See how owners of rental properties can use Qualified Business Income (QBI) Deductions to reduce their tax bill thanks to what’s called a 199A deduction.

What Are Qualified Business Income Deductions For Landlords?

Also known as the section 199A deduction, the Qualified Business Income (QBI) Deduction lets landlords potentially deduct up to 20% of their qualified business income (QBI). Let’s look at this in more detail.

Can I get the QBI deduction on rental income?

The good news is that any non-corporate landlord should qualify for the deduction.

Rentals that are classified as trades or businesses under IRC § 162 are not considered passive. If the management of the rental property rises to the level of a trade or business as defined by § 162, then it qualifies for the deduction. 

Rental properties are typically treated as passive activities—these are excluded from the definition of a qualified trade or business. But it’s important to understand the following:

You might qualify for the QBI if you’re organized as an S-Corporation or a pass-through LLC, estate, or trust (If you’re a C-Corp, you’re out of luck.).

Rental income declared on a Schedule E or K-1 also qualifies.

If you pass hurdle #1, you might qualify if you meet a number of conditions.

If you spent more than 50% of your time during a tax year in your real estate business – and that represented more than 750 hours in the same year, you passed the next hurdle. Congratulations!

The QBI is a deduction that you take on top of the standard deduction if don’t itemize, or the itemized deduction if you do.

But you’re not there yet. Your QBI is subject to limitations based on your taxable income that include the following:

The amount of W-2 wages paid by the qualified trade or business; and

The unadjusted basis immediately after acquisition (UBIA) of qualified property held by the business, which is the basis of the qualified property on the placed-in-service date.


Note that only items included in a landlord’s taxable income can be counted toward the QBI deduction. Some of the most common income sources include rent, non-refundable and forfeited deposits, late payment fees, pet fees, and federal rent subsidies (HUD). This also generally includes, but isn’t limited to the deductible part of self-employment tax, self-employed health insurance, and deductions for contributions to qualified retirement plans.

The safe harbor rule comes into play when a landlord owns a handful of rentals but doesn’t qualify as a real estate professional. In this situation, he or she can still qualify for the QBI deduction, provide the rental activities constitute a trade or business.

The IRS published a notice in 2019 that provides a safe harbor for landlords to qualify for the IRC Section 199A deduction. In order to qualify the three requirements that must be satisfied:

Keep separate books and records to show income and expenses for each rental real estate enterprise;

Perform at least 250 rental services (Or other services, such as those provided by tradesmen and property managers) per year. Activities that satisfy the 250-hour requirement include landlord-related. The IRS says that rental services also include:

(i)         	Advertising to rent or lease the real estate;

(ii)       	Negotiating and executing leases;

(iii)     	Verifying information contained in prospective tenant applications;

(v)       	Daily operation, maintenance, and repair of the property;

(vi)      	Management of the real estate;

(vii)    	The purchase of materials; and

(viii)  	Supervision of employees and independent contractors.

3. Keep contemporaneous records of time reports, logs, or similar documents, such as hours of services performed; dates and descriptions of services performed; names of those performing such services.

Note that the safe harbor doesn’t apply to triple-net leases because the tenant is responsible for costs that would otherwise be the responsibility of the owner. As such, the IRS says that the rental income from a triple-net lease doesn’t qualify as trade or business income. It’s merely investment income.

If a landlord doesn’t qualify for the safe harbor, 20% of his or her rental income may still qualify as trade or business income, if they must meet some additional requirements

In 2021, real estate investors earning over $329,800 (if married and filing jointly) or $164,900 if filing as a single individual can claim the deduction as a percentage of wages paid with respect to the trade or business, or the combination of a percentage of wages paid, plus a percentage of the unadjusted basis of the property. These limitation thresholds are adjusted annually for inflation.

Landlords who own multiple rental properties should note that there are additional planning strategies that can maximize the IRC Section 199A deduction.

The Section 199A deduction is scheduled to automatically expire in at the end of 2025. In order to claim the current section 199A deduction, taxpayers who own real estate must be able to show that they’re operating a real estate business as a trade or business and not simply holding real estate for investment.

