88 Ways to Improve Cash Flow from Real Estate Rental Properties

The following are 88 different ways to improve cash flow on your rental properties broken out by the stage at which you’d use them.

It will impossible for you to use ALL of these strategies. This is especially true since some of them directly oppose others.

For example, there’s a strategy to hire a property manager if you find yourself unwilling or unable to charge your tenants true fair market rent (maybe you’re too nice?) and let your property manager keep your properties rented optimally. But, there’s another strategy that says you can save yourself a property management fee if you manage your properties yourself.

Some of these strategies will marginally improve cash flow… saving you $10 to $20 per month. There are others that can generate an extra $10,000+ in cash flow in the first year—even on a typical $400,000 rental property.

Searching for a Rental Property

Some strategies to improve cash flow are really part of searching for and finding the right property to buy. Use these 10 strategies when searching for that perfect rental proeprty.

The following is a sample video from our coaching program covering the strategies for improving cash flow when searching for properties.

1. Pretty Properties – Can I buy properties that do not require “rent ready”/fix up costs and use that money as down payment or to buy down interest rate instead?
2. Subject To – Can I buy the property ‘subject to’ the existing financing (more appropriately wrap financing)?
3. Seller Financing – Can I get the seller to carry back some owner financing to lower my loan-to-value with the primary lender and reduce my interest rate?
4. Lock/Float – Can I lock/float down my interest rate?
5. Search for Seller Concessions – Can you search for properties where the seller is willing to include seller concessions?
6. Search Less Expensive Properties – Can I search for less expensive homes?
7. Search for Assumable Loans – Can I search for assumable loans that have better terms than I can get now?
8. Owner Financing – Can I buy the home with owner financing and get better terms?
9. Installment Land Contract – Can I buy the home on an installment land contract and get better terms?
10. Agent Selection – Some agents offer a rebate on buyers commission. Consider selecting one that offers this.

Financing a Rental Property

Financing is a critical part of improving cash flow on rental properties so be sure to consider utilizing as many of these 31 strategies as you can.

1. Pay Closing Costs – Can I pay cash for closing costs to keep my monthly payment lower than if I financed them?
2. Private Financing – Can I get private financing with better terms from family/friends?
3. Wrap Financing – Would the seller consider wrap financing and would that be better terms than I can get now?
4. Interest Only – Can I get an Interest-only loan?
5. Amount Borrowed – Can I put more down to reduce the amount I am borrowing?
6. Loan-To-Value – Can I put more down to improve my interest rate (lower LTV)?
7. Select by Closing Costs – Can I pick a loan with lower closing costs (especially if I am financing the closing costs)?
8. Staggered Rate – Can I get a staggered interest rate loan?
9. Buy Down Rate – Can I buy down the interest rate on my loan?
10. Loan Term – Can I change the loan term to reduce my payments?
11. Eliminate PMI – Can I put more down to eliminate/reduce Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI)?
12. Pre-Pay PMI – Can I pay for PMI in one, upfront, lumpsum payment instead of monthly?
13. Seller Concessions – Can I get Seller Concessions from the seller to buy down interest rate and/or cover closing costs?
14. Negative Amortization – Can I get a negative amortizing loan?
15. Adjustable Rate – Can I get an adjustable-rate-mortgage (ARM) to lower my interest rate?
16. Rate from Loan Term – Can I change the loan term to reduce my interest rate?
17. Auto Pay Loan – Can I setup automatic payments to get a better interest rate?
18. Credit Score – Can I improve my credit score to get a better interest rate?
19. Additional Accounts – Can I get a better interest rate if I have additional accounts/more money deposited with the lender?
20. Add Borrower – Can I add a friend/family member to the loan to get a better interest rate?
21. Remove Borrower – Can I remove a weak borrower to get a better interest rate?
22. Lock/Float – Can I lock/float down my interest rate?
23. Loan Partner – Can I partner with someone to get better loan terms?
24. Lender Selection – Can I find another lender with better fees/rates?
25. Cash Out Refi to Buy/Refi – Can I do a “cash out” refinance on another property to buy/refi this property?
26. Cash Out Refi for Larger Down Payment – Does it make sense to “cash out” refi another property (or use a HELOC) to put a larger amount down on this property?
27. Rate and Term Before Acquisition – Should I do a “rate and term” or “cash out” refi to get an overall better monthly payment before financing this property?
28. Offer Less – Can I offer less to reduce my purchase price?
29. Ask for Seller Concessions – Can I ask for seller concessions to buy down my interest rate?
30. Assumable Loan – Is the seller’s loan assumable and have better interest rates than I can get now?
31. Pay Cash – Can I just pay cash to buy the property?

Improve the Real Estate Investing Strategy You’re Using

Some real estate investing strategies naturally have better cash flow. Consider using these 6 strategies to improve on your real estate investing strategy from the one you originally considering.

1. Term – Can I change the term of the rental agreement? Daily, weekly versus Monthly? Short-term/vacation rentals?
2. Lease-Option – Can I offer the property to a tenant-buyer on a lease-option, lease-purchase or agreement-for-deed to increase income and reduce maintenance?
3. Niche – Can I target more profitable rental niches (like corporate rentals)?
4. Roommates – Can I get paying roommates for Nomad™ property you are living in?
5. Rent by Bed/Bedroom – Can I rent by the bed/bedroom?
6. Rent by Parts – Can I rent parts separately like garage, community pool, RV parking, RV in backyard as vacation rental?

