While in the rental property purchasing phase, your priorities are location, location, location. But after acquiring a property and renting it out, your focus is all about planning, planning, planning. As one of the largest property management companies in northeast Georgia, we recommend the following plans:
- Plan on allocating capital funding for maintenance; it’s just a fact of life when owning rental property. Appliances, faucets, water heaters, heating and air conditioning units unfortunately are not built to last forever.
2. Plan on tenant turnover. If you keep tenants happy, they typically will stay put for a while, but even the happiest tenants won’t stay forever. Job changes, schooling, outgrowing the home, or even purchasing a home of their own—life events occur.
3. Plan on repeating the process. Every time you have a tenant move out, you will need to prepare the property for a new one. Costs will vary, but could include new paint, new carpet, bringing the home up to code if necessary, and making any repairs from normal wear and tear.
As a leader among property management companies in northeast Georgia, Real Property Management Stellar knows that the costs of routine maintenance can become overwhelming. We educate our clients to expect the unexpected and plan on spending the equivalent of approximately 1 to 2 months of rent annually on maintenance costs. By planning for the costs of repairs, when problems do arise, the costs will not be so overwhelming. But, equally important is the willingness to commit to maintain your investment. And partnering with Real Property Management Stellar gives you access to appliance and structural repair and cleaning services through our network of contractors.
As the old saying goes, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Don’t make failing part of your plan. Plan for maintenance costs ahead of time and be active about issues when they arise. Planning sets you on the path to successful real estate investing. Please contact us for more information.