Keep in mind that, as helpful as this piece might be, we strongly advise that you speak to your accountant to get a firmer grasp on the implications and ramifications of the laws being discussed here. They will have a much firmer understanding of your individual circumstances and can clarify any questions this post might have raised.

Tax calculators feature on many real estate websites, but how well can they account for the nuances that go into determining how much landlords owe the IRS?

Tax Calculators – How Useful Are They, Really?

Tax calculators are a popular feature of many real estate websites and services. But how well can they account for the nuances that go into determining how much you owe Uncle Sam?

Anyone who owns a rental house – or is thinking of buying one – needs to keep the tax consequences in mind. Each aspect of the ownership picture – from depreciation, to expense write-offs, to of course overall income – will have implications for your personal taxes. 

If you don’t own the home personally, but in an entity that files a separate tax return, such as a C-Corp,  that’s a different story completely. There are pros and cons to that decision, and here’s a good summary of them.

At  Belong – a new kind of modern property management company – we have built a tech-forward platform that helps homeowners keep all their financial ducks in a row, and stay organized. You won’t have to be chasing your paperwork -  it’s all in one place – including any improvements you’ve made through Belong. That’s because Belong employs its own contractors and manages the entire process.

We know from our homeowners that it can be a real effort to stay on top of their personal finances, and their taxes.  They ask us all the time about whether a tax calculator can be useful as they keep track of their tax liabilities during the year.   That’s not surprising, because, in addition to owning real estate, many of them are entrepreneurs who have multiple sources of income and dynamic, unpredictable tax situations.

Which Tax Calculator is Best for Landlords?

When you Google “tax calculator” – and a lot of people are doing it, because there are 675M hits – there is no shortage of links that pop up.  To make your life easier, your intrepid friends at Belong spent some time analyzing them to see if there is one that rises to the top of the calculation heap.

To start with, there are a lot of familiar names that show up high on the first page. Not surprisingly, there are free tax calculators and “estimators”  being offered by H&R Block, TurboTax, Nerdwallet, Jackson Hewitt, and many others. 

In the cases of the big names, for the most part, these calculators are a marketing technique, they are offered “free” but their goal is to sell their software programs.  So you have to enter some personal information before you have access to the full platform. Of the ones listed above, Nerd Wallet gives you the most access without being sucked into their sales funnel.  AARP also has a calculator that doesn’t require too much disclosure. 

Keep in mind these are very basic tools, so use them only as guidelines.  It’s best that you have access to an accountant, especially given what looks like dramatic, upcoming changes in the tax code.  That’s especially true if you are self-employed.   We found two calculators that are designed for those who are not traditional W-2 employees, one is from TaxAct and the other from KeeperTax.  

Given the complexities of owning a rental house, while a tax calculator can be useful for providing some basic guidance, expert accountants can pay for themselves.  If you don’t have one, and your personal network has been exhausted, there are platforms like 1800Accountant that might be useful. Unless you feel really confident, being your own accountant can be as risky as being your own electrician.

Lastly, to wrap this up, who knows more about the taxes than the IRS? They have an online tax withholding estimator that is pretty good and is free of charge. 

While you're busy doing maths, take a look below at our back-of-the-napkin maths calculator to do some quick sums on putting your rental on Belong.  Not only will we make your finances easier, all maintenance expenses, management and placement fees are tax deductible.

Stress is toxic - and managing your own rental property is a stress machine. Learn more about the hidden stresses of being a landlord and property manager.

The Right Property Manager Can Help You Achieve Profound Well-Being

The hidden stress of managing your own property, revealed!

If you own a rental property, and you’re considering managing it yourself, we suggest you hit the pause button and listen up.

Taking that on yourself – rather than hiring a skilled property manager – is a serious undertaking.  So you owe it to yourself to consider not just the obvious stresses, but the hidden emotional, physical, and financial costs of assuming that responsibility. 

Of course, there’s also a cost associated with property management, and we’ll get to it later on.  But first, to establish a context for whatever fees you will need to pay, let’s walk through the burdens of acting as your own property manager.

Stress is toxic. And managing your own property is a stress machine.

The fact is that stress is so pervasive, that many of us are dealing with the symptoms without even understanding what’s behind them.  That’s a risk, because stress’s effects on the body are profound, leading to conditions like digestive problems, insomnia, and weakened immune systems. Even weight gain.

