A person who has spent his 2000 to 4000 minimum CPA practice hours doing foreign currency conversions at Deloitte for a Belgian energy company may not know the first thing about real estate or anything else.

Hi Meghan,   My wife and I live in Coon Rapids, but have 2 rental houses in Duluth that we rent to college students.

What are your best tips for screening tenants, especially for student renters?

As it relates to lease end dates I've seen two things work here. 1) You can stagger end dates as mentioned above or 2) you can optimize for summer - this works better for us in areas where you see students or families with school age children moving to align with the summmer months.Separately, this is a great argument against month-to-month leases.  

If property is done right even in todays market you can hit 1% rule and attract very desirable college students.

Any "C" average student can be a millionaire by the time they are 43.REI types:1. 

These properties typically turn over once a year as they are mostly student rentals. 

The type of rooms students would need or skilled temporary workers, not drug addicts and alcoholics. 

.- Tax Benefits & Currency Arbitrage: Some overseas markets offer better cash flow, tax incentives, and lower property costs compared to the U.S.How You Could Structure It- Create a Private Syndicate or Real Estate Fund: Raise capital from U.S. military, contractors, and government workers to invest in properties near U.S. bases overseas.- Focus on Key Military & Expat Cities: Target locations like Ramstein, Wiesbaden, Rota, Naples, Seoul, or Yokosuka, where thousands of U.S. personnel need housing.- Offer Fractional Ownership or Managed Rentals: Investors own a share of multiple properties while you handle property management.- Leverage Serviced Housing & Co-Living Models: High-end, furnished rentals for military professionals, digital nomads, and traveling contractors.Example Strategy- Raise $1M from 10-20 investors (military/gov personnel) to buy 3-5 properties in Germany or Spain.- Use seller financing & local bank loans to maximize purchasing power.- Rent properties to military families, U.S. contractors, or co-living tenants for stable cash flow.- Utilize local tax incentives and investment visas to increase ROI.Why This Could Be a Billion-Dollar Play- Solves a real problem for U.S. military/gov professionals looking to invest overseas.- Provides stable, built-in demand (military personnel have guaranteed salaries & housing stipends).- Creates an alternative wealth-building strategy for a niche group of investors.- More scalable than traditional rentals.

I rent to students around a university.