Setting a rent that actually gets paid

There is a difference between the rent a property is advertised at and the rent that reaches an owner's account over a year.

A unit priced 10% above the local band will sit empty longer, attract weaker applicants, and is more likely to end in arrears or an early exit. Two vacant months wipe out the gain from a higher headline figure, and a difficult tenancy costs more than that again in time.

Price against completed lettings, not listings. Asking prices tell you what landlords hope for. Completed agreements tell you what tenants agreed to.

Count the whole year. Twelve months at a realistic rent beats ten months at an optimistic one, before you account for the cost of finding a second tenant.

Furnishing changes the band, not the market. A well-fitted kitchen and wardrobes move a property to the top of its band. They do not move it into the next one.

Decide what you will accept before you advertise. Owners who set a floor in advance negotiate better than owners who decide in the moment.