Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Real Estate Investor Magazine March 2018 | Page 28
GETTING STARTED
5 First Time Investor Guide
PART
LANDLORD BASICS
BY MONIQUE DU TOIT
B
uy-to-let investing has been gaining traction, with more
investors noticing the advantages to owning a property
to rent out in a competitive market. But without proper
planning, the dream can quickly turn into a nightmare.
1. Long or short
One of the first questions you need to answer, is whether you’re
looking to rent out your property on a short-term or long-term
basis. Both have clear advantages and disadvantages, with your
ultimate decision dependent on the specific property and cir-
cumstances.
Long term rentals have the advantage of stability. Your
tenant is generally signing a longer lease, meaning you’re
guaranteed a monthly income for the duration of the contract.
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MARCH 2018 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine
This also allows you to factor in monthly costs like water and
electricity. Another clear advantage of a long term rental is
that, typically, tenants do not need it to be furnished. This saves
you some initial expenses, but it’s important to keep in mind
that you’ll have to maintain the property. This usually involves
painting and cleaning once a current tenant moves out.
Short term rentals have become all the rage in cities like
Cape Town, where platforms like Airbnb have taken the mar-
ket by storm. An increasing number of landlords are choos-
ing to let their properties to short term tenants (usually on
a day-to-day basis), rather than getting stuck with one long
term tenant. While this has the benefit of added flexibility,
it’s important to keep in mind that short term rentals require