What does this biology lesson have to do with managing your property?  Everything!  Because the entire property management process, from listing, to getting the place in rental shape, to finding and vetting a tenant, is ridiculously stressful. 

And lets us not forget about dealing with vacancies and collecting the rent!

This post on Reddit sums it up perfectly:

“I am a new landlord and I think I'm getting an ulcer from the stress. Can y'all give me some tips on how not to be so stressed about tenants all the time?”

The Right Property Manager is like a Meditation App for Homeowners

Most people intuitively understand that acting as your own property manager is a highly stressful endeavor. However, there are so many bad property managers out there – an overwhelming amount, in fact – that many people are driven to do it themselves.

In fact, the proliferation of property managers that fail to deliver inspired the founders to create Belong.

Belong performs all the services that traditional property managers attend to, and they do it with a thoughtful, homeowner-first approach and impeccable attention to detail.  They even go so far as to guarantee the rent, and they have a team of their own talented contractors – Belong Pros – who take the stress out of repair and renovation.  Which is one of the most frustrating and infuriating parts of being a homeowner.

Yes, working with Belong costs a bit – but so does working with any property management company.  The 8% of monthly rent that Belong charges is comparable to what you’d pay to traditional property management companies, which don’t offer the same kind of end-to-end services. 

The right way to look at that cost is that it’s a small price to pay for your well-being.  We do so much else to stay healthy today – we eat, we exercise, we try to get enough sleep – why undercut that by dealing with the stress of a leaky faucet or a late check?

You said there’s a financial cost of NOT hiring the right property manager.

We did. Here are two costs to start.  First – you may not be charging enough rent.  Driven by the fear of having a vacant house sit on the market if the rent’s too high, many homeowners charge too little.  Belong solves that problem with a price optimization technology that takes your home and your neighborhood into account, and identifies a price that will get new residents moving in ASAP.

The second hidden cost of being your own property manager is what economists call “opportunity costs.”   Simply put, what else could you be doing with your time when you’re not dealing with piles and piles of forms and paperwork?

Well, maybe you could be starting a business!  The data shows that millions are becoming entrepreneurs; more than 4.4. million “pandemic businesses” were started last year.

Having someone manage your property gives you the time and peace of mind to get that going.  Which means one source of income – your home – can be joined by another.

Boosting your immune system and your net worth – who would have thought the right property manager can make that possible?

Property management was unsatisfactory for both homeowners and renters - until two entrepreneurs decided it was time to disrupt the old model with Belong.

How Two Entrepreneurs Are Elevating Property Management

Property management was unsatisfactory for both homeowners and renters - until two entrepreneurs decided it was time to disrupt the old model with Belong. Read on for the story of how Belong started and their mission. 

In the case of Belong, our founders – Ale Resnik and O. Savir – were inspired by their experiences with the very act of “Belonging.”

They captured it poignantly and personally in a blog, writing:

We are a company started by immigrants. As immigrants, we had to redefine, multiple times and in numerous ways, what Home meant to us.

Is Home the walls around you and the ceiling above you?

As they began thinking deeply about what home meant – along with another founder, Tyler Infelise – these imaginative serial entrepreneurs had an important revelation about its fundamental essence.

They put it eloquently in that same blog post:

“With time, we discovered that Home isn't a place. Home is a feeling. Home is where our heart is.”

As they looked for their next entrepreneurial venture – conducting a lot of research and spending a lot of time talking to friends and family – an opportunity began to take shape.  An opportunity that involved a total, bottom-up reinvention of something known as “property management.”

Ale and O decided to take on this challenge because they saw that the need was great.  As they wrote, “We chose an industry that hadn't changed in centuries and offered no elements of delight to those it was meant to serve.”

The founders recognized that tenants often feel like temporary guests living in somebody else’s home.  Some are treated badly (we’ve all heard our share of landlord horror stories), and often are treated like second-class citizens.  So the company’s mission – concisely put – is to make tenants feel like they belong. 

Central to the vision that these two founders had was to create a company where people who loved their houses  – Belong calls them “homeowners” –  could be connected to people who would love them as much as they do.

