How I Evaluate a Deal in 5 Minutes (Or Less)

The SolMidas Shortcut for Sniffing Out Solid Investments

Before most people are out of bed, I’ve already checked the MLS.

Every morning starts the same: a quiet scroll through new listings from the night before. My alerts are tuned to the zip codes that have consistently delivered strong results for Housing Authority tenants—places where we’ve seen stable rent, reliable renewals, and the kind of price-to-rent ratios that make sense for long-term investors. This is the first filter. If the zip code doesn’t already have a track record, I’m likely moving on.

The first thing I check is whether the property passes a simple rent-to-price sniff test. It’s not a hard rule, but if the monthly rent can come close to 1% of the asking price, it’s usually worth digging deeper. A $270,000 home that could rent for $2,700? That’s a green flag. But if the numbers don’t line up—if the rent won’t even cover a mortgage and basic costs—it’s not worth pursuing. There are too many good deals in this market to waste time on ones that won’t pencil out.

Next, I open the listing and go straight to the photos. For me, the visuals say more than the description ever could. I’m scanning for signs of condition and quality. Do the finishes feel modern and neutral, or are we looking at leftover linoleum and dated tile? Does the place look move-in ready, or will it need a full cosmetic refresh before anyone can even walk through the door?

This part is especially important because most of our investors aren’t local. They’re not looking to take on big rehab jobs or deal with a contractor from 1,000 miles away. They want something that feels safe, solid, and simple. If a home needs more than paint and a lock change, it’s usually not going to make the cut (though this often depends on the investor).

I also pay attention to the year built. In Dallas, we’re lucky—there’s a good amount of post-2000 construction, and I tend to favor it whenever I can. Not because old homes can’t work, but because newer homes usually mean fewer surprises. Lower maintenance, better systems, more consistent finishes. Plus, voucher tenants are often comparing multiple options, and newer builds tend to stand out. If you can offer a tenant a clean, modern home with minimal hassle, you’ll fill it faster and hang onto them longer.

After that, I take a quick glance at the size and layout. The Housing Authority mostly bases rent on bedroom count, and less driven by square footage, but tenants still care about how a home feels. A well-designed 1,300-square-foot home will lease faster than a clunky 1,600-square-foot one with odd flow. Good layouts matter—and over time, they show up in occupancy rates.

There’s also a quick mental check I run for three big-ticket items: roof, HVAC, and water heater. These aren’t things that show up on the front page of a listing, but I can usually find clues in the property description or by evaluating the Seller’s Disclosure if available. If any of those systems are aging out—say, a 15-year-old roof or a 10-year-old water heater—it doesn’t necessarily kill the deal, but I factor it in. These aren’t minor upgrades. They can swing your cash flow for the year if you’re not prepared.

Then, there’s the question of the subdivision itself. At SolMidas, we’ve built our own internal database of HOAs that restrict or outright ban rentals. Many new construction projects are completely off limits as builders restrict who they’re willing to sell to. If the home is inside one of those, it’s automatically off the list. There’s no sense getting excited about a deal you won’t be allowed to lease. HOA politics aren’t worth the energy, especially when there are so many investor-friendly neighborhoods that welcome rental properties.

And finally—my last non-negotiable: flood zone status. If the home is in a FEMA-designated flood zone, I’m out. Flood insurance is expensive and unpredictable. It’s one of those hidden costs that can quietly wreck an otherwise solid return. And more than that, it introduces risk that just doesn’t belong in a passive income strategy.

The truth is, this entire process rarely takes more than five minutes. But those five minutes are sharp. Focused. Efficient. I know exactly what I’m looking for—and just as importantly, what I’m not. Each week, I highlight the best of these listings in our SolMidas investor email. The majority get filtered out before I ever send a link. But the ones that make it through? They’ve passed this five-minute test with flying colors.

If you’re ready to stop scrolling and start investing, let’s talk. Book a time and I’ll walk you through the kind of deals I’m seeing right now—and how I can help you find the right one.