Curb Appeal. Why is it important. 
Hello there. My name is Aaron Robertson, and I’m Real Estate broker in Redding California. I’ve been in the property management business for over ten years now. In those ten years of being a property manager, I have been asked no less than 200 times, what can I do to get my property rented out as quick as possible? For landlord’s and property investors, one of the most important things to control is the vacancy rate. Vacancy rate over the long-term can make or break the profit margin on a piece of property. This is why this question is on many people’s minds. One of the most important things a landlord or property owner can do to get their property rented out quickly is to focus on the curb appeal.
Curb appeal and what is it?
Curb appeal, in a nutshell, is how visually appealing the property or unit is if you are standing at the curb facing the property. Many things can affect Curb appeal so let’s take some time to go over them. First I want to mention that when I’m evaluating a property for its Curb appeal, I will often start at the top and work down from there.
The Roof. I will look to see if the roof seems to be in good repair. Does it have any debris that must be removed? You will be surprised by what you see when you begin to look. Before moving on from the roof, I will look for satellite dishes. I’m not sure why but when a tenant switches satellite companies the old dish is not reused. Often you can find two or even three dishes or mounts on the roof if it’s an older property. This can also be the case if the home or apartment has had many different tenants.
Windows, doors, and paint. Now my eyes are fixed on the building itself. Does it have a crisp and clean appearance? Even older homes can pass the test if, the paint is good conditions and it’s clean it will look sharp. Many property owners will overlook color choices of paint when painting a home that will be a rental. Best to go with now natural colors. Colors that match in and or blend in with the neighborhood. Homes that have super strange colors are passed over by some folks, and they end up taking longer to rent. No matter what color the home is it’s best to keep it clean. Take some time to remove any of the following: bird nests, spiders, wasps, and droppings of any kind.
Sidewalks, driveway, trees and shrubs and lawns. 
Sidewalks should be clean and free of debris. If there is adjacent grass it’s best to edge it. Driveways need to have all stains removed. This can be done with several methods (Read more here). In any case, the driveway is a huge billboard. If it is stained up badly, you can bet so is the carpet inside. One other note, If the driveway has a ton of crack make sure there are no weeds growing from them. Now on the lawns and shrubs. In my opinion, property owners should add some nitrogen to the yard and the shrubs every other year. Nitrogen is a very inexpensive way to keep lawns and shrubs green. Deep green. I’m sure you have at some point in time looked at a patch of lawn and thought, could that get any greener?
Curb Appeal can make a huge difference in the time it takes to fill a rental property.
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Updated 10/10/2018
