Is Self-Management Right For You?
Is self-management right for you? Find out how to start managing your own rental.
How To Know If Self-Management Suits You
Renting out your own property has recently become a popular buzz phrase. Naturally, those who are interested in embarking on this journey will wonder if they have what it takes. As with anything, you get out what you put in and certain kinds of individuals will flourish more than others.
This blog debunks myths about who can and can’t rent out their own property:
- The myths about self-management
- Dispelling the myths about self-management
- Do I suit the profile of a property manager?
- How to self-manage with RentBetter.
The Myths About Self-Management
Renting out a property is so misunderstood, and there is a desperate need to debunk certain myths. The most common myths about property ownership appear to be:
(i) You have to be old
(ii) You have to be rich
Dispelling The Myths About Self-Management
Let’s look at the data to see if it supports these two myths.
The data we have used is from a 2012 Australian Tax Office study. Yes, it’s a few years old now, but there has not been another study quite as comprehensive since. So, in this instance, we accept slightly older information for the benefit of detailed insights into Australian property owners.
The following chart is incredibly helpful in dispelling the two myths.
The orange segment on the left shows the percentage of people claiming rental income on their tax who are under age 50. The purple segment on the right shows the percentage of people over the age of 50. Now, it’s worth pausing for a moment to consider what age is ‘old’, but we randomly picked over 50 and under 50, and you can see that 55% of people sit in the under 50 category. I think it’s fair to say that the data shows you do not have to be ‘old’ to own property and receive a rental income.
The second thing this chart shows is the income distribution by age bracket. If you look at the royal blue and the white category which makes up those who earn $18k to $100k, you can see that fairly consistently across most of the age brackets, they make up about 70% of those claiming rental income.
There has been a lot of talk about negative gearing recently and that it is just for rich people. Where we draw the line at who is considered rich or not is a tricky one, it’s fair to say those in the lower-earning categories with rental income are something of a surprise. Again, it’s fair to say the data shows you do not have to be ‘rich’ to own property and receive a rental income.
The Profile Of Someone Who Rents Out Their Property
You don’t have to be rich, you don’t have to be old, or of a specific gender or profession. Those who are renting out their properties themselves typically want one of three things:
- To save money and maximise the return on their investment
- To have more control over their most valuable asset
- To remove the agent from in between them and their tenant
If one of these sounds like you, let’s get started!
How To Self-Manage With RentBetter.
Given the general dissatisfaction we hear from people and see from survey results, it is no wonder that more and more people choose to proceed with finding and managing tenants without using an agent. Being a property manager can be a difficult job and as a DIY landlord, you'll be dealing with rent demands, communicating with tenants and managing the rental bond.
Fortunately, RentBetter has created an accessible platform for landlords to manage their own property at just a fraction of the cost of an agent. Self-management can be an extremely rewarding experience as it helps you to stay in control of your investment property, saving while you're at it.
