Offering incentives like “free” cable has long been one popular strategy property landlords use to levy a higher rent. And for quite some time, tenants eagerly paid the extra cost. Nevertheless, public demand for cable TV is rapidly changing, making several property holders to ponder if it could be the circumstance to cut the cord on their rental home’s cable TV.
Since 2012, over 10 million people have canceled their cable subscriptions in favor of new, lower-priced streaming services like Netflix and Hulu. For most people, many of whom are tenants, “free” cable simply doesn’t hold the appeal that it once had. But for some people, cable TV is still a required part of comfortable living. Therefore, before you determine to cut your Humble rental property’s cable TV, it is essential to identify all the pros and cons of doing so, as well as discuss this with your tenants about their desires and needs.
Including cable TV in your rental rate is necessary for some places and populations. For instance, if your chosen tenants are comprised of avid sports fans they are more likely to desire live television services and will usually pay a little more rent to have it included.
A lot of tenants disapprove of signing up for cable services that will lock them into long-term contracts as they may not know how long they will be residing in the house. They may also despise the problem of contacting customer service every time something fails. For these tenants, a rental home that is able to provide cable TV provides a solid motivation to spend a little more cash to prevent any future annoyances.
Contrastingly, younger tenants may or may not find an offer of “free” cable to be worth the cost of higher rent. Streaming services are becoming the go-to choice for several people who believe cable TV is lacking in viewing options. While streaming services do require more money, a lot of younger tenants will share a subscription or sign up selectively to save money. For these people, streaming services provide the freedom to pick when to sign up or cancel if they wish to.
For Humble property owners, there are usually solid motivations to include cable TV as part of the rent. For instance, internet providers will often bundle both internet service and cable TV, lowering the cost of both. For particular places and demographics, being capable of providing internet service and cable TV may contribute to a property landlords competitive edge. The easiest method to understand for sure if cable TV is perfect for your situation is to ask your tenants, either current or prospective. They can describe to you better than anyone else what the current trends are and how tenants may react to including “free” cable TV in the cost for rent.
If you’ve spoken to your tenants and they refuse to have cable TV, it may be possible to temporarily discontinue your cable service while leaving the cables intact. Depending on the service provider, you may be able to suspend or even cancel service somewhat easily, saving you the expenditure of paying for it every month. You can then decide to slightly lower rent or, if you want, pocket the savings.
Understanding if keeping your cable TV service is the right move for your rental properties can take a while, and for rental property landlords, time is money. Real Property Management Preferred can help you evaluate cost savings aspects, communicate effectively with your tenants, and more. Contact us online or call us directly at 281-894-9111 today.
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