Advertising Rentals: Include the Walkability Rating

When it comes to advertising a rental material goods, most landlords are sure to include the basics: the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, any included appliances, and of course, the vicinity of town or neighborhood it’s in.

But you might be surprised to hear that potential tenants also want to know about an vicinity’s walkability rating. What’s that? Walkability is a way to determine how close a material goods is to shops, grocery stores, libraries, and other amenities that people want. If you can get there by leaving the car in the garage, it’s walkable—and the extra amenities within walking interval, the higher a material goods’s walkability rating.

Walkability means that tenants can avoid the congestion, parking, and pollution associated with driving—and still get their errands run. Walkability makes a neighborhood extra pleasant to live in—and studies show that extra amenities within walking interval can boost home values. Given that tenants want walkable residences, you might want to advertise the walkability rating for all your rental properties.

How do you know if your vacant rental is in a walkable neighborhood? It’s quick and simple on WalkScore.com, a well loved site that measures how many amenities are within walking interval of any pocket up. While the site’s algorithm gives the actual interval from an pocket up to stores, restaurants, movie theaters and public transportation, it doesn’t factor in safety, street top or topography. So, it won’t bring up any huge hills you’d have to climb to reach the nearest bookstore.

While WalkScore.com will likely add improvements like topography and presence of sidewalks, it’s still a clear snapshot of the amenities surrounding your rental material goods. Whether or not you include a walkability rating in your rental ads, consider using this tool to inform potential tenants of all the fantastic stores, restaurants, and coffee shops that are close to your rental units.