With mortgage in mind, how do you calculate rent

[Justin Young]

Aloha BP! My wife and I have started looking at properties this past week. We haven't put in an offer yet but it seems as though we're getting closer and closer to landing that first deal. Getting the first deal under our belt would definitely ease some of the anxiety I'm going through. I really want to be sure the first deal makes sense, logically and financially.

When figuring out rent, I know its common to find out what comps are charging for rent. This number will be the ballpark value when figuring rent for the subject property. Now lets say I have mortgage that is slightly higher than the rent value, should I disregard this property for investment purposes because it doesn't cashflow from day 1? Or should I eat the cost and pay out of pocket for now knowing the property will cashflow later? Or I could pour some capital into the property along with rent to bring the mortgage down quicker and refi later?

I feel as though I'm over-analyzing properties but I just want to make sure I can align as many factors as I can before we pull the trigger. Thank you to all in advance, ALOHA!

[Account Closed]

Originally posted by @Zach Quick:

@Account Closed I get your points and I think largely you want people in high appreciation markets to invest in their backyards over venturing out into the "cash-flow markets" but you certainly have a way of portraying that at times :)

Mahalo.