If you’re a homeowner – whether you are downsizing, or are dealing with a long-term family home – Ale and O have built a system and culture where you will be incredibly well looked after.

Read about Belong’s unequaled suite of services here.

Belong will find the perfect residents, screen them, and help them move in – and you move out – with precision and care.  They use technology to streamline, and committed Concierges (people, not bots) to make sure everything runs perfectly. 

Once someone moves in, their full-time team of Belong Pros handles all maintenance – expected and unexpected – which is a remarkable service in a world where reliable and talented contractors are in great demand.  It feels great when work is done right the first time around.

Another benefit of Ale and O’s vision is that happy residents – which they enable – will stay longer and reduce vacancies, which are expensive!

If you’re a homeowner, Belong’s founders have built something that can, candidly, rock your world.  Ale, O, and Tyler wrap it up like this:

“We love building products that make people happy. More specifically, we love surprising people with something they never thought could make them happy.”

Disruption is here. Get ready to be delighted.

We're all about convenience for homeowners in CA. For the LA area, here are 6 out of the box home delivery services bringing you everything from cake to cats.

6 Out of The Box Home Delivery Services in LA

Since we're in the business of making managing and finding a rental more convenient, we've collected a list of our favorite conveniences: direct-to-door home delivery. For the LA area, here are 6 out of the box home delivery services bringing you everything from cake to cats. 

Convenience. It’s an accurate but nonetheless uninspiring word to describe the magic of having something wonderful delivered to your front door. The wonder of tapping on your phone a few times and having the exact thing you wanted dropped to your doorstep never seems to get old. Here are six out-of-the-box home delivery services to try in the LA area. 

Now that the kids are back in school, the challenge of making school lunches is back, big time. If you find yourself pressed for time in the morning, consider using lunchbreak4kids. They offer fresh, seasonal food that finds the sweet spot between being healthy and kid-friendly.  With pizza roll-ups and Asian noodle bowls, their tagline – “Peanut butter & jelly is gonna need to hire a publicist” – sounds right to us. Prices start at $8.99 per lunch.

2. "Let them eat cake" (without leaving the sofa)

When Marie Antoinette was told that the people had no bread, she famously replied “Let them eat cake.” Even if she wasn’t being snide, she certainly couldn’t have deserts sent to the peasants who would soon make life (and death) very unpleasant for her.  

You, on the other hand, can send cake to anyone you choose. Or reward yourself. UberEats has put together a handy list of frosting-on-demand resources, which include our personal favorite, the Milk Bar in Melrose. Christina Tosi, the renowned chef behind the Milk Bar, also just published a charming children’s book called Every Cake Has a Story, which should zoom to the top of your holiday gift list.

If you need a dog or cat picked up and delivered – or a horse, rabbit, or butterfly, for that matter – let us point your attention to the quirky thoroughness of Southern California Pet Transport. They are experts in navigating the logistical complexities of getting a pet from Home A to Home B, including whatever veterinary and regulatory requirements are necessary.

You would expect an excess of healthy meal kit delivery services in LA, and there is a leafy overflow to be sure. Within that verdant abundance we were drawn to Territory, who pulls together local chefs, restaurants, and nutritionists in support of a “foodlosophy” – and yes, that is a bit cutesy for our taste – that “allows folks to tap into a “‘reducetarian’ approach” that “reduces overall consumption of the inflammation heavy hitters.”

Given that the holidays are approaching, we thought we’d start to wrap up with some absolutely joyful choices for gift basket delivery.  We turned to Petal Republic as a source for the best LA has to offer; they describe themselves as a “platform to showcase and celebrate exceptional florists, plant shops, garden centers, urban nurseries, and floral experiences…”

Petal Republic has curated a terrific list for just about every occasion and recipient, including this selection from Volcanica Coffee for the caffeine fiends in your life.

Lastly — while being home is a great way to reduce stress, sometimes anxiety follows you through the front door. For those times, we direct your tense scalenes to the capable hands of one of the massage therapists from the capable crowd at Soothe.com

At Belong, we are known for connecting people who own much-loved houses, with people who are ready to extend their love in that same domestic direction. Like the companies on our list, we are using technology to create richer and more meaningful experiences that elevate everything related to home as the center of our lives. Learn more at Belonghome.com

The source of much controversy, the new California law represents a tremendous opportunity to bring neighborhoods together.

