As a long-time renter, I have been through many apartment showings in various countries throughout my life. Despite the fact that I have never been a leasing agent, I have a good feel for what works and what doesn't. For the most part, a rental unit will sell itself. The renter usually has an idea of what they like and what they don't. The goal of the leasing agent should be to determine a potential client's requirements and then provide options that meet or exceed those expectations. Personally, I don't like a heavy sales pitch, and from my experience, good leasing agents avoid the hard sell tactics.

Over the years, I have encountered a fair number of agents that really push a property to the point of appearing almost desperate. It made me wonder what might be wrong with the unit or the complex as a whole. To be fair, some properties are just easier to sell than others. Buildings in great locations and newly constructed apartments with quality amenities can attract renters by word-of-mouth, or, by curb appeal alone. For older, less maintained buildings and complexes that are in less-desirable neighborhoods, it can be a more difficult process to get the units leased.

For the more difficult-to-rent apartments, I have encountered various techniques—some were quite effective, and others, much less so. In a close suburb of Washington, DC, I was looking at apartments at a large complex which was comprised of several low-rise buildings that sprawled over a sizable area. As I had never seen the units, I was curious to find out in-person, as it was difficult to ascertain the quality from the few small photos posted on the web site. After a long chat with the agent, he finally took me to see some units.

Gifts and Golf

Upon entering the first apartment, there was a DVD player on the floor wrapped in a large red bow. He excitedly informed me that if I rented this unit, I would receive the DVD player as a gift. I already had a DVD player, as I suspect most people did in 2007. The units and overall feel of the community just didn't work for me, and so we headed back to the leasing office. Upon arrival, I was shown a putting green and informed that if I made a hole-in-one, I would get $500 off the first month's rent. I knew I wasn't going to rent there, but he insisted I putt, which I did. I sank the putt, but I'm afraid it was going to take more than $500 and a $50 DVD player to get me into that building. Regardless, I do remember the putting green, so regardless of my decision, it stuck with me.

The most disappointing apartment tour I was ever on was in another Northern Virginia location around the same time. In the heat of the housing boom, many former rental communities were turned into condos. One such conversion failed, and after evicting all the tenants, the developer realized that almost none of the units could be sold for the $450,000+ asking price, so they were turned back into rentals. No doubt, the leasing agents had their hands full renting an entire complex.

With so many empty units, there were some decent rental prices being offered, and the building was in a desirable neighborhood—close to buses, the Metro, groceries and shopping. Based on the location and newly updated units, I was thinking it would fall under the "sell itself" kind of place. The only item left was to see the inside of the units. Upon arrival, the leasing agent was quick to explain that there were still some renovations going on, but most of the apartments were complete. With photos of granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and hardwood floors posted all over the leasing office, I was thinking it could be a great option at a great price.

"Yum! Cookies!"

As we walked to one of the buildings, the agent discussed the various amenities, and mentioned that they will soon be constructing a new gym. As we entered the building, and went up the stairs of the walk-up to the second floor, we were assaulted by an extremely intense aroma of what was undoubtedly roast beef, garlic and onion coming from one of the units. I certainly don't mind garlic and onion, and am used to the occasional cooking smells, but this was powerful.

Noticing that I wrinkled my nose somewhat, the leasing agent said something that I didn't expect. Smiling nervously, and not making eye contact, she said "Yum! Cookies!" I was a bit stunned by the reaction, and I responded with "Hmm, really? Are you sure it's cookies?" For a moment, I felt silly and wondered if she might have said "cooking" instead of "cookies", but her response left no doubt. Without hesitation, she replied "Yes, chocolate chip, I think". At this point, she had lost all credibility with me, and the showing was essentially dead before we even made it into the apartment.

The unit was underwhelming, lacking any of the features shown in the office photos. It was certainly not surprising that they could not sell as condos. The agent's reaction to the strong cooking smell might not have been a deal breaker if the place was fantastic, but I certainly questioned why she would think that telling me it was something it was clearly not would in any way encourage me to trust her. She was probably under great pressure to get units rented; however, a better approach might have been to offer some real chocolate chip cookies in the leasing office. In that case, I would be the one saying "Yum! Cookies!"

Regardless, I think it is an interesting example for leasing agents. Most residents understand that people cook meals in their apartments. More concerning would be smells of cigarette smoke, or smoke residue. I wonder what she would have said if there was a strong cigar smell in the hallway?

Your Thoughts?

So, for renters, what are some interesting encounters you've had with leasing agents? What worked, and what didn't? And, for leasing agents, how do you think she could have handled the situation better? How do you deal with various odors and other such issues when you take clients on a tour?

© Copyright 2012, The Renting Life