As prices increase, fewer people can afford to buy homes, forcing them to rent.

I like the cash flow and see the potential for increasing rents, but I’m hesitant about overpaying.

Thus increasing density ratio.

We also have many unique buyer incentives where an investor can get up to a 10% price reduction to come into immediate equity, or get that 10% as a cash back at closing to reduce your down payment and increase your ROI, or buy rates down into the low 4s on 30yr loans to maximize cash flow.

Some strategies to get around are:1. leverage your current portfolio and buy in cash, increase value, and then refi2. buy Multi-family so your ratios aren't the main factor to lenders3. get in with a lender for high net worth individuals4.

I've been gradually increasing rent.

pid=2141Houston Real Estate Highlights for December and Full-Year 2024:-Following two consecutive years of declines, single-family home sales rebounded in 2024 with 85,163 single-family homes sold compared to 84,038 in 2023 an increase of 1.3 percent; -Total property sales for full-year 2024 were statistically flat at 101,864 units while the total dollar volume increased 3.1 percent to $41 billion;-December single-family home sales climbed 16.3 percent year-over-year with 7,162 units sold;-Total December property sales increased 13.6 percent to 8,478 units;-Total dollar volume for December rose 20.5 percent to $3.5 billion;-The single-family home median price edged up by 1.3 percent to $334,290 while the average price increased 5.0 percent to $425,150;-Single-family homes months of inventory expanded to a 4.0-months supply;-The townhome/condominium market experienced declining sales throughout 2024, and in December, volume declined 5.8 percent, with the average price up 2.5 percent to $268,152 and the median price statistically flat at $234,250;-Townhome/condominium inventory improved from a 3.5-months supply to 5.4 months.

Would your existing tenants stomach that much of an increase?

So, after one year you netted $35,000 for your efforts while the property owner netted $40,000 in rent plus $150,000 increase in value.  

Went a bit heavy on the annual taxes due to the increase in the area the past few years.