The Secrets to Assembling a Profitable Rental Real Estate Portfolio

A resident of Methuen, Massachusetts, Benjy Orbach is a former sales manager who specialized in warehouse optimization. A real estate professional, Benjy Orbach has a record of matching buyers with their dream properties. He also specializes in helping real estate investors keep rental portfolios profitable.

Maintaining a profitable real estate portfolio boils down to two things, first is getting a great location and second is keeping a lid on costs. A property in a good location has great employment numbers, has low crime rates, and is in a well-performing school district.

You can check an area’s job availability rates from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics or from the local library. You can find data on crime rates at the local library or police station. Similarly, watch out for upcoming developments which may indicate the area is growing and a property’s proximity to public amenities that will appeal to tenants.

Next, consider the costs of owning the property. First, investigate the area’s average rent. Will this be enough to cover your mortgage payments? If not, look for a property that’s selling below market rate. Listing platforms like RealtyTrac.com usually have sections with properties up for foreclosure. Buying below market locks in a profit at the start and lowers your monthly mortgage payments.

Next, factor costs such as average vacancy rates, property taxes, and insurance. Municipality assessment offices have data on property taxes. Other costs include maintenance and repair costs as well as management fees. A profitable property will earn you a lot of rental income, incur little monthly expenses, or do a bit of both. 

Why Companies Calculate Their Expense

A sales and operations leader in Methuen, Massachusetts, Benjy Orbach worked as an operations manager for one of the largest import retailers in the country. Overseeing a territory that consisted of 10 stores and two customer service centers, Benjy Orbach had oversight over warehouse operations and budget preparations. He performed critical financial arithmetic such as calculating the business’ expense-to-sales ratio.

The expense-to-sales ratio, also called the operating ratio, is a calculation that reveals a company’s operational financial health. In simple terms, it is calculated by dividing a company’s expenses by sales and then multiplying the result by 100 to get a percentage. Therefore, if a company’s expenses in 2020 were $100,000 and its sales $200,000, it had an operating ratio of 50 percent.

In practice, however, deriving a company’s operating ratio is much more complicated. For example, only operating expenses are used in the calculation. These are the costs directly attributable to producing and selling a product or service. They include rent, utilities, office supplies, advertising, and salaries. Non-operating expenses like tax and interests on debts are not considered.

For sales, only net sales figures are included. This is the total revenue received in a year minus the cost of returns, discounts, and allowances. Both the net sales and operating expenses figures are derived from the company’s income statement.

Managers, executives, and investors use the operating ratio for comparative purposes. They can compare one year’s operating ratio to another year’s, one department’s or product’s ratio to another’s, or one company’s to another in a similar industry. Generally, a lower operating ratio is a good indicator that the company or department is efficient in how it spends cash to generate cash. A high operating ratio, on the other hand, shows that a company is inefficient in how it uses up cash to generate revenue. 

How to Stay Safe While Hiking

A resident of Methuen, Massachusetts, Benjy Orbach has served as an operations manager with several companies. Benjy Orbach enjoys spending his time outdoors and takes great pleasure in hiking.

Hiking is a popular pastime among outdoor enthusiasts. Taking some time to plan is the first safety tip for every hiker. Pay attention to weather forecasts before selecting your hiking trail and the best time to begin. It is equally important to inform a friend of your plan before you begin.

Also, make sure to bring all the gear you need. Besides wearing quality hiking boots, you should also equip yourself with water flasks, flashlights, emergency flares, and a first aid kit. It would help if you prepared a checklist of all the equipment you need before hiking.

It is equally important to listen to the trail guides when hiking. Most trails have professional guides on the ground to help hiking enthusiasts. Consider registering your presence with them when you arrive at the trail before hiking. Besides helping hikers make informed decisions, trail guides also help first responders locate hikers during an emergency.

Having some company while you hike does not only make for great conversation, it also reduces the chances of running into any problems. It would be best if you went with a colleague or in a group while hiking.

Wandering off the trail will increase the chances of you getting into trouble. It is better to remain on the path. Consider getting a map of the trail to give you a good idea of where you are at every stage of your hike. It would also help to look out for any markers that the guides have put on the trail. 

Toys for Tots Provides Holiday Gifts to Native American Children

Benjy Orbach studied business administration and graduated with a bachelor of arts degree before beginning a career as an operations manager, where he oversaw activity in two Miami, Florida warehouses. Now residing in Metheun, Massachusetts, Benjy Orbach acts as an on-site leasing agent while also supporting charities, such as Toys for Tots, an organization that delivers gifts during the holiday season to underserved communities, including Native Americans.

Established in 1947, Toys for Tots started as an effort to bring gifts to children in need. Bill Hendricks, a major in the Marine Corps Reserves, launched the program and recruited his fellow marines to gather 5,000 toys and gift them to underprivileged children in the Los Angeles area. In 1980, the organization extended its efforts to assist the Navajo Nation, a community with whom the Marine Corps had maintained a relationship since World War II when members of the tribe provided coded communications to the military.

The program grew over the next several decades to include children from many other Native American tribes on reservations in Alaska, Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Washington. Each year, Toys for Tots distributes toys and books to more than 180,000 Native American children.