To begin with, residents do not last forever. Indeed, the average resident for a single-family residence will last a year and a half. People purchase their own homes, move for job opportunities, and other life events can result in resident turnover. Once your resident leaves, you will need to get the property cleaned and prepared for the next tenants. You can hire professionals to do this work, but at the very least you will need to drive to your rental property to do an evaluation of what needs to be done, and then a return trip to ensure that your vendors did the work as expected. If your vendors have missed a few small things, then this may require additional trips on your part.
Once your property is ready, you will need to advertise your property. Did you remember to take pictures when you inspected your vendors’ work? If not, then you will need to do another trip. Also, for each showing, you will need to make a trip. On average it takes 7 to 15 showings to find a quality and qualified applicant. You could try to schedule multiple showings for the same day(s), but often what works for your schedule does not work for applicants’ schedule, and so you should plan on several trips.
Once you have found a solid resident, you will need to make an additional trip for the move-in process. Upon moving in, your residents will have additional questions that may require you to visit the residence multiple times. Even after finding the perfect resident for your rental property, and having a smooth move in, unexpected things still come up that require your attention. One such example is a toilet overflowing, and your resident is at work and unable to let the vendor in which means that you must go and stand in for your resident.
Okay, you now have a great new resident who pays the rent on time. Everything goes smoothly for a few months, but then the toilet overflows. Your resident must be at work and is unable to meet the plumber, and so there is another trip for you. No problems for a few more weeks, but then your resident has an altercation with a neighbor over the weekend, and there goes your Sunday. Everything goes smoothly for the next few weeks, but then a fuse blows, but your resident cannot find the fuse box, shutting off the heater in the middle of the winter…and you get a call at 3 am.
Although that 45-minute drive seemed so easy when you first purchased the property, it’s now a drain on not only your time but also the cost of gas, as well as wear and tear on your vehicle. How much is your time worth? That 45-minute drive each way for all the various aspects that you will need to take care of will add up.
Purchasing a property in a neighboring city can be a great investment with the low purchase price, high rent, and solid residents that you had initially anticipated. However, the time and cost of the day-to-day duties can turn that dream investment into a nightmare.
The professionals at Real Property Management Gold can assist. We will show your investment property to prospective residents, screen applicants and handle the move in, deal with resident emergencies and 3 am phone calls and attend to maintenance issues. Additionally, we continually attend training in resident-landlord laws, such as fair housing and evictions, plus are licensed and insured to manage your property successfully in compliance with regulations and statutes.
Take advantage of the savings that you will begin to accumulate when you rely on professional property management services to cut out the unneeded driving time. Contact us online or call us at 301-392-2172 today for more information.