There are plenty of options you can invest in with multifamily properties, but some investments are more profitable than others. To ensure that you purchase the building that will generate the most steady cash flow, it is crucial to thoroughly analyze multifamily investment opportunities.
Types of Multifamily Investment Properties
To determine which potential multifamily investment is best suited for your plans, you must first understand the building types and what will be required of you as a future property owner.
Apartment Building
Apartment buildings are among the most common properties in the multifamily market. It can be low-rise, which has fewer than five stories, mid-rise, which is between five to 15 stories, and high-rise, which has over 15 stories.
If you do intend to go for apartment buildings, you’ll want to look for neighborhoods with high rental demand to match the high number of units on your property.
Condominium
As opposed to apartment buildings, condominiums are individually owned units wherein the owners pay monthly or annual homeowners association (HOA) fees for maintenance and upkeep of the common areas.
This kind of multifamily property has the least amount of responsibility since you won't have to regularly collect rent and the maintenance is minimal.
Duplex, Triplex, and Quadruplex
Duplexes, Triplexes, and Quadruplexes have two, three, and four units, respectively. It can be a good investment for new multifamily investors since there are only a few units to manage, and it would still be a source of consistent rental income.
Townhome
Townhomes are preferred by renters who value their privacy and unlike the other multifamily real estate types, they tend to have personal entrances and backyards. You will still have responsibilities as the landlord to maintain the property, but you also have the choice to hold and sell it for profit if you don't intend to be a property manager.
Student Housing
Some consider student housing a different multifamily asset class since they’re specifically for students and universities. Multifamily investments like this will fare better when in proximity to a school, and due to the nature of the rental property, it would appear more desirable if it has basic amenities like laundry facilities, study areas, and fitness centers.
Senior Housing
Similar to student housing, this kind of multifamily investment targets a certain market, particularly seniors or older adults. Instead of study areas and fitness centers, the more appropriate amenities can be transportation, meal plans, and healthcare services.
Factors to Consider in Purchasing Multifamily Properties
Doing your due diligence can help you make informed investment decisions when analyzing a potential multifamily property deal.
Location
Think about what your target market wants and needs to be close to. For students, for instance, the multifamily property being close to the college or university will be a plus. Condominiums are usually popular among real estate investors if they are located near tourist destinations like beaches.
Cash Flow
The potential rental income you could acquire from the property is a key metric in determining whether the purchase price is worth it. Cash flow is the key determining factor here. Cash flow takes your projected annual rental revenue and subtracts your projected yearly expenses. If you find that the real estate investment won't provide stable cash flow, you might want to look into other multifamily properties that would.
Companies like Income Property Advisors have free tools for rental analysis to figure out the monthly income you can get from your investment so you can adjust your rent prices.
Net Operating Income (NOI)
Upon evaluating multifamily investments, you also need to consider the property's net operating income by listing the operating expenses and capital expenditures such as equipment and new technology. These additions can increase your rental property's market value if you decide to sell.
Initial Investment
Your down payment for a multifamily real estate purchase is just as important as the potential cash flow since it will be based on the budget you have. Each type has a different property value. Apartment complexes, for example, might be a more costly investment than quadruplexes due to having more units.
Financing
Your investment strategy can depend on where you get the financing for the purchase price. For instance, you'll be better off with a commercial loan than opting for a private money lender if you believe that the property won't generate income right away.
You should also consider your debt-to-income ratio to ensure that you can comfortably afford the mortgage payment, as well as find comparable properties to discover the best property deal.
Tax Benefits
Different property types come with certain property taxes. A real estate investor might be more inclined to look into your business if they know about the benefits such as tax deductions for depreciation, mortgage interest, property expenses, and more.
Multifamily Property Management
It's much easier to manage single-family homes since you'll only have to worry about one tenant. With multifamily rental properties, you will have a multitude of tenants to deal with and more physical space to maintain. You can hire local property managers in San Diego like Income Property Advisors to handle the day-to-day operations.
What Income Property Advisors Can Do For You
Your property ownership journey begins even before you purchase real estate. Our property management company has the tools and resources to help you evaluate multifamily properties and look for the best investments. After adding a property to your real estate portfolio, we can help you further with services like:
Income Property Advisors' marketing strategies can help with your vacancy and occupancy rates and ensure that your real estate investments remain profitable. The right marketing campaign will help increase net operating income in no time.
The company does its due diligence through our extensive tenant screening process, which includes looking into an applicant's credit history, and unlawful detainer record, while also conducting job verification and interviews with previous landlords.
With larger multifamily properties, it might be harder to collect rent. The company can take care of everything as we make sure that you get paid on time.
Income Property Advisors conducts regular, move-in, and move-out inspections to make sure that issues are resolved immediately by our network of licensed vendors. The repairs are deducted from the monthly rent collected with a cap rate of $200.
from the property's operating expenses to projected expenses, the company uses in-house financial reporting tools for detailed financial data. You can log into our website's owner portal to monitor your properties with ease.
While eviction is treated as a last resort by Income Property Advisors, we are prepared for necessary action when needed. You won't have to worry about the stressful process of evicting a tenant. We have lawyers at our disposal to handle the issue with the needed legal expertise.
- Technologies
Our company has the tools to assist you with several aspects of multifamily investment analysis, such as our Rent vs Sell Calculator and Vacancy Loss Calculator.