When I was in middle school, my great aunt passed away. She was an amazing, successful, well-loved woman who resided in Virginia, right on the D.C. line. When she died, she left my mother and my uncle her apartment in her will. The apartment was paid off, and ready to be rented.
Since my brother and I were still young when this happened, my mother had no current use for the apartment. My uncle still did not have kids yet and he already had a place in D.C. that he loved, so he had no use for it either. My mom and my uncle had to make a decision on whether to rent the apartment, or to sell it.
Let me start of by saying, this is a pretty awesome apartment complex. It resides in a small town that is less than a five minute drive into the nation’s capital. There is a pool, a grocery store, and tons of conference rooms for use all inside the building. The general age of tenants is mid-twenties to early thirties, and the atmosphere is really welcoming.
My mom and uncle knew that they could find a tenant almost instantly after posting the listing online. The location was great, there were several bathrooms in the unit, and an extra office space that could be converted into a bedroom for a roommate if that is what the renters wanted to do.
My family knew that this kind of apartment was in high demand, and that the income potential for renting this space could be enormous. So that is what they did.
Recognize the huge income potential
With the imminent threat of a life of college debt hovering both mine and my brother’s head, my mom and dad knew the best route of action was to start saving as much as possible, as quickly as possible.
My uncle was also thinking of starting a family with his new girlfriend, and wanted to start saving up more extra income as well, so that his future family could live comfortably. He was on board with renting the apartment out, but a lot of work still had to be done.
To make money, my mom and uncle had to first put in a lot of work, and a bit of money. They had to organize all of my aunt’s things with my grandmother, and get the apartment ready for new tenants.
My aunt was a huge traveler, and her apartment was full of antiques, trinkets, and small gifts from all over the world. My family had to find storage for most of this, and divide up the rest among each other. After they cleared out the apartment, they had to deep clean it, and then put it up on the market.
My family does not know much about real estate. My mom’s best friend is a real estate agent, and she has sold all of our past homes and helped us purchase new ones. My mom and uncle didn’t really have any clue on how to rent out a property, so they hired a property manager to deal with everything they could not do themselves.
Get additional help by hiring a property manager
The property manager that they hired was quickly able to make their lives one thousand times easier. He was a wonderful man that handled all communications with the renters. He collected rent, dealt with maintenance issues, and inspected the property. They can respond to any emergencies that tenants may have and manages the budgets for the property.
The property manager of my home helps the landlord handle multiple properties, so that each property gets the individual attention that it needs if necessary.
A commercial property manager can be a key part of the process for anyone who is renting out a space for money and needs assistance. A commercial property manager may be in charge of several buildings rather than one, and their job is to make the job of the landlord much simpler.
A commercial property manager can hire a crew of workers to do maintenance on the buildings. They can hire construction workers to do renovations and improvements on the property. A commercial property manager can also deal with negotiating the leases for tenants.
Renting on your own terms
Real estate is a great investment for a person to make. There are so many options out there for properties that you can rent out, and also enjoy like a beach house or another type of vacation home. With a beach house, you can pick and choose the weeks that you want renters to come, and have the rest of the time to yourself.
With the property that my mother and uncle have, they do yearlong leases, so that renters are locked into a contract stating they will pay full rent for 12 months as well as cover any bills. This has led to my mom accumulating a small nest egg to keep adding to for college tuition in the future.
Any residence or piece of property that you rent out for a profit is commercial property. This can be office buildings, farming land, and even industrial warehouses. You can benefit from renting our commercial real estate for a number of reasons. You can get tax breaks, thousands extra in rent each month, and money from other services provided such as parking.
Renting out a space can be stressful, but with the right property manager, it can be a breeze. You do not have to handle the day-to-day operations of the property, and almost everything is done for you. Why not look into investing in real estate today?