Rental/Investment property

[elessar78]

Any general advice on buying and owning a piece of rental property?

I'm looking to buy my first unit, a single family home.

[97guns]

run your numbers, known monthly costs are insurance, mortgage, property tax and property manager. check craigslist for the rental market in your area, make some calls, how long are they vacant?

when potential tenants come to view the property let them go inside to look around while you hang outside and check out their car. if its got a bunch of garbage in it and really dirty the chances are very good that they will live in your house in the same manner. is the registration current, are the tires bald? all this adds up to getting a decent tenant in place. once you narrow down your choices drive by the potential tenants place of residence to see how they live, lawn kept nice, no garbage outside....

when you call their workplace do not verify them right away. ask the business questions about their product, be a customer to determine the business is legit, then call again to verify the tenant. in my market most people renting have bad credit and i've caught potential tenants lying about employment, get a current pay check stub. a good tenant is key to it all

[T1985]

General question to ask but I understand what you mean. I have the same general question but I hope that maybe someone can suggest a good book/blog that might help. I have found one or two good sources online. They are out there.

[97guns]

The Millionaire Real Estate Investor

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071446370/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=1535523722&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000FOT68S&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0VG40H7WPV80JD4PZCKW

[krantcents]

First and foremost, the number have to make sense. In this low interest environment, you should break even immediately. That is the rent you can get for the property should equal your total costs. The next part is getting a good tenant. It is all front end loaded, get a credit report, references and make sure there are no black marks (i.e. bankruptcy, evictions, write offs etc). The more you do at the front end, the better off you will be. Good luck.

[jackmiller]

In this low interest environment, you should break even immediately.

Agree fully! If you cannot do that in this market then you are really going to be holding a sucker. My theory (and easy cash flow math) is to buy all cash then the cash flow analysis math always works.

[pomala6]

You should searching another site. And you can solved this problem.

[moneysma]

Take into account repairs and vacancies. Most 1st timers ignore these and think they are making a monthly profit. The the tenant moves out and the vacancy for a month or two wipes out their "income".

As others have said, do your due diligence on potential tenants. Don't feel weird looking into their financial past. This is a business relationship, not a friendship.

With that said, be sure to treat great tenants well. It's not all about the money. I have a tenant right now that I haven't raised the rent on in 2 years. Will I never raise it? Doubtful, but I don't need to raise it every year. I'd rather have an awesome tenant that takes care of the place, pays on time, and I earn $50 month a less per month as opposed to earning that extra $50 and have a tenant that causes problems.

[theoracle]

Any general advice on buying and owning a piece of rental property?

I'm looking to buy my first unit, a single family home.

The less you borrow to fund the purchase the better... if you're a cash buyer, better still!!

Owning rental properties can be stressful and financially draining if the numbers are too tight and by that i mean if your rental income only just covers your expenses (mortgage repayment, property insurance, service charges, management fees) then i'd really think twice... and i haven't even mentioned void periods or repairs/maintenance yet!!

If you are going to buy, then buy in an area that is local to you and that you're familiar with. You know the prices, you know the demographics, you can get to there in the event of an emergency and keep an eye on your investment. If your happy to find and vet your own tenants and can deal with the maintenance then do that too... will save on management costs