Improve the Property

The following 6 strategies can be used to improve the property itself to help maximize cash flow.

1. Subdivide – Can I “subdivide” my property into multiple units to increase rent? Rent upstairs/downstairs separately?
2. Upgrade Property – Can I improve landscaping and curb appeal to get higher rent? Paint, add/improve shutters, lawn care, mailbox, property address numbers, lighting? This can also be folks buying properties to do value-add or BRRR/R.
3. Solar – Can I add solar panels and include electric in base rent?
4. Furnished Rental – Can I rent the property furnished to get more rent?
5. Convert Property – Can I convert my property to a duplex, triplex or fourplex or more?
6. Improvement Rent – Can I charge fence rent? New carpet rent? Or, extra rent for something else the tenant desires I install?

Marketing the Property for Rent

The following are 4 strategies you can consider using when marketing the property for rent.

1. Optimize Marketing – Do I have professional-grade photos, 3D tour, and video when marketing property?
2. Maximize Exposure – Am I maximizing exposure when marketing for tenants?
3. Sales Skills – Have I mastered the sales skills required for phone selling my property to tenants/tenant-buyers and in-person salesmanship to maximize what I can get for rentals and minimize vacancy?
4. Optimize Showings – Can I make sure the property is appropriately prepared for showings (well lit, smells good, repairs done, clean, neat)?

During Steady-State Property Ownership

Just humming along as a landlord? Consider these 20 strategies to improve cash flow for rental property owners in steady-state.

1. Refi to Extend Term – Is my loan old enough where I would be willing to refinance to extend the term (and maybe get a better interest rate) to lower my monthly payment?
2. Refi to Improve Rate – Have rates dropped enough for me to refinance and get a better rate?
3. Remove PMI – Has my equity increased enough to request the removal of PMI?
4. Payoff Loan – Can I just payoff the loan in its entirety?
5. Accelerate Depreciation – Can I accelerate depreciation?
6. Correct Assessor – Can I correct incorrect information with the county assessor about the condition or characteristics of my property?
7. Contest Tax Increases – Can I contest property taxes when appropriate to keep my property taxes minimized?
8. Vote – Can I vote appropriately for changes in taxes that affect property taxes?
9. Quality Materials – Can I use quality replacement maintenance materials to lower the overall cost of maintenance over time?
10. Discount for Autopay – Can I sign up for autopay on utilities to avoid any per bill fees charged by utility providers?
11. Discount for Early Payments – Can I get a discount paying for HOA, insurance or other bills in advance?
12. Shop Insurance Rates – Can I compare insurance rates to keep insurance premiums competitive?
13. Insurance Coverage – Can I evaluate the exact property insurance coverages to make sure you have an appropriate level of coverage?
14. Insured – Can I add/remove people from my property insurance policy to improve the rate I am getting?
15. Insurance Deductible – Can I raise my property insurance deductible and take on more of the property insurance risk personally?
16. Manage the Manager – Can I review my property management statements carefully for mistakes?
17. Insist on Best Practices – Can I insist my property manager utilize best practices (marketing early, raising rents with each lease renewal, et cetera)?
18. Maintain Property – Can I maintain my property to minimize time between tenants?
19. Professional Property Manager – Can I shop around to get a high-quality property manager with reasonable fees?
20. Self-Manage – Can I manage the property myself and still keep up with the latest laws, best practices and compliance issues?

Renting Property

Use these 13 strategies when renting the property to improve cash flow.

1. Additional Services – Can I add services/utilities like highspeed internet for an extra fee?
2. Notice – Can I require 60-90 days notice for outgoing tenant to not renew?
3. Bill Back – Can I billback for HOA services and utilities (like non-potable water)?
4. Discount On-Time Payment – Can I offer a discount for on-time or early rent (instead of late payments)?
5. Renew Peak Season – Can I schedule my leases to end during peak rental seasons?
6. Autopay – Can I charge a fee for autopay? Or, can I charge a fee for not being on autopay?
7. Start Early/Test Rent – Can I start marketing earlier and start at a higher, more aggressive rent to test market prices?
8. DFY Services – Can I include done-for-you services like lawn care, snow removal or house cleaning for an extra fee?
9. Billing Frequency – Can I charge weekly or biweekly instead of monthly?
10. Term – Can I change the term of the rental agreement? Daily, weekly versus Monthly? Short-term/vacation rentals?
11. Tier Rent by Credit Score – Can I tier rent by credit score and/or security deposit?
12. Pet Rent – Can I charge pet rent?
13. Renter’s Insurance – Can I make sure tenants/tenant-buyers have renter’s insurance?

Conclusion

Use as many of these 88 strategies to improve the cash flow on your rental properties to help yourself achieve financial independence faster, easier and safer.

Some will boost cash flow by small dollar amounts ($10 to $20 per month). Some will help you see hundreds of dollars per month in improvement. And, a few of them—I usually say about 5 of them— could have you seeing $10,000 or more boosts to cash flow in the first year alone. And, some of them are super easy to implement.

Want Help Implementing These?

If you’d like help implementing these strategies, consider booking a consultation to implement the strategies in your own real estate investing business.