Over the past few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way people work and live – and life as we once knew it has more than likely been altered permanently. So, if you own rental real estate, it is imperative that you implement at least a few key changes. Otherwise, it could become more difficult to generate a return on your investment.
Some of the most notable post-Coronavirus components for residential real estate investors will be the following:
- Virtual property tours. While the Internet has been providing convenience and time-saving capabilities for many years now, following the COVID-19 pandemic, it is likely that virtual property tours will become the norm rather than the exception. This is also the case for online rental applications and lease agreements.
- Online rent payment. Yet another area that offers convenience, along with a safe way to handle transactions, is online rent payment. Here, for instance, not only can you forgo having to open and deposit a physical check, you can also set up automatic monthly payments from your tenants. So, in addition to a germ-free process, you can also anticipate exactly when your incoming cash flow will arrive.
- Offering work from home options. Because COVID-19 has caused widespread disruption in the workplace, many people – even those who are employed by large corporations – are now working from home. And this trend will more than likely continue going forward. With that in mind, residential rental property owners can make their offerings stand out by providing home office-related amenities, such as built-in desks and bookshelves, and stronger wi-fi.
If you own residential real estate in the Orlando and / or Central Florida area, and you would rather hand over the day-to-day duties of managing and maintaining it, now could be a good time to bring an experienced property management team on board.
In doing so, all of the marketing, repairs, and rent collection will be handled by someone else, while you still continue to receive regular passive cash flow. For more details on how to incorporate a property manager into your rental real estate business, Contact Us.