The Unlikely Landlord Roger Odoardi Reviewed by: Jason Caruso Reading Time: 2 minutes If you haven’t thought about being a landlord, now’s the time to start. However, investment properties seem to be just as hot but not as volatile. Multi-family properties are in high demand and constructions are almost incessant. If you haven’t thought about it yet, a multi-family property might be the right thing for you. Never thought about being a landlord? Here’s why you should. There are very few vacant apartments This is a good thing for Landlords. With vacancy rates in many areas, especially more urban centers around NH, hovering below 4%, the market is drastically skewed in the Landlord’s favor. In fact, anything below 5% is considered ideal conditions for landlords. This means your rooms will fill fast and will stay filled. Existing tenants will be less likely to leave. Rents will remain constant because owners aren’t scrambling to attract tenants. All this makes a multi-family property a safe investment. A steady, ever-increasing income As we’ve seen, homes aren’t guaranteed to appreciate, but rents are pretty much guaranteed to go up. That low vacancy means that supply is tight so you can leverage yearly rent increases pretty easily. Last year NH saw a bump of around 7% on all rents. That’s a more drastic increase than those seen in wages and inflation. The market will bear it, so why not reap the profits? People love renting Like we’ve said before, confidence is returning to the housing market, but not quite all the way. Renting is and always has seemed to be a safe choice. Plenty of people got burned in the crisis and would rather not repeat the experience. Can you blame them? They’ll happily shell out for you to assume that risk for them. A new generation with interesting ideas about ownership are moving out on their own, and many of them have no desire to own property. They’ve seen their parents struggle through the Recession and don’t necessarily want a piece of that action. Many have a whole bunch of student loan debt and are weary about taking on any more. These folks will rent well into their thirties. Hop in while the hopping’s good If you’re looking for a supplementary income, or you’re looking for a property that isn’t traditional housing to invest in, consider a commercial multi-family purchase. We can help you with a great rate and expert advice. Roger Odoardi Roger is an owner and licensed Loan Officer at Blue Water Mortgage. He graduated from the University of New Hampshire’s Whittemore School of Business and has been a leader in the mortgage industry for over 20 years. Roger has personally originated over 2500 residential loans and is considered to be in the top 1% of NH Loan Officers by leading national lender United Wholesale Mortgage.