The Upside of SB-9 Can Be Stronger and more Vibrant Communities

Starting January 1 of 2022, California Bill SB-9, which many of you have read about, allows homeowners in the state to divide their property into 2 separate lots; though one of the lots the property owners must occupy by law, the other they can put on the rental market. 

It’s been controversial on both sides – advocates believe that the law will help mitigate the housing shortage that has long plagued the state, and that it will help to diversify neighborhoods by providing access to lower income families. 

Meanwhile, on the con side there’s a wide range of criticism: some support the concept, but think the safeguards put in place to prevent developers from taking advantage of the law are too weak; some don’t think the law will have a palpable effect on the housing shortage, pointing to a July study by Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley.

The law was so controversial that Governor Gavin Newsom reportedly let it sit on his desk unsigned until the recall election was over; now that his job status is secure though, and the law has been signed, the debate is behind us. 

SB-9 As an Opportunity To Create Authentic, Belonging Experiences.

At Belong, we have a mission to connect people who have much-loved houses with those ready to move in and extend the love. 

But our mission extends beyond that. It extends to the community. That’s at the heart of what we mean when we say we exist “To create authentic belonging experiences.”

We see S9 as an opportunity to build stronger and more vibrant neighborhoods and communities. Places that inspire that deep sense of belonging.

Yes, it will create more density.  But the upside of density is that it brings more people into neighborhoods. Which means more people to stop by the local coffee shop, pick up something at a bookstore that is the soul of the community, and say hello to the local florist and bring home a succulent for the windowsill.

Yes, we recognize that S9 will also reduce green space, as every square foot of land that a house sits on is a square foot that cannot accommodate a tree.  The way we see it, though, that means every homeowner who takes advantage of S9 has a parallel responsibility to make their outdoor spaces as beautiful as welcoming as possible.

We expect to see some creative and imaginative landscaping techniques being brought to new construction. 

That innovation is being seen in the landscaping of ADUs – Accessory Dwelling Units – which is another change in California zoning that was enacted to cope with the state’s overwhelming housing shortage.  This blog post on landscaping ADUs by Kol Peterson, an expert and champion of ADU development, offers some insight into how greenery and new construction can be married. He wrote:

“ADUs present a subtle but entirely new type of social relationship opportunity for the tenants and owners. The relationship between the occupants of the house and ADU is typically not as intimate as the relationship of housemates, but typically is closer than the relationship of a typical neighbor.

“Parts of the yard, driveway, gardens, patio, and storage may be shared, and other parts may serve as dedicated spaces for one unit or the other. Landscaping has the potential to give visual cues to the occupant and guests  about the use of the property.”

Though Kol’s perceptive comments were specifically pointed towards the internal dynamics of a property – again, to create a sense of “belong” in an entirely new spatial environment – the same applies to the outward-facing aesthetics of the buildings to be built under SB-0.

Neighborhoods have always been in a dynamic state of change. They react to changing needs and norms. SB-9 is just the latest example of that. So the question becomes: How do we make the most of it?

At Belong – where we connect homeowners and residents to live richer and more fulfilling lives – we believe that will make our neighborhoods stronger and more diverse.

We are confident that homeowners who take advantage of S9 will join us in this mission. Together, we can make more housing units on the same property create more wins for all.

Houseplants are a great way to brighten up any home and a budget-friendly way to add value and warmth to a rental property. Here are 5 of our favorites.

5 Plants That Will Brighten Your Rental Investment Instantly

Houseplants are a great way to brighten up any home without a massive investment, making them a budget-friendly way to add value and warmth to a rental property. Here are 5 of our favorite house plants for adding life to rental homes. 

Think of the trends we’ve seen emerge on Instagram and elsewhere over the course of the past year and a half: puppies, sourdough, and houseplants. It is no coincidence that all these trends revolve around living, breathing things — yes, even sourdough, with its bacteria and yeast giving rise to each and every X-scored loaf. In fact it makes perfect sense: inundated with such dark news it’s no surprise that, subconsciously or not, people began to surround themselves with things that grow, change, and give us hope for the future. Because when we see things growing we feel more alive. 

