Given the fact that the US housing deficit is now well over 4.5 million homes, real estate remains one of the leading investments for most Americans. According to a recent study, 34% of respondents say they consider real estate as the soundest long-term investment. This puts it ahead of other investment options like gold, stocks, or even traditional savings accounts.
That said, making the most of real estate properties can be easier said than done. After the acquisition, you’ll have to consider numerous factors, such as how to retain their value over time, ensure that they make money rather than drain it, and keep them market-relevant. This is tricky enough to do on its own, but more so when you’re managing an entire portfolio. Over time, it may even feel like you have to stretch yourself thin just to manage your real estate assets properly. Thankfully, there are simple but effective ways you can do this without sacrificing your investments or your focus on other interests.
Virtual property staging
Staging is an important aspect of managing any portfolio since it can heighten the chances of a buyer or tenant showing real interest in your properties. This is understandable since staging can significantly improve how well a space resonates with its market. However, staging for multiple real estate assets is not only time-consuming but also costly.
Consequently, it’s worth investigating more flexible and timely alternatives, as we discussed in our article. A service that we also offer here on Phixer, this innovation digitally alters a space to improve its appearance. Available for as little as $10, virtual staging is customizable and more practical, so you can literally do this across as many properties as you’d like in your portfolio. This means that you don’t even have to worry about things like styling each property independently, sourcing goods for each space, or maintaining the integrity of each setup.
Landscape maintenance contracts
Just as you have staging for inside your property, you also need landscaping on the exterior to safeguard real estate value. Unlike interiors, which can be enhanced virtually, though, you will need to invest in real-life landscaping since this much of your property is more visible even to regular passers-by. Understandably, this can feel a bit intimidating across a portfolio since you may need to work with several landscapers for different projects for varying asset needs.
In light of this, signing onto a landscape maintenance contract is extremely helpful. Service provider Turfscape explains that these contracts typically run between one to three years and can be tweaked in line with your property needs, personal taste, and budget. With this, you can rest assured that each property is still visually appealing and less likely to cause exterior-related liabilities, even without your constant check-ins.
Automated payment scheduling
Among the best ways to optimize your portfolio is to either sell them via payment plans while the market is in a good spot or rent them out. Since these both involve you receiving long-term payments, you can look forward to making money off your portfolio for an extended period, regardless of how the market may dip.
To stay on top of these payments and all the nuances each of these setups may entail, it helps to turn to automated payment scheduling software instead of manually handling them. If you look at the enterprise revenue management software from SOFTRAX, this kind of innovation automates all aspects of complex billing with consideration for dynamic pricing, contract management renewal, and revenue recognition, to name a few. Through this, you don’t have to worry about individually chasing payments from tenants or real estate payment plan buyers. Instead, bills are immediately sent and processed during a predetermined date, so your portfolio retains a steady cashflow.
Digital property tax solutions
Property taxes are among the most tedious aspects of real estate, which is only bound to get more complicated with multiple properties. After all, each one may have different factors that affect its taxability. Unfortunately, if you don’t stay on top of this, you’re liable to hefty fines and it may affect your credit and real estate reputation down the line.
The good news is that there are ways to streamline property tax management, such as the Payment Plan Calculator’s digital property tax solutions. Designed to help residents navigate and compute their incremental property taxes, this tool helps minimize payment mishaps while enhancing compliance. As such, it can also prevent any properties from being accidentally overlooked and seized due to faulty taxes, which is a real risk for those who handle larger portfolios.
For more on real estate, please visit the rest of the blog at Phixer.