Is this a common type of response what you all are getting with Zillow? --24.233.xxx.xx

Of course there are good tenants that will be looking due to various reasons - job change, family situations, etc., but they are much rarer than the kind of prospective tenants you are seeing. --99.165.xx.xxx

Melinda: 1) consider allowing dogs (subject to breed) & up rent $100 per month over comps. my target mkt includes pet owners who can’t find a house to rent. 4) I include appliances & up rent $100 per month over comps. my mkt wants everything included. sort of like hotels. every hotel I take over has had a no animal policy. I change to $25 pet fee & put up doo doo stations outside. Thousands extra each month. Many travel with their pets. I want them to stay at our hotels... --107.77.xxx.xxx

Overwhelming number of responses to a rental ad I placed on Zillow. Stopped the ad due to similar responses to yours. Tried facebook, got overwhelming responses there. Just not the responses I wanted, many like you mention with Zillow. Craigslist, same thing. Can't read the minds of prospects. Some that need or want to move are not keeping the ads straight, admitting as much when I respond to them, or thinking landlords are desparate, or responders are desparate and calling phone numbers hoping to get someone who will rent to them no matter what the ad says. I feel your frustration bet. --75.11.xx.xx

Very normal responses. If they say they have a pet (after ad says no pet), and you respond saying no pets. They will respond that they do not have a pet. --108.56.xxx.xx

Same here. I just finally rented my empty house after over 50 responses from Zillow, Facebook, Craig'sList, etc. Only took 8 days. Most just asked if the place was still available (a box they have you can check) everyone does, and never responded to me again. One said he knew I was asking $1900, but was I willing to take $1500 CASH instead? After several questions about no dogs and the number of people in the family (I have a limit of 3) and they all had 4 or more, I finally started responding with, "Please go back and read the entire AD and respond to me again if you fit all the requirements listed". Most never wrote back, but a few actually went back and read the AD and said, OK thanks, I don't qualify. At least I finally found some Tenants that could read carefully and did fit all my requirements. --72.199.xx.xxx

--108.66.xx.xx

Nothing new for me . I advertise on Zillow, and good prospects started drying up around here a couple of years ago. I have been forced to lower my standards a bit. Less emphasis on traditional requirements. More effort finding cooperative tenants. --107.141.xx.xxx

They don't read the ad. The look at the pictures. Add a picture of red circle with red line over smoking. Same for pets. They very hastily and quickly just punch canned response and continue to search. The first 5 or so inquiries are dead ends --99.203.xx.xxx

If you are not getting quality applicants, examine your pictures, and the attractiveness of your ads and by all means BE NICE with your replies- YOU WILL scare off the good inquiries leaving yourself with the dregs. --67.43.xxx.xxx

Fantastic idea plenty! The traditional 'NO signs' might really help. Never thought of that. I don't give out applications until I actually show the house in person. This time I only gave out 2 applications and one was to a very pushy lady who arrived after hours and had an interpreter with her. She didn't even ask, she just grabbed the apps off a stack I had set down on the counter. Very difficult getting information and she wanted to fill out the paperwork and bring it back within the hour (this was at 7 pm!) I said no, tomorrow morning at the earliest. She never came back. Thank goodness! I think the very detailed application scared her away. It's 3 pages and asks a lot of interesting stuff and 'repeats' some questions in different forms to try to catch them lying. They all lie. I like to watch my prospect's attitudes and see how they react to the house and ME. --72.199.xx.xxx

Thanks in advance and hope that everyone is well. --73.93.xx.xx

I use three strikes and you’re out. When the applicant doesn’t understand no pets, how many bedrooms in my three bedroom house and is the house a house or an apartment I take the application and put it on the bottom. I figure if they’re that stupid I don’t want them as a tenant and have to explain the rent is due on the first not when they feel like paying the rent. --99.23.xxx.x

Hi Salernitana. Not a box to check on limits on people. You have to be careful about the reason. Gets sticky if you restrict by age or any other protected group. In my case it's all legal and necessary. I just put the limit on occupants right in the first line of my Advertisement. House for rent, Limit of 3 Occupants. If they ask for further explanation or say they have 4 people, I tell them it's because of the 'sewer sump pump' which can overload if there are too many using it. And I pay the water and sewer pump electricity. Never had a problem with anyone not understanding that. Nobody wants to risk sewage backing up in the tub. Won't probably fly in all cases, but it's worked for me for 22 years now. Only had a few cases when someone disregarded the 'tell guests about the pump restrictions' rule and the expense of about $600 to fix. (which I explain could impact their rent). It's enough to make them think twice if they try to add extra people or clog that pump. --72.199.xx.xxx