Our first Cash Flow producing side-hustle has been Real Estate. This was semi by-design and semi-good timing. We knew that Real Estate was our primary target to send any un-invested and un-spoken for funds. Our thoughts are that it is a ultimately a small business with Cash Flow, but also ideally an appreciating Asset (ymmv, but for the most part Real Estate should appreciate). This dual-benefit is the primary reason we made it our goal to get into the Real Estate game.

Our plan was to keep our current home as a rental property and move into another home in the neighborhood. In our experience as first time landlords, I do not know that we would do it any other way. In the years we lived in the now rental property, we made a large number of upgrades and kept up on maintenance. We have a very good understanding of the condition of the home and what expenses may come in the near future. The idea of our first rental being in an area we don’t know alongside unknowns regarding the condition of the home were risks that made us uneasy for our first time around.

The first step to any investment needs to start with the numbers and calculate the ROI. The cash on cash return that we are aiming for is at least 8-10% so our cash return is near what we would expect if we put it in the market. One upside here is that we expect that we can double dip in gains if the asset appreciates. A second major upside is that it will provide diversification risk from the market. Our Macro-Milestones include multiple income streams. Ideally these income steams are relatively passive, but we are willing to put in the work to gain the benefits of Real Estate as an investment.

Our major hurdle in getting things rolling with the rental was actually finding and screening tenants and putting together a good leasing agreement. In-steps Avail, we knew that there had to be a tech solution to this issue and Avail has truly been a godsend for us as new landlords. The software allows the property owner to list a property, which is fed to multiple real estate marketplaces. Once you receive leads, the software will manage background and credit checks. Once you choose a tenant, a state specific leasing agreement can be drafted and e-signed in the tool. Our Realtor shared a leasing agreement that she had personally used and it was nowhere close to as comprehensive as what was put into the Avail agreement. The Avail agreement is also customizable to suit your needs. Once the agreement is signed you also have the choice to have all payments go through the system and on Auto-pay. I could not recommend the software more to a new landlord. It made the most intimidating parts of renting out our home simple. I will do a full software review if interested, just let us know!