It’s no secret Americans are struggling right now. Lost jobs, failed marriages, and other life situations are causing more and more people to leave their homes behind or split their homes in two. The result is a bulging rental market.
Whether they can’t qualify for a mortgage or don’t want anything to do with a mortgage, the number of tenants out there is increasing. In addition to the tragedies of lost jobs, illnesses, and and broken families creating a higher demand for rental properties, Charleston is also experiencing large numbers of people coming to work for employers that have recently expanded here, like Boeing.
Families who are new to Charleston often opt to rent for six months or a year so they can figure out exactly where they want to live before they commit to buying a house.
With such high demand for rental properties, rent prices are on the rise. In some areas of town a house that rented for $1125 a year ago could easily fetch $1300 today – and it would be filled in half the time.
Now is the time to invest your money in real estate. Rates are low; inventory is high. Buy an investment property for each of your children as a way to save for college; use it as a complement to your retirement savings; or get a beach house you can enjoy a few weeks out of the year and rent weekly the rest of the time.
Note: While it may be easy to find someone willing to rent your property, it may be difficult to find a qualified tenant. Increase your chances of success by hiring a property management company to screen your tenant applicants for you. Establish minimum requirements for credit, employment, and past rental history. However, with that said, as I mentioned at the beginning of the post, many folks are experiencing hardships right now; bad things are happening to good people. Consider taking a chance on someone going through a rough time if they would have met your standards a year or two ago.
Once you make your decision to invest in real estate, it can be very overwhelming… if I can do anything to help you, please let me know.
