How to Choose the Right Property for Your Needs

Everyone talks about how profitable it is to invest in real estate. And yes, if you make the right choices at the right times, it most certainly is! But it’s not guaranteed. You need to do your homework, a lot of research, and be prepared to either work very hard at maintaining your property, or hire a good residential property management company. This is not a case of buying a property then just sitting back and letting the money roll in. Investing in real estate is a serious commitment.

Whether you’re a first time real estate purchaser or a seasoned veteran, here are some tips that can benefit both of you:

Buy Within Your Budget: This decides which areas and in some cases, what types of real estate you can invest in. To nail down your budget, make an appointment with a lender or mortgage broker and get pre-approved. Then it’s smooth sailing.

Your Price Range: This will depend on whether you choose to manage the property yourself or hire a real estate property management company. You’ll need to add in additional costs if you choose a management company (but you’ll save yourself a lot of headaches & money in the long run!).

Type of Property: Houses, duplexes, low rise or high rise buildings, condos, townhouses, open land…it all depends on what you can afford, what you would feel comfortable with, and whether you plan to handle the property yourself or hire a real estate property management company.

Where to Buy: If you plan to manage your own property, try to find something close to home. If a furnace breaks down in the middle of the night, it’s easier if it’s only a 10-15 minute drive. If you plan to hire a residential property management company, distance doesn’t matter as they’ll handle everything for you.

Investment Area Options: Make up a short list of areas that fit into your price range, and suit your management choice. Call up and talk to agents in those areas to find out what is available to buy that fits into your budget.

Do Your Research: Once you’ve decided on the area you’d like to buy in, check out the prices of homes that have been recently sold in and around that area. This gives you more information on a property’s value and what people are willing to pay.

Do In-Depth Research: Especially if you’re considering buying real estate in an area you’re unfamiliar with. You can get a lot of information on more than price from lenders and mortgage insurers. They usually have a lot of valuable data on different locations and property developments. You can also check with the local police regarding crime statistics.

Match Property to People: The property you invest in should meet the needs and demographics of the renters in that area. Near colleges and universities, property with lots of bedrooms would be in demand. A house with a big yard close to schools and parks is best suited to families.

Property Age & Condition: If you need to replace a roof or furnace within the first few months of ownership, that takes a major bite out of your profits and can derail your cash flow. Before you purchase anything have a professional building inspector thoroughly check the place over so you know what you’re getting into.

Big Local Changes: Are there any big plans in store for the area you wish to purchase in? Check with your local council for this kind of information. If major long term construction is planned it may be hard to find or keep tenants. However, if you’re looking at light rail transit or a by-pass coming in, you may see the value of your property increase sooner than expected!

If this is your first foray into investing in real estate, a good start might be a house or a condo. Condos are basically low maintenance outside as the condo association handles all that. You just maintain the interior. In the case of a single family house, it usually attracts long-term renters like couples and families. With two adults there are usually two pay cheques coming in so they’re more likely to be financially stable and pay their rent regularly.

Either way, the tips we’ve offered should be of some help to enable you to buy the property that’s best suited to you. When you’re able to, hire a reputable real estate property management company to handle it all for you…and then you can sit back and watch your investments grow!

Ways to Maximize the Profit of Your Property

When you have an income property, you want to get as much money as you can out of it. So it pays off to make the extra effort to be creative or to be diligent – and in some cases, come up with an initial investment to get things rolling. Whether you deal with residential property management or corporate property management many of these suggestions can help you to get more money coming in.

RENT OUT UNUSED STORAGE/PARKING SPACE: If it’s in a warehouse and it’s a large space, section it off and rent it out for separate smaller storage spaces – if it’s a smaller space, rent it out as is for storage. If you have a huge unused parking space, advertise monthly parking in specific sections, painting the lines for those areas differently. If the storage space or garage space is at a residential property and is not being used by tenants, rent it out to non-tenants. Is there a business nearby that could use more parking or storage?   

TURN WALLS/FENCES INTO ADVERTISING SPACE: Make that empty wall space or fence into an advertising mecca by renting it out to local businesses. It can be as simple as hanging a banner or as detailed as having a professional painter make that space into a marketing mural. Use as many walls or fence lengths as you’re able to. It’ll brighten up a barren industrial property, and can bring in hundreds of dollars every month.

ADD LAUNDRY FACILITIES:  If you’re looking to attract quality tenants, give them what they want: in-unit laundry. It costs a bit at the beginning, but will pay off in the long run as you can raise the rents, enjoy faster rentals, and get those quality long-term tenants you always wanted. They’re also a good incentive. Offer the laundry facilities only to those who sign a 2-year lease instead of a 1-year lease – the convenience may even keep that tenant beyond the 2-year commitment.

