Sun Rock » rental management

As Home Prices Decline, it is a Great Time to Invest in a Rental Property

Sun Rock Properties — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:55:59 +0000

In Manatee County home and condominium re-sales rose in October. However, there’s still a debate about the housing market recovery.

According to the Florida Association of Realtors, sales of existing single-family homes in the Sarasota-Bradenton market rose nearly 50 percent in October compared to the same month a year ago. Sales of previously-owned condos also escalated.

Bargain-hunters and first-time homebuyers seeking the federal tax-credit deadline pushed the sales spike. This led to a decrease in the median sales price from a year ago.

Whether you are looking to purchase a condo on the 10th-hole in River Strand or a beautiful home in the Lakewood Ranch Country Club, prices are right for an investment in a rental property.

Contact Sun Rock Property Management for all your investment rental property management needs.

How Much Should I Charge for Rent?

Sun Rock Properties — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 00:42:08 +0000

Determining how much you should rent your investment property for is really not that hard. In today’s real estate market, there are a lot of properties listed for rent, so finding comparables is not a problem.

The first thing you should do is determine how much you need to rent the property for to have a good cashflow (add up all of the costs associated, taxes, insurance, association dues, maintenance, property management fees, mortgage). You want to know where you stand compared to the current market rental rate. You want your property to generate income for you and be an asset, not a liability.

Next, go to craigslist or do a Google search for the street name + “for rent”. This should direct you to several comparable properties. You should look for properties with the same amount of bedrooms, bathrooms and square footage. Some may have pools, be on the water or several acres of land, these rates should be adjusted up or down compared to your property. Find four or five comparables and then take the average of them. This gives you a ballpark range for what is reasonable in the area.

Then compare the average rent with the amount you need in order to get a cashflow on the property. Set your rate at what is going to give you the maximum amount of return on investment possible, while still being competitive with the nearby properties.

In today’s market, you definitely need to be in the same range as the comparables. There is too much supply on the market and your property will not get any attention unless it is priced reasonably.

Once you have your rental rate set, add $25. This will give you some room to negotiate a solid lease.

Tenants Screen the Landlords

Sun Rock Properties — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 00:38:34 +0000

As the collapse of the housing market continues, foreclosures are all to common. Many good tenants, who pay their rent on time are finding themselves having to move because their landlord has not been paying the mortgage.

Tenants are learning lessons from the housing bust. It is wise to check out the landlord before signing a lease, moving all of your stuff in and paying rent. This is not too difficult to do, the main thing the tenant needs to see is the pay history on the mortgage for the last two years. One way to accomplish this is to run a credit report on the Landlord to show payment histories on all of their mortgages. With authorization, a verification of mortgage (VOM) could be sent to the Landlord’s mortgage company. The VOM could take over a week, so it is a good idea for a landlord to go ahead and request it, so that it can be provided to prospective tenants at application.

When a property goes into foreclosure, the landlord should be upfront with the tenants about the situation. The tenants could possibly sue as they are promised uninterrupted enjoyment of the property in the lease. If a foreclosure process is started, any property management contracts are voided.

For more cashflow maximizing advice contact Sun Rock Property Management, no strings attached.