Rent Roll
A rent roll is the unit-by-unit schedule of tenants, rents, lease dates, deposits, arrears, and rentability.
Why it matters
rent roll changes what a disciplined buyer can pay, how much debt the asset can safely carry, and whether the return is coming from operations or fragile assumptions.
Formula
Gross scheduled rent = sum(unit rent). Loss to lease = market rent - in-place rent. Occupancy = occupied units / total units.Worked example
In underwriting, tag rent roll beside the exact source input and rerun the model when that input changes. The point is not a pretty metric; it is a better buy, hold, refinance, or walk decision.
How investors read it
Start with what is contractual and collected, then normalize. A model should expose the lie, not decorate it.
Common mistakes
- · Treating the metric as a verdict instead of a screen.
- · Using broker-package assumptions without checking the source documents.
- · Ignoring taxes, capex, vacancy, financing terms, and timing.
- · Mixing actual, normalized, and projected numbers without labeling them clearly.
Use current local data and source documents. Realist should show assumptions and date-stamp market inputs because stale inputs create fake precision.