When giving some thought as to what potential tenants are looking for in the rental property market, you have probably already considered the benefits of re-vamping the kitchen, installing a new bathroom, decorating, and possibly fitting some new carpets from top to bottom, but have you taken into account the mobile phone reception around your property?
Somewhat surprisingly, a recent UK survey has revealed that a large number of prospective tenants place a great deal of importance on the availability and strength of their mobile network provider’s signal when considering a rental property. According to the results of the survey, 84% of those questioned said they would base their final decision on how good the phone reception in the area was, and if there was no signal, 35% would not take the property and 37% would be seriously put off. And in rural areas, the results were even worse! A staggering 85.1% considered mobile reception to be a crucial factor in whether (or not) they rented a property.
So although I have not previously thought about this issue, it is definitely one that landlords need to take into account before adding a new property to their investment portfolio. You might be tempted to buy a nicely presented house in a smart area, but if the main mobile providers do not have a phone mast in the area and the property is in a mobile black spot, you will suffer from a lack of tenants and will probably end up out of pocket as a result!
