Understanding the location you want to invest in is critical.
This article aims to help you learn in-depth about choosing a location that will make you successful and give you a return on investment.
- Crime
In an area with a high crime rate, it’s challenging to maintain tenants. Essentially you do an in-depth analysis of the level of security of the area.
You can use the National Police annual report on criminal activities. The report analyses all illegal activities and where they happened.
In Kenya today, no software analyses criminal activities. Therefore speaking to the residents is the best option.
- Drugs
It’s challenging to know high drug abuse areas, but criminal activities and drug abuse go hand-in-hand.
Drug abuse affects families, and no parent will love to bring up his children in a drug-affected area.
The best way to know if an area is a drug abuse zone is to do due diligence with the residents.
You can also speak to a police officer in the region.
- Schools
People can do everything for their children. Giving them quality education is a dream come true.
Properties located in places with great public and private schools always have low vacancy rate and normally expensive.
- Population growth.
Once the population grows, rent increases and the property appreciates.
- Transport
If you want to attract working tenants, you must invest in areas they go to work. Properties in places that have public masses have a low vacancy rate because tenants save transport money.
- Vacancy rate
It’s a percentage (yearly) that a property stays vacant. If you invest in areas with a high vacancy rate, it’s evident that your property will remain vacant more often.
Let’s take a minute and look at various approaches to find vacancy rate data
· Local agents– you can ask for a favour from a local Real estate agent to do a comparative market analysis.
That’ll help you decide to invest in that location or not.
· Landlords – This is by far the most suitable option. You can call or organize a meeting and discuss the vacancy Rate of the area.
Wrapping it up
It’s not possible to find a perfect location to invest. It does not exist. But if you balance the above tools, you’ll be in for success.
