At one time, it was thought that owning a home was a great investment. While this is true in a sense thanks to real estate being a hedge against inflation, your home alone isn’t something to hang your financial hat on. The truth of the matter is more complex: appreciation rates shift based on national, even global, economics, market-specific characteristics, and individual property qualities.

As real estate investors, we’re always looking for ways to increase the value in our rental properties. After all, we have a need to maximize the value in what we have before we acquire more properties. Increasing value, maximizing potential—all of that language—can bring a lot of images to mind—and some of those images can be expensive!

Thinking about big renovations, new appliances, granite countertops, major overhauls…

But does it really have to be that way?

The big thing to remember about increasing your property values is that you can do it piecemeal. You can take little steps, strategically, and over time. Ultimately, they will culminate in the most profitable version of your property—without emptying your pockets.

These are just some ways you can boost your rental property values: either in the eyes of prospective buyers and tenants where they feel and see extra value, or in putting real, actual ROI back in your pocket.