Tips for the
Opportunistic Investor
Target Areas with Strong Tenant Pools, Not Just Cashflow The best ROI is meaningless if your property sits vacant. In Florida, the “landlord sweet spot” is: •Near hospitals (travel nurses, med staff) → constant turnover but reliable. •Near airports or ports → steady demand from airline/ship employees. •Suburban areas in good school districts → sticky tenants who renew
When Using 12-Month Leases, include Automatic Rent Escalators Inflation and insurance hikes kill margins if you don’t plan ahead. Add a 3–5% automatic annual increase clause in your lease. Most Florida tenants expect small annual bumps. If you don’t put it in writing, you lose ground.
Prioritize Parking & Air Conditioning In hot, humid Florida, two things decide tenant satisfaction more than granite counters: •Reliable AC (preferably newer HVAC with maintenance plan). •Ample parking (street bans are common in coastal towns, and tenants hate HOA towing rules). If you solve these, tenants renew—reducing turnover cost, which is the real silent killer of ROI.
Exploit Florida’s STR/Long-Term Hybrid Play Some areas in Brevard allow minimum 30-day rentals (vs. nightly Airbnbs). This “mid-term” market (travel nurses, contractors, relocations) commands healthy reants and avoids the headaches of nightly guests.
Know Your HOA Bylaws Better Than the Board If you buy a rental in an HOA community: • Verify lease minimums (some ban rentals under 12 months). • Check if they cap % of rental units (common in condos). • Look for rules on tenant screening—some require the HOA to approve your tenant, which slows turnover. Smart landlords grab units in communities before boards vote to tighten restrictions.
Plan for Hurricanes as a Business Model, Not a Risk Don’t treat hurricanes as a “what if.” Treat them as part of operations. • Buy in areas with strong power grid recovery (utilities publish outage history). • Line up roofers and remediation companies before storm season—post-hurricane demand spikes costs by 50–100%. • Write leases with a “storm clause”: tenants must prep property (shutters, move furniture) or risk forfeiting deposit.
Investigate Insurance Early Before Closing Florida’s insurance market is volatile, and carriers can kill deals last-minute. A trick: bind a policy early in escrow (sometimes before inspection) with an insurer still writing in the area. Lock in today’s rate, then renegotiate if inspection shows issues. Also, shop surplus lines carriers that don’t appear on standard portals—many investors overlook them.