That’s why Belong encourages everyone in their community, homeowners and residents alike, to cultivate some plant life in their homes. We all know what a charge of life we feel when we walk into a space filled with plants. What’s more, if a plant looks healthy and cared for, it feels safe to assume that the house it lives in is treated just as well, if not better.

We’ve written before about how to build a beautiful backyard, but to help you spruce up the inside of your home, here’s our list of 5 great houseplants.

We love the look of palms in general — the fronds spreading like the fingers of a hand, so thin and delicate and beautiful they seem to be waving at you, calling for your attention.  But most palms require a lot of care and a lot of sunlight. The Lady Palm is the exquisite exception; though it doesn’t lack for palminess, it also doesn’t need much sunlight, making it a perfect indoor plant.

There’s something about the spongy leaves of a jade plant that we find wonderfully sumptuous. They’re as pleasing to look at as they are to touch, too: the beautiful contrast between the thick, heavy branches and the beautiful contoured leaves is a visual.  They’re also very easy to care for: because they’re succulents they can sometimes go months without being watered!

What’s more, the jade plant is also called the lucky plant or money plant, which makes it a wonderful present for a homeowner to leave for a new resident.

Like the idea of a succulent, but looking for something a little more visual drama than a jade provides?  A snake plant might be right for you.  Its leaves are long and flat and far more striking than the jade’s. But much like succulent cousin, it only needs to be watered occasionally (in fact, in the winter, it can go up to 2 months without any H2O).  And it doesn’t need a lot of light to thrive, making it ideal for apartments and rooms that don’t get much sun!  Also, a NASA study shows that it actually cleans the air. 

A flowering plant, the clusters of pretty, pink blossoms add a pop of color and a lovely scent to any room.  They only need indirect sunlight and are drought resistant, too, which makes them the ideal plant for novice plant owners. 

A hanging plant with long cascades of delicate vines, the String of Hearts adds a touch of drama to any room.  It retains water well, too, so it doesn’t require helicopter plant parenting, and its pink stems and waxy leaves make it more colorful than your typical houseplant.

There are lots of ways to create a home that someone will love, but there’s nothing that creates as much impact with as little cost or effort as houseplants! If you're looking for bigger changes, check out the top design trends for 2022. 

Make your home stand out and capture more rent – quickly and affordably – in our fitness-obsessed culture

Home Fitness Ideas Under $300 To Add Muscle To Your Rental Listing

Make your home stand out and capture more rent – quickly and affordably – in our fitness-obsessed culture.

Few amenities are more attractive to potential renters than a gym. Given the health and wellness trends sweeping the country – and the reluctance many still have to exposing themselves to heavy-breathers at a gym – you can easily see how home fitness equipment can differentiate a property and give you the ability to charge more for it. Of course, some investments – like a $2,800 vertical climber – are simply not worth it.  

But there are many price-effective opportunities to add a fitness component to your home.  

The first question you may be asking, though, is where to put all this stuff? After all, most homes are not big enough to convert an entire room into a state-of-the-art fitness facility. Thankfully, there are some practical solutions that will surprise you with their ease and creativity.

You don't need to remodel your rental to add a gym or home fitness space. This link to more than 30 inspired solutions from HGTV will spark your imagination. They range from the back of a door to a garage cubby to an attic or basement. Depending on the climate you live in, an outdoor gym can also be a great solution.

Once you figure out where you are going to locate the gym, the next step is to decide how to want to outfit it. For the smallest spaces, you might want to consider suspension training systems, which consist of a series of ropes and belts that are suspended from a single point. That can be a doorway, the wall above a window, or even a tree. They are affordable – many are under $75 and $150 will get you a premium model – and some come with an app, which you can offer to your tenants as well. Here’s a link to the seven best, according to Healthline.

Affordable home fitness equipment for rentals with small spaces

If you have a small area within a larger room that you can screen off, it can be outfitted with a collection of workout equipment that will deliver a lot of bang for the buck. (Here are some tips we found on Pinterest for separating a gym from the rest of the room.)  This new “gym niche”   can include kettlebells; a balance trainer; slides or wheels that provide core stability and won’t mess up your floors; and this sweet Core Max Ab Machine, which, ringing in at an affordable $109, is the most expensive of the lot (and that includes the “power assist rebound system”).

