First-time landlord trying to determine rent in South Los Angeles

[Lauren Munar]

Hello. My husband and I have owned our 1910 spanish revival home near Leimert Park for nearly 4 years. We are moving to Atlanta for my husband's job but want to keep our"LA card" for if/when we decide to move back to Los Angeles. 

We are trying to figure out a rent that will allow us to cashflow and is appropriate for the area but will keep our investment safe with a high-quality tenant. 

The house is in re-marketed South LA (formerly the notorious South Central LA) and is in the process of gentrification. There is a new Metro stop going in 8 blocks from our house that will eventually take you to Downtown LA or Santa Monica. All of the most-expensive developments in LA are currently going on in the adjacent area. That said, I don't foresee the major changes happening until the Metro stop opens a few years from now. We often leave the area to shop and dine in nearby Culver City, Koreatown, USC and DTLA. The majority of residents in the area are lower to lower-middle class income and there is still a fair amount of crime (gang activity, drugs, robberies, etc).

Stats on the house:

• 2 bed + 1 bath
• Built in 1910
• Newly remodeled
• 948 sq ft
• purchase price in 2012: $248K
• today's estimated sale price: $355-360K
• washer, dryer
• fridge, dishwasher, oven, range, microwave
• Air conditioning unit
• off street parking
• garage
• storage shed
• backyard deck
• spacious, well-maintained yard with 100 year old ficus tree

According to the 1% rule, we should be renting the house for $2480, which is high in comparison to comparable rents I am seeing in the area. Are there other formulas out there that folks have seen success with? Advice appreciated.

[Michaela G.]

If it was me, then I would sell and utilize those funds to invest more in Atlanta. You can make so much more money with that here, than holding on to a house in L.A. that won't cash flow or might even be native. It's like feeding an alligator. 

You will have a much bigger net worth, if you move back to L.A. and can buy or rent something very different. 

I also don't think that all of the Georgia film industry is moving back to L.A. in the near future. They have too many incentives here and California is so expensive. 

I just moved back from California, because it was just too expensive to do real estate and here I can be right in the middle of it, which I enjoy