How We’re Boosting Cash Flow—Without Raising Rents

Hey there,

When we bought Lamplight Apartments in 2022, we were paying for water, sewer, and trash services. Now, as we approach 2025, we’re making a smart move to increase cash flow: implementing a utility bill-back program.

This means tenants will pay for the utilities they actually use, which shifts the cost away from us and directly boosts our cash flow. For this property it equates to roughly $32,000/yr when fully implemented.

The nice part is that relatively few people look at this as a rent increase… because it isn’t. Yet, it has a similar effect as raising the rents.

It’s a simple but effective way to add value to the property without needing to raise rents.

Why didn’t we do this sooner?

Our initial focus was on increasing base rents while minimizing turnover—because unnecessary turnover creates an expense line that is hard to estimate.

By keeping residents happy and in place, we’ve been able to steadily grow income without the high costs of frequent tenant turnover.

How you implement a strategy is just as important as the end result.

Stay tuned for more updates on how we’re continuing to optimize our investments.

Questions always welcome!

Nate & Steven
Rust Belt Capital, LLC

www.rustbeltcapital.com

_Disclosure:
Rust Belt Capital, LLC is not a Registered Investment Advisor. Investing involves risk, including loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee or indicate future results. Any historical returns, expected returns, or probability projections may not reflect actual future performance. While the data we use from third parties is believed to be reliable, we cannot ensure the accuracy or completeness of data provided by investors or other third parties. Rust Belt Capital, LLC does not provide tax advice and does not represent in any manner that any outcomes described herein will result in any particular tax consequence. This is not an offer to buy or sell any security. Offers to sell, or solicitations of offers to buy, any security can only be made through official offering documents that contain important information about investment objectives, risks, fees, and expenses. Prospective investors should consult with a tax, investment, or legal adviser before making any investment decision. Distributions or profitable investments cannot and are not guaranteed. Not intended to be tax advice and should not be solely relied upon to make an investment decision.