If you intend to invest in your next single-family Canoga Park rental property, you may be evaluating each selection against your property wish list. So where does “proximity to a school” rank on your list – and should it be on there at all? It’s a great question because a close by amenity like a school could be either a bonus or a serious drawback, depending on who your renter demographic is. To find out whether buying a rental near a school is a good idea or not, you should first evaluate both the advantages and disadvantages of doing so.
Advantages of Owning Property Near a School
Most likely, the biggest advantage to owning a single-family rental house near a school is that it may appeal substantially to renters with school-age kids. Taking kids to and from school can be a major problem, primarily for working parents. Therefore, being able to tell prospective tenants that their kids can walk to and from school could be a major selling point.
One more extraordinary advantage of buying a rental property near a school is the expanded potential for your tenants to become friends with other parents nearby. Generally, renters believe that they don’t have a lot of possibilities to get to know their neighbors. Yet, living near a school could help facilitate neighborly interaction and help your tenants feel like part of a community. That, in turn, can help boost your tenant’s satisfaction and contentment to stay in the home longer.
Ultimately, the last incredible advantage of buying a rental house near a school is that it might make it easier to sell when the opportunity arrives to do so. Homebuyers with kids and other investors who rent to families may both be inclined to offer more for a property with a nearby amenity like a school. That can assist in guaranteeing that you can sell your investment for the maximum possible return.
Disadvantages of Owning Property Near a School
For sure, there are a couple of factors why you should think twice before investing in a rental house near a school. Roads around schools will quite often see higher traffic, vehicles, and pedestrians throughout the day. The increased traffic can sometimes make it challenging for tenants to get in and out of their driveway at certain times of the day or even result in vandalism or littering.
Depending on how close the property is to the school, living nearby could also mean your tenants will have to deal with the nuisance of parents and staff parking in front of the property. Not only can limited parking create problems for your tenants or their guests, but it can also result in oil stains, trash, or other problems.
After all, living close to a school commonly leads to more daytime noise. If your tenants do not have kids, work from home, or want a quiet neighborhood, they may become annoyed by the sounds of children playing on the school playground or people and cars passing back and forth multiple times a day. A noisy street or neighborhood can become a big deterrent for tenants hoping to relax in their rental home.
Anyway, is purchasing an investment property bordering a school a good idea? That depends! Every rental property owner’s situation is exceptional, which implies that you are the best person to know whether a nearby amenity like a school would be good or bad for your tenants.
No matter where you are in your investing career, it can be very helpful to get the advice of a local market expert. And we are here to assist you! Contact Real Property Management West San Fernando Valley to learn how our Canoga Park property managers help rental property investors figure out whether an investment property is a good fit for your portfolio.
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