The age of information. Information at your fingertips. It seems easier and easier to get the answer. When you find an answer have you wondered about the quality? Have you asked if it's the right answer for you? Your situation? Is it the best answer for your property?
You can input your property address in a website to see what if your
Long Beach rental income
is inline with market rents, but is it right?
Properties Compared by Size and Configuration
The most common comparable that is used by both human analysis and algorithms is that of size (i.e. square ft) and configuration (i.e. number of bedrooms and bathrooms). This is the initial baseline with which by nearly all properties are compared whether for sale or for rent. Quite often we will even normalize the square footage to determine a rental value per sq ft to help us account for properties that are similar in configuration but may be different in square footage (for example both are 3 bedrooms/2 bathrooms but one is 30 sq ft larger).
Starting with these basic metrics is where many people will stop; however, we challenge you to explore in greater detail on how your property could be evaluated to help you maximize your rental investment.
Adjustments Based on Unique Differences
There are items that can add value to a property that might not be calculated into the algorithmic approach. Property aspects such as recent upgrades (i.e. kitchen/bathroom) or location on a given street (corner vs. interior street) can have a dramatic impact on the monthly yield of your rent. As you consider interviewing,
property management companies
offer up the unique aspects of your property to help the prospective property manager give you a full picture on what your property could yield in rent.
Adjustments Finely Tuned for Your Neighborhood
This is one that is particularly challenging for today’s algorithms to handle. I requested that my marketing team research compare rental analysis reports from other companies to ensure we remained competitive.
In one example (I won’t share the company) they compared a property in the 90808 vs. the 90815. While these two zip codes are certainly close in proximity we know, as those local to Long Beach, that they are very distinct neighborhoods within each of those zip codes. Long Beach is incredibly unique, where the difference of one street east or west could mean more than $100 per month in rent and comparing by distance (which most algorithms do) isn’t going to help you get the most for rent out of your Long Beach investment property.
Recommendations Based on Days on Market
When a property is priced right, whether that be for rent or for sale, it won’t last long on the market.
As you evaluate different property analysis reports take a look at the days on market with the comparable rents. Even if you own your property outright each day is costing you money (i.e. insurance, property taxes, etc.) which means the longer you stay on the market the more you are losing.
You don’t want to leave money on the table by overpricing your property! Overpricing can be a mistake that can stick with you for months.
Take time to ask your prospective property management company how you can position for a maximum yield on rental income while minimizing the days on market.
If you’d like guidance on if a rental property is fairly priced we invite you to call us today at (562) 888-0247 as we’d be happy to help. When you want a quick check to see how much your property could fetch in rent we invite you to fill out our
Free Rental Analysis
where we perform a comprehensive comparison to share your rental stacks up to the competition.
