Property for rental in December

[Notyetagain]

Hello experienced posters!
Do you know if there is a significant dropped in demand for rental properties in December compared to November/January?

We are in the process of refurbishing a property which is- oh surprise surprise!- taking longer than expected. The main issue is that the decorator will now not be able to get on with repainting all the rooms (expected to take about 12 days) until end of October. Looked for another, but so far not looking good.

My two questions are:
- If we were to start looking for tenants into Nov for a move in December, are we limiting ourselves with demand (considering the scale of the refurbishment, we are going to be quite picky with whom we are happy to rent to)?
- Are we better off waiting for the decoration to be done (including carpets are clearly these will need replacing afterwards) to advertise so the property looks very attractive on the pictures (meaning delay as per above) or to advertise as is once new kitchen/bathroom is in place, with a clear statement that house is getting fully refurbished/decorated, hence maybe getting tenants to move in earlier.

My gut feeling tells me that we are better off waiting from the prospect of getting tenants interested in the property, but don't know how this would weight against the reduced demand for tenants looking to move in December.

[sunnyp]

Lost of factors to consider, not just the demand that frnkly seems to have dipped in my area this summer let alone winter.

It will also depend on how much rent you charge, rents in my area have fallen significantly, my property is in pristine condition but still struggling to let out because my rent is £50 above other properties that are not refurbished.

You mentioned you are picky as I am this will undoubtedly add to the time too, as agents will simply put forward anyone who makes an offer after just preliminary checks. Once you dig a little you will find many of these prospects not to your requirements.

It will also depend on where the property is, If its in a high employment/demand area proximity to large companies transport links etc etc.

With regards to refurbishing, I would complete the full refurb first and have the final product before even starting viewings.

[jpkeates]

December is always a bit of a tough month, Christmas is a big psychological barrier, and it's cold and dark.
But November is much the same.

There's a bump in January (which I've personally attributed to couples splitting up over Christmas), which could be a new year, new start thing.

[Notyetagain]

Thanks to both of you. We might have to consider waiting until January then, although of course, that means no rent coming in for more months!

The positive is that rental in the area seems more in demand than supply especially for this type of property (3 bed semi) which rarely come for rental (indeed, have been looking in the last 3/4 months and only had one or two coming up). It's in a popular residential area and there is very close access to a new link road which has seen popularity go up, close to train station to main metropolis and good schools.

Totally agree sunnyp about letting agents, it certainly is the experience I've had, each time advising a lower rental price but managed to get what we wanted both times.

We've had two bad experiences so far leading us considered whether to rent again or sell. We decided to give rental one more try with the hope that with the refurbishment, we could be more choosy as indeed, the need for it did put off some prospective tenants before. It's really become a case of either we are as satisfied with the tenants moving in as we can be (as clearly there are never any guarantees) or if we end up having to compromise on price, or tenants criteria, I expect we will resort to just selling as we can't cope with the stress and pressure we've had since we rented the place for the first time (we both work full-time in demanding jobs).

[mariner]

Equally, a family who want/need to move would prefer to occupy by Xmas week IMO.
So advertise as 'available from start of Dec' but do not arrange viewings/accept Tenant, until property is ready to occupy.
It will be harder to ref prospects over Xmas - New Year business shutdown.