Affordable home gyms to fit into rental homes

If you have the space to spare you might be surprised at how affordable some larger workout equipment can be. This space-saving, quiet-running treadmill is just $260. Needless to say, you can spend more, but people aren’t expecting Equinox-level equipment in a rental place. This folding exercise bike is just $129. There are also folding treadmills available – here’s a solid-looking one for $380 – so if you want to give your tenants the ability to turn their gym back into the living room, that flexibility is easily achievable.

We were also drawn to this compact rowing machine for $300, as well as this Weider Home Gym system – complete with a high and low pulley stations, a 4-foam padded leg developer, and an 80-pound weight stack that, when used with pulleys, can offer more than 200 pounds of total resistance.  (Forgive us for sounding like a commercial, but that value carries a lot of weight with us.)  Indeed, there is a lot of innovative workout equipment available – for example, for just $119 you can get a “Fusion Motion” portable gym tricked out with 8 accessories that include heavy resistance bands, an ab roller wheel, and more – enough for a full-body workout. 

If you think you’re going to have tenants who need to take out their frustration somewhere, try this free-standing punching bag for just $209. If, on the other hand, you want to satisfy someone whose idea of fitness is to jump on a vibrating exercise machine, this nifty LifePro Vibration Plate Exercise Machine, which delivers a whole body workout through its vibration fitness platform – we’re in! – is just $198. And, if you want to make your gym feel even more special, you can add this cute little retro-styled Frigidaire for just $195. The side bottle opener is a very cool touch, must say.

Of course, these home enhancements are not going to replicate what a gym can offer, but they are likely to be an unexpected surprise that makes a home special and easier to fall in love with – while saying something meaningful about you at the same time.

Add serious muscle to your rental returns with Belong

Like leotards and legwarmers, property management is so 80's. If you really want to strengthen your rental investment, consider ditching the suits and joining the industry disrupter, Belong. We'll take care of everything to get you the best possible return and residents for your home. Learn more at belonghome.com. 

Make your rental listing stand out and capture more rent in our fitness-obsessed culture with these home gym ideas under $300

It says everything about their value system and why the difference between homeowners and residents is actually no difference at all.

This Property Manager Just Wrote an Open Letter to the Local Community

Dear Residents, Homeowners, HOA members, and Neighbors,

We’ve heard both sides of the story — anecdotes from renters and HOA members alike, about the tension that often develops between people who own homes in the community and people who don’t. 

There’s a perception that renters don’t contribute to the communities they reside in, because they aren’t really part of those communities.  They can’t possibly care about the neighborhood the way a homeowner would, because they aren’t homeowners.

That’s dead wrong and perpetuates a negative stereotype that polarizes a community when it needs to be brought together.

The truth:  you have no idea what people can contribute to a community if you make them feel part of it.  Make them feel like they belong.

That’s a good hint for how we came up with the name of our company, and our mission: to help instill in residents of all kinds a genuine sense of belonging.  It’s a feeling that starts with their relationship to the house they live in and spreads from there.  The more they feel at home in their homes, the more they feel at home in their community; the more they feel motivated to improve it, invest in it, and be the best neighbors they can be.

It starts with the first time we meet potential residents.   We have a real conversation, one which goes far deeper than a simple background and credit check.  

Then, after they move in, we provide them with concierge-style service and access to our Belong Pros — a hand-selected team of craftspeople employed full-time by Belong, who are at the ready 24/7 to fix any problems that may arise over the course of their lease. 

The result is happy, prideful residents living in beautiful, pristinely maintained houses that they love as much as the homeowner does. 

From there, it’s only a short step to caring about your neighborhood the same way you care about your house. 

That’s why HOAs in the places we serve – San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Diego, and Orange County - are so excited when Belongers move in. 

Care to learn more?  Watch this video — and then check out our website.  Or email us any time if you want to work together to make your community even stronger.

