North Idaho Fine Homes - Josh Ivey and Jennifer Ivey, REALTORS
  • Home
  • Properties
    • 714 Church St >
      • 714 Church St Photo Gallery
    • 24557 Highway 2 >
      • 24557 Highway 2 Photo Gallery
    • 306 Shepherd Rd >
      • 306 Shepherd Rd Photo Gallery
    • NNA Dufort Rd >
      • NNA Dufort Rd Photo Gallery
    • 11295 N Avondale Lp >
      • 11295 N Avondale Lp Photo Gallery
    • NNA Crooked Ear Dr >
      • NNA Crooked Ear Dr Photo Gallery
    • The Cottages - Waterfront Community in Sandpoint, Idaho >
      • The Cottages Photo Gallery
    • 20 Acres - Lone Cedar Lane >
      • 20 Acre Lone Cedar Lane Photo Gallery
    • 180 Deerhaven Dr >
      • 180 Deerhaven Dr Photo Gallery
    • 206 E Third Ave >
      • 206 E Third Ave Photo Gallery
    • 714 Church St >
      • 714 Church St Photo Gallery
    • 6850 Spurwing Loop #204 >
      • 6850 Spurwing Loop #204 Photo Gallery
    • 3921 W Accipter Dr
    • 6416 River Rd
    • 660 Gemini Trail
    • 210 W Third Ave >
      • 210 W Third Ave Photo Gallery
    • 822 Northview Dr
    • Coeur d Alene Area Search
    • Sandpoint Area Search
  • Destinations
    • Coeur d Alene
    • Sandpoint
  • Lifestyles
    • Amusement Park
    • Bicycling
    • Fishing
    • Golfing
    • Outdoor Adventure
    • Skiing
    • Snowmobiling
  • Professionals
  • Perspectives


​I am the master of my fate, i am the captain of my soul

~ William Ernest henley

Want to be a Landlord?

9/16/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
Real estate has consistently been one of the highest rated investments available to individuals.  TV shows certainly make rentals look easy and you may even know someone who has made a lot of money with them.  Possibly, the thought has crossed your mind that if they can do it, you can too.

Before you contract for your first investment, ask yourself some questions that could save you time and energy.  Not all people have the time, the inclination or even the skill to manage property.  Landlords need to be good business people who can maximize revenue and minimize expenses.  If investors don't have the skills and talent to handle some of the repairs, they at least need to know reputable and reasonable service professionals.

Another important element is to be familiar with the state and local landlord tenant laws.  You'll need to know what are allowable security deposits and where the money can be held.  Knowing how long you have to return it to a tenant is important and what to do if you plan to keep all or part of it for damages done.  It is important to know about the eviction process and how fair housing applies.

​If you decide that you may not be cut out for being a landlord, it won't eliminate investing in rentals.  It does mean that you will need to engage a property management company who is capable of dealing with all aspects of the process.  The peace of mind and convenience will cost you a fee, usually a percentage of the rent collected.  They can handle finding a tenant, doing the background check and writing the lease but there will be an additional fee for that service.

Even though your expenses will be higher with a property manager, with their experience, they should be able to help you lease the property for more money than you can get and will probably have service providers to do the work needed for less.

Occasionally, rental property requires out of pocket expenses for repairs and improvements which is like making another capital contribution.  As equity builds in a rental property due to appreciation and principal reduction, the owner does have the option to take cash out of the investment either to pay additional expenses or to use any way the owner wants.  Pulling equity out of a rental doesn't even trigger a taxable event.

Single-family homes and up to four-unit buildings offer an investor the opportunity to get a high loan-to-value mortgage at a fixed interest rate for 30 years on appreciating assets with tax advantages and reasonable control compared to other alternative investments.

Many investors like the fact that you can borrow to purchase a rental investment where many other investments require cash.  The use of borrowed funds can create an advantage called leverage.  Assume you paid cash for a $100,000 home that generated $7,000 income after the rent was collected and expenses were paid.  Divide the value of the home into the income and it would earn 7%.

If you decided to put an $80,000 mortgage on it at 5% interest, the interest expense would be $4,000 leaving only $3,000 income.  However, at that point, you'd only have $20,000 invested in the property.  Divide the cash invested into the income and the rate of return would increase to 15%.

This is a simple example of leverage showing that borrowed funds can increase an investor's yield on a property.

Rental property can be an excellent investment when it is treated like the business that it is.  Knowledge of the investment will reduce the risk and enhance the opportunity to make a profit.  Some investors consider their rental income as "mailbox money" because each month, they go to their mailbox and they have money being sent to them by their tenants.  The benefits of rental property can easily outweigh risk involved.

Contact me for more information on rental properties and the option to be the landlord or to delegate it to a property manager.

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Josh & Jennifer Ivey - Your trusted real estate advisers for all of North Idaho.

    Archives

    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014

    Categories

    All
    Home Buying
    Home Cleaning
    Home Design
    Home Finance
    Home Maintenance
    Home Selling
    Investments
    Lifestyle

    RSS Feed

221 E Sherman Ave
Coeur d' Alene, Idaho 83814

200 Main St
Sandpoint, Idaho 83864
Tomlinson Sotheby's International Realty
Josh Ivey (208) 946-7355
josh.ivey@sothebysrealty.com

Jennifer Ivey (208) 946-7816
jennifer.ivey@sothebysrealty.com

©2016 North Idaho Fine Homes. Sotheby’s International Realty® is a registered trademark licensed to Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated.
Photo used under Creative Commons from Mary P Madigan