How to shortlist rentals with tenants before the viewing

Prospective tenants often ask to see every unit, then rule most of them out in the first minute because of the layout, the light, the pet policy or the commute. That's a lot of wasted viewings, for you and for them, in a market where good units don't last.

Sending a short deck first lets renters rule units out from their phone, so the viewings you book are the ones that can turn into applications.

Lead with what renters filter on

Each card has the address, rent, neighborhood, beds and baths, availability, lease length and pet policy, with features like in-unit laundry, outdoor space or parking as tags. Add several photos per unit: renters decide a lot from the kitchen and the light.

If your units are listed online, paste the listing link and rufl summarizes it into a card. You can also import your vacancies from a spreadsheet. See Add cards.

Send it to everyone on the lease

Add each roommate or partner as a recipient. Everyone gets their own link and swipes on their own phone, which matters when one person is relocating from out of town. The deck page shows which units they all marked Interested.

Go straight to viewing or applying

Use Book a viewing or Apply as the shortlist button, or add Book a time to send renters to your booking page. You get their picks by email, ready to schedule. See Let clients book a time.

Let old listings expire

Units rent quickly. Set links to stop working after 7 or 30 days so nobody falls for a unit that's gone, or have the deck delete itself after they respond. See Hide fields, close links and auto-delete.

For property management teams

On Team plans, managers can keep every vacancy in a shared card pool, and each leasing agent builds decks for their prospects from it. Requests go to whoever sent the deck, so every agent hears about their own renters.

Step by step

1. 1Start a deck from the Rental properties template.
2. 2Add the units that fit the renter's budget, move-in date and pets.
3. 3Choose Book a viewing (or Apply) as the shortlist button.
4. 4Add everyone who'll be on the lease and send their links.
5. 5Book viewings for the units they picked, and let the link expire after a week or two.

Mistakes to avoid

• Leaving out the pet policy. For many renters it's a yes-or-no filter. Put it on the card.
• Sending last month's vacancies. Use link expiry so nobody falls for a unit that's gone.
• Too few photos. Renters decide from the kitchen, the bathroom and the light. Show them.