Money Saving Tips for Your Rental

Any real estate investor’s top priority is making money. Sure, there are plenty of other important concerns to think about as well, but virtually every move a landlord makes is driven by increasing their own bottom line. There are lots of ways to do this, but one of the easiest – and most often overlooked – is by implementing a few cost-cutting tricks at your rental property. When you reduce your costs, you boost your profits. It’s that simple. Here’s how you can do it:

• Stay on top of regular maintenance and repairs. This is one of the most important steps you can take as a property owner to save money. When you keep up with regular maintenance (i.e., changing furnace filters, getting your AC and furnace checked annually, testing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, vacuuming refrigerator coils, trimming trees away from your roof), you can prevent a ton of hassle later on, not to mention the potential cash savings. Letting these things go unchecked can create bigger – and more expensive – problems later on.
• Invest in low-flow showerheads, toilets, and faucets. Many landlords shoulder some of the utility bills themselves, so this is another area where you can trim costs. Updating the water fixtures with low-flow replacements can result in big savings at your property over the course of a year.
• Turn down the temp on your water heater. Most people have their hot water heater set to a scalding temperature of 140 degrees. Lowering this by 10 or even 20 degrees can translate into about $20 per year in savings. It may not sound like much, but when you add it up with your other cost-cutting measures, you’ll notice the difference.
• Upgrade lighting to CFL or LED bulbs. Tossing your old incandescent light bulbs and upgrading to energy-saving CFL or LED bulbs is another easy way to save. While these bulbs come with a higher price tag, they last much longer (about 10 years) and use far less energy – meaning you’ll spend much less over the long run.
• Insulate and air seal. A drafty home is a more expensive home, so outfitting your property with proper insulation is key to keeping costs down – to the tune of several hundred dollars per year, potentially. Attics and walls should have adequate insulation, and you should check for drafts coming in around doors and windows and weatherstripping or caulking where necessary.
• Visit your property regularly or have a property manager do it for you. Regular maintenance (tip #1) may be one of the most important things you can do to keep costs down, but frequent visits to your property to SEE what needs to be done is obviously just as crucial. If you’re not visiting your investment regularly – or having a property manager or other designated representative do it for you – you may as well be throwing money out the window.

Implementing a few money-saving strategies are a great way to increase the income you’re making off your investment property. While some of these may seem insignificant or even unnecessary at first glance, just remember – every little bit you can save is more money in your pocket.