What To Look For In A Rental??

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Can anyone tell me what they look for in a piece of rental property wether it be a single family, duplex, triplex, commercial? (cash flow, asethetics, etc.)

Curious george!!

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Comments(3)

  • jksal21st November, 2003

    This is the question we all answer every day. Personally i look for properties mid range properties, with 3 beds and 2 baths for easy rental. The homes are priced between 60,000 and 80,000 and rent for around $750 per month. I prefer single family, others like multi family units. It all depends on what your goals are. I have lower cash flow than others, but my homes are full af good tenants who don't trash the place.

    This is just my opinion, and matches with my goals.

  • DaveT21st November, 2003

    Here are my top three for residential rental property:

    1. Cash Flow
    2. Cash Flow
    3. Cash Flow

    Anything else you may think of such as location, will directly affect your cash flow. For example, if the property is located in a war zone, or next to a busy (and noisy) highway, your market rent will be directly affected and the impact will trickle down to your cash flow.

    Aesthetics might include the color of carpet or wall paint, even landscaping. Most of the time, these things can be corrected with minimal costs, so I don't let them interfere with the purchase decision. Now if I don't like the architectural style of the property, I might let that influence me, but only if it does not fit in with the rest of the properties in the neighborhood.

  • Marcher21st November, 2003

    Positive cash flow after ALL monies have been paid (meaning take into account any repairs you have to make, closing costs etc etc) is the single biggest factor. Take into account vacancies and reserves to. Don't fudge the numbers. If possible consider running your numbers by some people with experience. There are probably people on this forum who would offer an opinion.

    Other things I look at are neighborhood (no high crime/drugs etc, but lower income is fine, you want a solid rental area), repair state (I avoid major fix-ups, but that is just because I am relatively new to the game).

    There are other things, such as current vacancies etc, but most of them can be accounted for in the price (ie lower the offer).

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