Investing in rental property is a long game and people often don’t immediately feel rich after acquisition, said a Reddit investor recently.
They asked fellow landlords and investors how long it took before owning rental property finally started feeling “worth it” and they really started feeling glad they held onto it.
It Takes Years Before Rentals Feel Rewarding?
The responses painted a much more complicated picture than the social media version of rental investing.
Many said the first few years often feel stressful and financially underwhelming.
“Year 1-2: it doesn’t feel worth it,” one investor summarized the experience of long-term investors. “You’re managing tenants, handling repairs, dealing with surprises, and the rent barely covers [principal, interest, taxes and insurance].”
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That same commenter said the turning point usually happens around years five through seven, when rent increases, appreciation and mortgage paydown finally become noticeable and “most people ‘feel rich’ for the first time.”
Several landlords agreed.
“Probably around year four or five when the math actually started working and I wasn’t just throwing money at repairs every other month,” one investor said.
“For me it’s been somewhere between the 8-10 year mark where I start thinking that things are getting real good,” another wrote. “The property has appreciated, I’ve paid down principle and rents have increased.”
A landlord who purchased a two-family property in 2005 said the investment didn’t even reach positive equity until 2012.
Others said the payoff only became obvious once mortgages were close to being paid off.
“After paying off mortgages in 17 years,” one investor wrote.
Stocks Would’ve Been Easier?
One of the biggest themes in the discussion was how many landlords questioned whether real estate was actually better than investing in the stock market.
Some investors said the appreciation looked impressive on paper, but taxes, repairs, insurance, vacancies and tenant problems reduced returns significantly.
“Twenty years in, I wish I invested in the [Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (NYSE Arca: VTI)] instead, so much less work and would have been couple million dollars richer,” one commenter wrote.
Another investor who owned seven rentals “from 2009-2020 in hot markets” said the properties generated strong appreciation and rental income, but still concluded: “They were all a dumb wasted distraction and the stocks would have been 3M++ more.”
Others defended real estate, pointing to leverage as the biggest advantage.
“You can’t buy a stock share for a 5-20% down payment, yet keep all of the appreciation,” one landlord wrote.
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Several investors also stressed that timing mattered enormously.
People who bought properties between 2009 and 2020 generally sounded much happier than recent buyers. Investors who locked in mortgage rates below 4% during the pandemic years often described rental ownership as immediately rewarding.
Meanwhile, some recent buyers complained about rising insurance costs, higher interest rates and slowing appreciation.
Still, despite the headaches, many investors said patience was the key.
“I think the key is not to panic,” one commenter wrote. “It’s a 10-year investment.”
While many landlords say rental investing can eventually build meaningful wealth, the process often involves years of maintenance costs, tenant issues and operational headaches. Arrived gives investors a way to access rental real estate opportunities through fractional ownership models designed to offer a more passive investing experience.
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