ADD/UPGRADE COIN-OPERATED LAUNDRY FACILITIES: If you haven’t got laundry facilities on-site for a residential property, then install them – even if it’s just one washer and one dryer for a small property. No-one likes piling their dirty laundry into a car and going out to a laundromat, if they can drop them off downstairs, then just conveniently pick them up a hour or so later. If you already have a laundry room, make sure it’s regularly cleaned and maintained. In both cases, a change machine is a welcome addition!

BUY A KEYMAKER – Depending on the size of your property or properties, you can save a fortune making your own keys. For the initial investment of a key maker, and ‘No Duplication’ key blanks, you’ll be able to replace any key at any time – even Sunday night after a tenant’s keys just hit the elevator shaft floor! You can charge for replacement keys – say $5 each - and never worry when a tenant doesn’t turn in their keys. Just buy a new lock and make the extra keys yourself.

INSTALL VENDING MACHINES – Could be coffee, soft drinks, chocolate bars, candy, sandwiches – you choose what would be most appropriate for your space. In a factory or office building, all would be probably be welcome in a lunchroom. In a residential setting, they might be found in a laundry room or recreation room or even in back hallway to the parking lot. A workout room would be a great setting for a fruit juice dispenser.  All translate into more income for you.

Making extra money in some of these ways does come with an initial investment, but if properly handled and maintained, can be constant additional revenue streams which add to your profit margin. While there may be more options for residential property management people to take advantage of, there are enough to perk up the income of corporate properties as well. Choose one or several of these ideas and maximize the profit of your property!

The Top 5 Problems Landowners Experience

There are five main problems that landowners have to deal with when they rent or lease their property or properties. These are problems that can be easily solved with the right real estate property management company. However, some people try to save money by handling these challenges themselves, and end up wasting valuable resources and burning themselves out in the process. If you see yourself struggling with some of these issues, this might be a good time to take a step back and reconsider your choices when it comes to property management.

TIME - You only have so much time in a day. If you’ve invested in property and still have a full-time job, you don’t have a lot of time left over - especially if you have a family - to give your property the attention it needs. Even if you are retired or semi-retired, there’s a lot of work to do when it comes to the day to day issues of renting and maintenance. It’s a 24/7 commitment. Your time is better spend arranging financing for necessary renovations or looking for new investment opportunities.

DISTANCE – If you don’t live near your rental property, checking on it and even interviewing potential tenants takes a lot of time and effort. Now add in dealing with tenant complaints, maintenance issues, emergencies, even just collecting the rent on time. If you manage your own property or properties, you’d need to live close by to be efficient and time effective. And the best investments may not be right around the corner. This limitation can affect your long-term success.

INEXPERIENCE – If you don’t know anything about residential property management, you’re in for a series of nasty surprises. There is so much involved that you’ll be overwhelmed just finding out all you have to do. And you not only have to do it, you need to do it quickly, correctly, and legally. Hire a bad or lazy repair person, or take too long filling vacancies and watch your profits melt away. Legal errors will cost you if you don’t understand the housing laws, or if you take too long to fix a furnace in the middle of winter.

MANAGEMENT – There is much more to it than you realized, most of it dealing with people: tenants, repair people, accountants, maintenance people, and lawyers to name a few. Along with collecting rent, maintaining the property to code, and dealing with complaints and problems, there is payroll and a pile of legal requirements and considerations. Basically, you’re an employer with all the accompanying headaches. And I’ll bet that’s not what you signed on for when you invested.

TENANTS – Finding and keeping good tenants isn’t easy. A vacancy is money slipping through your fingers. You need to create enticing ads with good pictures to attract the kind of tenants you want. You must respond to emails, interview people, show the unit, review applications, pull and review credit reports, call references and past landlords, prepare a lease negotiate the terms, get the lease signed…and this is still no guarantee of getting a good tenant – especially if you’re not experienced with renting. Good tenants need a quick follow-up for repair needs. Bad tenants cost you time and money and a few rounds with the legal system to get rid of them! Until they’re gone, one bad tenant can cost you many good tenants, and a lot of money.

The answer to all of these problems is simple. Hire a good residential property management company. They will handle every management issue from renting to maintenance…from emergencies – they get the 2am call that a pipe has burst – to evicting the nightmare tenant. They know the ins and outs of vetting and keeping tenants, all the legalities involved in any situation, and have the best repair people on call. They will lift the weight of property management from your shoulders, and let you relax and watch your investment grow. If you haven’t before, now might be the time to look into finding a good real estate property management company.