How do I rent out a property as a landlord, but live far away? Do I need a property manager or can I manage myself? We answer FAQs on owning interstate rentals

Long-Distance Landlord: How To Manage a Rental Home From Afar

Whether you had to move for work or picked up a steal of a property in another city, it’s not uncommon to live far away from a home you rent out. Even more so in 2024. With many homeowners holding onto interest rates too good to give up, renting out a home is often a better option when opportunity knocks in another city. 

This is why we get asked so often, “How do I rent out a property when I live far away?” 

Particularly if you’re considering the DIY self-management route, there’s a lot to consider before taking on the challenge from another state. It’s not impossible, but here are six questions to consider first. 

6 questions to consider before self-managing a rental home out-of-state

1. How often can I travel to my rental home? 


When preparing your home for the rental market, you will need to get it move-in ready. You’ll need to arrange a deep clean, attend to repairs and have professional photographs and video taken for your online listing. These are not remote tasks. Someone will need to be at the home to let in contractors, cleaners, and a real estate photographer.

If you travel to your rental home, be sure to keep accurate records of everything from your trip. You may be eligible to claim some costs such as airfares, hire car and petrol, even hotel accommodation as a tax expense for managing your rental home. 

If travel is too far or just not a viable option, is there someone you trust close by that you could enlist for help? This is where having a property manager or modern alternative like Belong can make the process much smoother, taking care of all preparations and listings on your behalf. If you do hire someone to manage the process, you can claim these fees at tax time too. 

Discover Belong: The best alternative to Property Management in Seattle, Redmond, Oakland, and many more cities across California, Texas, Utah, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, and Washington State.     


When you live far away from your rental home, how you collect rent is another consideration. Checks and cash are out of the question! Thankfully, paying rent online is commonplace these days — not to mention safer. 

But before you choose an online platform, be aware that using popular peer-to-peer online payment apps like PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, and Cash App can leave you open to disputes and rent payment fraud. While simple and user-friendly, they are not designed for landlords or rent collection. 

There’s also the issue of late payments. Do you have the time and resources to follow up and stay on top of unpaid rent bills from out of state? Aside from the time, effort and stress, the reality is that mortgage and expenses don’t stop adding up when the rent goes unpaid.

This is why guaranteed rent is Belong’s most popular product. It’s proven and beloved by over 2,000 Belong homeowners, who receive their rental income like clockwork (no matter when the residents pay).

Read More: How Guaranteed Rent is Changing Property Management Forever

3. Who will manage home tours and inspections?


Property management is not a set-and-forget kind of job. Aside from the initial tours to lease the home, inspections can help to monitor wear and tear or damage. It’s also an opportunity to connect with your residents to make sure they’re happy and are sticking to the conditions of the lease agreement.

You could opt for video inspections if you have established a good relationship with your tenant. But if this is a new lease or you ask residents to show you around virtually, you could miss important clues to damage or repair needs on the property. 

This is another reason why many long-distance rental owners prefer to hire someone to manage the home for them. If you still want to DIY, you’ll need to enlist some local help for the role of on-site inspections. This could be a trusted friend, an employee, or a service such as Inspectify, who can arrange an inspection report on-site. 

4. How easily can I access good local contractors? 


If there’s a maintenance or repair issue in your rental home, how soon can you respond from afar? It’s an important question for out-of-state landlords, because how you resolve issues is a reflection of your professionalism and can avoid minor issues from turning into costly headaches. 

If you’re fielding maintenance requests from out of state, you will need to have fast access to good local contractors close to your rental home. This is easier said than done, with the US experiencing a major labor shortage in most trades that homeowners need. With so much work to go around, contractors are often drawn to large jobs that pay the most. This can leave rental homeowners waiting months for repairs and maintenance. 

If you don’t have good local knowledge or access to contractors, Belong can help. Our expert team will handle all resident communication and have an extensive vendor network of over 10,000 contractors for fast maintenance and repairs.

Read More: Why Ignoring Rental Home Maintenance Could Cost You More Than Repairs

5. Are local laws different from my home state?


Tenant-landlord legislation varies between states and counties. If you live in Austin, but rent out a home in Seattle, you’ll need to be up to speed with the laws that govern both the state of Washington and the local cities of Seattle. Not doing your homework could land you in hot water if you get it wrong. 

Welcome To The Playroom