How do you estimate ret?

Question

I've been using rent-o-meter but I have found that I have to double check almost every comp it pulls because it can often pull rent from listings BEFORE the price was cut. That is, it pulls the intitial listing rent, not the actual rent the tenant ended up paying.

Also, even if it does find the last posted rent amount, it seems like it pulls from listings when the listing was removed, but without actual confirmation that the tenant actually ended up paying that amount. For example, maybe the landlord just gave up trying to rent and removed the listing, moved into the house, etc. Listing removed does not always = actual rent paid.

Curious how y'all approach this. Also, would you consult with your PM or your agent for rent estimates?

Thanks,

West

Jonathan Warner · Answer

That's a juggernaut of a response and I very much appreciate. I've been going back and forth between my (investor-savy) agent and the property manager at the same company. I generally like to keep things in house so long as they are honest and reliable.

I'm in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Not the easiest market for LTR but I'm making do so far. I'm considering doing STR on campus soon.

,West

Bradley Buxton · Answer

@Jonathan Warner

If you don't have a reliable PM call multiple in the area. Here in Tahoe Reno some PMs will inflate rents to get your business, then your property will sit or they keep rents low because they are so local they don't want to raise rents on their neighbors. You can also check Zillow and Rent Cast. Zillow will show you the last rental amount and other properties on the market that you can compare to yours for location and condition.

Michael Smythe · Answer

@Jonathan Warner why wouldn't you consult with your PMC?

Why did you hire them otherwise?

One IMPORTANT thing that none of the rent sources take into account (yet) is comparing the condition of rentals.

A rental that was recently renovated should rent for more than a "tired" rental.

When we send rental comparables to our clients, we always include a few interior pics (if available) so we can show owner how the quality of their rental compares to competition.

Adam Bartomeo · Answer

Ask them to send you comps of the rent in the area. It doesn't take that much time for them to pull the information.

Greg Parker · Answer

Hi Jonathon,

I use rentometer, MLS comps, and BP rent estimator.  Get a good average of the 3.  And, consider ammenties like covered parking, fenced in yard, recent renovations.

Andrea O. · Answer

@Greg Parker wondering how do you adjust pricing based on amenities? Sometimes it is hard to find comps that match all the amenities of the subject unit.

Ryan Spath · Answer

@Jonathan Warner

This is a very valid observation, and you’re not wrong at all.

Rent-O-Meter is a helpful starting point, but it’s not gospel. It’s pulling asking rents, not executed rents, and as you’ve noticed that can be misleading — especially in softer or seasonal markets.

A few ways experienced operators usually sanity-check rent:

First, I treat any online tool (Rent-O-Meter, Zillow, Apartments.com, etc.) as directional only. If it says $2,200–$2,400, I assume the real rent is somewhere below the midpoint unless demand is extremely strong. The market clears at what someone actually signs, not what was originally advertised.

Second, I look for time-on-market clues. If a comp sat for 30+ days, the original list price clearly wasn’t right. This can also be tricky to judge as some apartments leave listings up year round..

Third, I cross-reference active competition, not just past listings. What matters most is: what is my tenant choosing between today? If similar units are still sitting at $X, that tells you more than a removed listing does.

Fourth, I rely heavily on my own leasing data and local operator feedback. What actually rented in the last 30–90 days, and how fast, is gold. This is where talking to other self-managers or small landlords locally can be more accurate than any algorithm. Also, if you operate in one area a good hack is to track the rents of similar properties, how long they sit vacant for, and the condition of the unit.

As for PM vs agent:
I usually trust a good property manager
more for rent pricing if they are actively leasing similar units right now. Many agents quote optimistic numbers because they don’t live with vacancy.

That said, a strong investor-savvy agent who tracks days on market and seasonal pricing can be very useful, especially if they’re honest about winter discounts, concessions, and real absorption.

Bottom line: you’re thinking about this the right way. Rent is discovered, not declared. Tools are helpful, but operator judgment, local knowledge, and recent leasing velocity matter far more than a scraped list price.

Curious — what market are you in?

Jonathan Warner · Answer

This is very helpful, thank you.

Michael Smythe · Answer

cool stuff!

Andrea O. · Answer

@Michael Smythe Totally agree. I’ve been playing around with computer vision models on my database to quantify this.I took ~8k rental listings and calculated their price premium for each condition rating against the exact average for their specific zip, bed, and bath count.The data shows a 19% spread purely based on condition:

How do you estimate ret?

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