What's your performance benchmark for long term buy and hold?

[Michael Klinger]

Let's say your intentions are generally buy and hold, medium to long term and you aren't refinancing every 5 minutes to churn new deals...

What's would be your personal way of doing a broad stroke view of your performance and establishing a quick benchmark?

Do you tend to reference back to your original equity-in and cap rate at that time and use it in present time?
Or do you consider your equity's market value and calculate with current cap rates benchmarks?

Hypothetically, say the equity in 2017 it was in at a million and you were expecting 8 percent, so 80K.
But a few years later benchmark in your area and asset class is now more of a 7 cap and with no other big changes, you estimate your equity is worth 1.25 million, also for about a result of about 80K.

Now same question but fast forward year after year.

I suppose it's more interesting one way or another depending on whats on someone's mind, cash flow or appreciation.

But my hypothetical dismisses the leverage and strategy of cash-out re-fi.

Thoughts?