How Can a Landlord Minimize the Operating Expenses of a North San Diego Rental Property?

At North San Diego Property Management, we’ve spent years managing multifamily and commercial properties in the North County area, including in Oceanside, Carlsbad, Vista, San Marcos, and Solana Beach. We know to really maximize the ROI on your investment property, you already understand that you need to increase your income and cut your expenses. It seems pretty simple, but when you’re looking at your accounting reports every month, it may seem impossible to save on what seems like fixed operating expenses.

Change your thinking, because there aren’t any expenses that are fixed. You can save some money and drive up your cash flows in a few simple ways.

It might feel like your mortgage is your mortgage, and the amount you pay towards your loan isn’t going to change. However, if you have some equity built up and you’re in a strong financial position, you might be able to refinance and save some money every month. Take a look at your financials and see if it’s worth it to refinance your current mortgage so you have a smaller payment every month. It can make a difference in your cash flow.

Your property taxes are based on the assessment of your home’s value, which is determined by the San Diego County Assessor. You can appeal the amount of your assessment and thus lower your tax liability. The Assessment Appeals Board will make an impartial decision when you file an appeal. Submit an application with any supporting documentation and see what you can do to reduce the amount you pay in property taxes.

If you give a lot of regular work to vendors like plumbers, electricians, cleaners, or landscapers, it’s not uncommon to receive preferred pricing. Ask the vendors you enjoy working with if they can offer any discounts. You could offer to refer them to your colleagues and other rental property owners in exchange for a volume discount. If you don’t get anywhere with your current vendors, don’t hesitate to shop around. Ask for suggestions from other people who use vendors, or talk to North San Diego property managers about the companies they use and whether discounts are offered.

Review all of your contracts, including lawn services, pool maintenance, and HVAC technicians. Find out where you can save without sacrificing service.

Routine repairs are always going to show up in your monthly, quarterly, and annual expense reports. It’s unavoidable. Maintenance becomes more expensive when it’s deferred. So, adopt a plan of preventative maintenance instead. Take care of small issues while they’re still small and manageable. By ignoring things that seem non-urgent, you can be setting yourself up for repairs that are more costly down the road.

There are some additional tricks we employ to keep operating expenses down for our owners. To find out more, we invite you to contact us at North San Diego Property Management.