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I am planning on buying a revenue property in the near future. Do you have any tips I should know before buying?
   By Rising Women Experts

I am planning on buying a revenue property in the near future. Do you have any tips I should know before buying?

For starters, make sure you begin your hunt for a rental property with a Real Estate professional that also has revenue properties. Their advice outside of just buying the home - from how to rent, deal with tenants, maintenance, etc. - is golden.

You generally have two options: to buy a single family dwelling, such as a full house, townhouse or condo, or you can buy a “suited” home, meaning the dwelling has a secondary suite or basement suite. Choosing a suited home, in my opinion, is more ideal than a single home because in a perfect world you will be collecting rent or revenue from two different tenants. If one suite is vacant, the other will be at least paying a portion of the mortgage, taxes, utilities, etc. However, the risk you take with either scenario is having no
tenant(s) at all. Make sure you are prepared financially to incur the expense of two mortgages, as well as for extra taxes, utilities and surprise costs (i.e: new appliance). I suggest you have money kept in savings to cover all forecasted expenses for a minimum of a two month period at all times.

When viewing properties, first view through a “tenants” eye. Is the property located close to amenities such as transit, schools and grocery? Is there easy access to main roads leading to downtown or other major business/industrial areas? Turn your “spidey senses” on high and really look at the state of the interior (i.e: water damage on the ceilings, age of appliances, signs of mold in the bathrooms) and exterior (grounds, neighbors homes, etc.) And then ask yourself, “would I live here?”

And finally, be fully prepared of the expense (both time and money) it will take to make any renovations (i.e: painting, electrical, exterior, etc). All new homeowners naturally want to make some upgrades to enhance the quality of their property, especially if they are hoping to find great tenants. Always get a professional inspection done prior to buying. This is about a $500 expense but worth the investment. Your inspection report will give you details on what you need to do to immediately and in the future to correct issues such as the allover safety of the home (furnace, electrical), life of the exterior (foundation, roof) and quality of the interior (plumbing, mold). I’ve learned that replacing a furnace in a suite that is “ready to live” in is far less expensive than taking on a complete overhaul of a kitchen or bathroom.

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