants. However, there are a number of reasons why agents are not always the best idea – for starters, they can be expensive, not only to initially find your tenants, but also going forward if you are using them to manage the landlord/tenant relationship for you.

There are other options, though! Unlike in the past, landlords can use the internet to market their properties, keep more control, and cut out the expensive high street agents. Increasing numbers of commercial unit landlords are doing this, so if you are a commercial unit landlord looking for businesses to rent your property, this article will help to show you how to effectively market the unit and vet tenants to help to ensure that you get the best ones for you and your unit.

How do I Start Marketing my Commercial Unit for Rental?

The first step to finding tenants for your commercial unit (once it is ready for rental) is to market it. The way that the property is marketed can make an enormous difference to how much rent you can charge, who your tenants are, and, critically, whether you can find commercial tenants at all!

Websites such as Boxpod can be used to list your commercial unit, without the middleman or additional fees, making the whole process more affordable and effective for everyone. As a commercial landlord, you will deal directly with your tenants, giving you complete control.

So, when it comes to marketing your commercial unit through an online site such as Boxpod, how can you make it as effective as possible?

The key to online marketing is visibility – you need people to be able to see it, be interested in it, and trust what they are seeing. With this in mind, you should be taking several good-quality photos to post, with good light, and perhaps furniture to show the potential of the unit, in much the same way as people selling houses do.

You will then need to write a description of the commercial unit. Make sure that all the details are in the description – such as its dimensions, what is included in the property, its condition, and location.

Use positive language and do some research into some specific keywords that could attract the right kind of tenants for you – consider what you might search for if you were looking for a similar unit. This will help your commercial unit to appear in searches and improve your chances of getting the best tenants.

The information that you need at hand includes the property location, floor area, features such as internet, air conditioning, cleaning, and parking, and pricing. Write a compelling – but honest – description, to ensure that your enquiries don’t waste time, and to help to build trust between you and the business that becomes your tenant.

How Should I Manage Commercial Unit Enquiries?

When you list a commercial unit, the ideal is to give the right details to prospective tenants in the description so that any other questions are not necessary. You should answer any queries as honestly as possible and reply as swiftly as possible, so that you give the right impression to your potential tenants.

It is normally the case that the landlord would be responsible for any viewings if you are not going through an agent. Here at Boxpod, the communication and negotiations are handled by landlords, saving you substantial amounts of money.

How Can I Check That a Potential Tenant is Suitable for my Property?

For commercial landlords, one of the biggest issues when renting their commercial units is ensuring that they are properly vetted. For those who rent the unit out with a high street agent, this is usually carried out by them. But you can also do it yourself.

Vetting is important for a number of reasons, including:

  • Reducing the chance of damage to the unit
  • Helping to ensure that rent is paid correctly, on time
  • Improving the landlord/tenant relationship

All of this gives you peace of mind as a landlord.

In order to vet your potential tenant, there are a number of steps that you need to follow.

  1. Check the business’s history – you can check how long the business has been running, and whether they have had any previous disputes relating to rented commercial units.
  2. Check the business’s credit rating – a credit rating will give you a good idea of how reliable they have been in the past with paying rent and bills. Although this only checks the past, it will give you a good idea of what to expect from your potential tenants should you take them on.
  3. Financial documents – you can ask to see some of the business’s financial documents, such as bank statements and profit and loss summaries, to help you to verify that they will be able to pay their rent going forward.
  4. Check the responsibilities – it is important to understand how the business is set up and who is responsible for the payment of rent, should there be any problem.
  5. Check references – you can also ask the potential tenant for references from previous landlords who can give you details of the tenant’s behaviour in previous commercial units.

There are also professional vetting agencies that can do this work for you.

Final Thoughts

Finding tenants for your commercial unit no longer needs to be carried out by high street agents. The online world and sites such as Boxpod have facilitated this process significantly, saving landlords and business tenants a lot of money and giving landlords more control.

If you are looking for new tenants for your commercial unit, why not take a look at how to list your property with us here at Boxpod?

We have a range of commercial units listed here with us, so if you are searching for your business’s new home, have a look at what we have here!