3 Things to Look For in Turn-Key

There are still plenty of real estate investors who want to ‘flip’ a home, or the DIY types who want to handle all the rehab themselves before renting the property out. But there’s another major player on the scene, and it’s one that’s generating a lot of buzz lately. We’re talking about the turnkey investor. This is the investor who wants the cash flow and other benefits that come with owning rental property, but doesn’t have time to handle the repairs or other day-to-day concerns. If this is more your style, then turnkey investing might be for you. Here’s what to look for before buying:

Quality Above Quantity
If you get online and browse through a few rental investment blogs, no doubt you’ll see posts by investors boasting about their 35 properties that bring in a boatload of cash each month. Well, good for them. That doesn’t mean that’s what you need to do, though, or at least not when you’re just getting started with property investment. At this stage, the quality of your investments is much more important than the quantity. As many new investors have discovered the hard way, a poor quality home can quickly turn into endless repairs and other problems that will leave you strapped for cash and majorly stressed. Another downside of buying a bunch of properties is the massive amount of debt you’ll accrue in the process, which isn’t a situation you want to be in. So, quality over quantity, people.

A Reputable Turnkey Investment Company
With turnkey investing, chances are you’ll wind up working with a investment group that specializes in this type of property. This is a good thing, as they know (or should know, anyway) all the ins and outs of real estate investment, the local market stats, and other pertinent information you’ll want before making a decision. The key here is to make sure you pick an experienced, reputable, and all-around great turnkey company to work with. You want people who are working for you and have your best interests (i.e., more money in your pocket) in mind. So do your research when looking at turnkey groups in your rental market to ensure you are working with people who are honest, easy to communicate with, and responsive to your needs.

A Great Property Management Group
The whole premise behind turnkey properties is that it’s a more passive form of investment. All the grunt work has already been taken care of; all the property needs now is a new owner to claim it. But what about the work that occurs after the property has been purchased? Securing quality tenants, collecting rent, handling maintenance issues, and dealing with other day-to-day tasks needs to be taken care of by someone, so who’s it going to be if not you? The answer is a property management group. As with your hunt for a great turnkey company, you need to do the same when it comes to obtaining a management group for your property. Look for an experienced company that lays everything out up front – what their costs and fees are, what it covers, who they use for maintenance and repairs, etc. Better yet, go with a turnkey group that has an in-house property management group. Since the turnkey group makes its money off the initial sale of the property, they won’t be looking at you for additional income through managing your property.

Turnkey investing offers an excellent way to get a foothold in real estate investment. If you’d like to learn more about how you can build your wealth through turnkey property ownership, contact us today – we’d love to fill you in.