By VestPro Residential Services

Are you planning on investing in Houston Texas Single Family Homes? If so, you’ve come to the right place!

Now is a great time to invest in rental properties in the Houston area because mortgage interest rates are still historically low while demand for rentals is high.

If you’re ready to make an investment in single family homes, this article will provide you with tips you can use to do it effectively.

Know your investing criteria first

With any investment, be it stocks, bonds or real estate, you need to know what your objectives are. If you’re focused on safety and security, consider exploring low-risk investment homes that generate steady, reliable yield. An example of this may be a more expensive investment property in a good school district. You’re going to get a lower yield, but you may see better downside protection and less volatility. If you have a longer-term horizon or you’re seeking higher returns, you may want to take on a little more risk. Often, lower-priced homes will be riskier, but you may get higher yields and potentially higher long-term returns.

Don’t limit your investment property search to where you live

Consider this: If you lived in Atlanta, you wouldn’t buy Coca-Cola stock simply because its headquarters are local. The same principle applies to real estate investing. If your primary residence, income property, and job are all located in the same area, you have a lot of concentrated risk and are more vulnerable to the swings of the local economy. At my company Roofstock, an online marketplace for buying and selling leased single-family rental homes, we encourage people to spread risk by investing in markets outside of where they live. (Hiring a local property manager is key here.)

Diversification is just one reason to expand your investment property search. Another is access: If you live in an expensive urban or coastal area with relatively high home prices — the San Francisco Bay Area, for instance — finding an income property that’s cash-flow positive is going to be challenging, to say the least. You won’t be able to find a great income property for $100,000 in Seattle, Denver, or Oakland, Calif., but you can if the focus on the Midwest, South, and Southeast.  

Separate investing from operations

One of the appeals of investing in single-family rental homes is you can hire strong local property management firms to handle day-to-day management tasks of rent collection, repairs and maintenance, and leasing. Over the past several years, property managers have adopted new technologies and business processes to manage homes more effectively for owners.

While some people do choose to self-manage, hiring a property manager can save you a lot of time and potentially money in the long run. While property management companies typically charge between 7% and 8% of the rent, they manage properties for a living and can work to ensure the property is leased, in good condition, and the tenants are happy. Additionally, using a local property manager effectively allows you to buy properties outside of where you live, as self-managing is difficult if the property is not nearby.

Get Property Management Here

For effective property management contact Vestpro Residential Services at (832) 971-1841 or click here to connect with us online.