Real Estate Deals That Cash Flow: Why So Hard to Find?

Only 16% of listings in 2023 offered rental yields above 6%, down from 28% in 2018.
61% of new investors found off-market deals through networking rather than traditional listings.
Creative financing rose 17% from 2022 to 2023 as more investors sidestepped bank loans.
Strategic property improvements (forced appreciation) continue to enhance ROI even in tight markets.
Las Vegas rental markets are tight but stable, bolstered by migration, tax perks, and diversified rental strategies.

Finding real estate deals that make money each month is not as easy as looking at listings and doing quick math. In 2024, high home prices and higher interest rates make finding a good rental property feel very hard. But even though it’s tougher, you can still do it. You just need to look harder, change how you do things, and use local contacts and help. Here’s how investors like you can still find properties that bring in cash each month, even in busy places like Las Vegas.

Why Is It So Hard to Find Deals That Cash Flow Now?

Rental property investing works well when the price you pay, the rent you get, and your loan terms are balanced. Right now, that balance is off. The average home price across the U.S. has gone up a lot in the last five years. And interest rates are much higher than they were for ten years. These higher rates make your profit smaller.

Rents are good, but in many cities, they have reached what people can afford to pay. Paychecks have not grown as fast, and you can only push renters so much. In 2023, only 16% of new listings in the country offered a gross return of 6% or more. This is a big drop from the 28% seen in 2018.

This problem is even bigger in fast-growing places like Las Vegas. More people are moving there, which keeps demand high. But this also makes fewer homes available. New homes aren’t being built fast enough. Also, many current owners have loans with very low rates, so they are less likely to sell. Also, lower cap rates and stricter rules for DSCR (Debt Service Coverage Ratio) make it harder to get a loan that lets you make money each month.

Rookie Mistake: Only Looking at the MLS

The MLS (Multiple Listing Service) can show you good deals when the market is slow. But today, things are different there. Both regular buyers and big companies pick through listings quickly. Many properties look perfect and cost a lot, aimed at people buying based on feelings, not just numbers.

MLS properties often:

Are listed with high asking prices
Need fast offers in bidding wars
Show the highest market prices, not chances to buy low

In this market, waiting for a property that truly makes money to show up on MLS is very unlikely. Smart investors look for deals in more places. They use sources that are not as well-known or not open to everyone, like:

Properties not officially listed
Homes in probate or foreclosure
Listings agents share directly with investors (pocket listings)
Wholesalers who work in specific areas
Contacting sellers directly

Strategy 1: Build Local Deal Flow Through Networking

The best rental property investing happens because you know people in the area. Your personal contacts often uncover real estate deals long before most people hear about them. This means who you know is more important than using online tools.

According to the National Real Estate Investor Association, about 61% of new investors found their first good off-market deal by meeting people. This was done both online in investor groups and in person at meetings.

In Las Vegas, real estate agents who work with investors, like Steve Hawks, keep lists of properties that are not yet listed. They also know clients who want to sell quickly to cash buyers. Getting into these groups of contacts often lets investors:

Make the first offer on a property that needs work
Avoid bidding wars
Learn why a seller wants to sell

Go to local REIAs (Real Estate Investment Associations) meetings often. Join investor groups on Facebook. Participate in BiggerPockets talks. Also, make sure you talk to wholesalers and property managers. They often know about properties needing work or changing owners before it shows up in public listings.

Strategy 2: Driving Around to Find Properties (Or Doing It Online)

Driving around looking for properties might seem old-fashioned. But it’s still one of the best ways to find properties that are not listed and are priced below value. It’s simple: drive through areas you want to buy in. Look for houses that look like they need physical or money help. Then, contact the owner straight away.

In Las Vegas, areas like Spring Valley, North Las Vegas, and East Vegas have older homes with owners who don’t live there and have owned them a long time. This is a good mix for finding properties that need repairs or have owners who are tired of being landlords.

Look for things like:

Yards with tall weeds
Windows covered with wood
Car tags that are old or mail piled up
Blue tarps on roofs or broken fences

Apps for your phone like DealMachine, PropStream, or BatchLeads can help. You can mark these properties, find out who owns them, and start looking for their contact info or send them mail right away.

Don’t want to use gas? You can “drive” online using Google Street View. This lets you do the same thing without leaving home. This is very helpful if you buy properties in other states or want to look at many areas fast.

Strategy 3: Look at Different Areas or Change What You Look For

Not all rental property investing has to be in popular city centers or perfect-looking areas. If you aren’t finding leads with your current approach, look at things differently.

Here are some ideas:

Look at areas further out that cost less, like Pahrump, Enterprise, or parts of Henderson near the edge.
Consider smaller apartment buildings (2-4 units). These often cost less to manage per unit.
Try house hacking. Buy a building with several units, live in one, and rent the others. This lowers your own housing costs.

Besides looking at different places, think about changing what profit you expect. Many successful investors now look for properties that:

Need only minor cosmetic repairs to increase their value
Have rents lower than the market rate but are in high-demand areas
Offer a chance to add value by managing them better

Yes, your first property might only make $100 a month after costs. But add in the property value going up, tax benefits, and rent increases over time, and the total return looks much better.

Use Public Info to Find Sellers Who Are Ready

Smart investors use public records to find specific owners to contact. Clark County and nearby areas give good access to records that show if someone is having money troubles or other problems. These things often make owners want to sell.

Check public information for:

Reports about building or property code problems
Court records about probate (properties inherited)
Filings for evictions (owners who are tired of tenants)
Lists of properties with unpaid taxes (before foreclosure)

Owners found through these records often don’t care about keeping the property or making it perfect. They want to sell quickly and easily. This makes them good people to talk to about different ways to buy, like using creative terms or paying less than market price.

Get info online or use publicaccess.clarkcountynv.gov to make lists. Then use these lists for sending mail, calling people, or sending text messages. Start with 100 leads and try different ways to reach them.

Working With Others Can Help You Get More Done

Many people who want to invest get stuck because they don’t have enough for a down payment. With typical loans needing 20–25% down, even a $300,000 house could need $60,000 or more of your money.

This is where working with others comes in. By partnering with another investor, someone who fixes houses, or someone with money, you can:

Share costs and risks
Learn faster
Be able to buy bigger or better-located properties
Improve your DSCR numbers to get better loan terms

Good partnerships work because everyone wants the same things. They also have clear roles for who does what and legal papers drawn up (like for LLCs or joint ventures). Start small, prove that your plan works, and then do more deals together using the same methods.

More Creative Ways to Finance Deals Are Being Used

Banks are making it harder to get loans. So, more investors are looking at other ways to pay for properties, such as:

Seller financing: The seller lets you make payments to them over time instead of you paying cash upfront.
Lease-to-own or lease-options: You get rent money now, and you can buy the property later at a price set today.
Subject-to purchases: You take over the seller’s current mortgage without getting a new loan yourself.

Using these creative ways to pay for properties went up 17% from 2022 to 2023. This happened because investors needed to keep their cash and avoid higher interest rates (National Association of Realtors, 2023). These methods work well, especially when sellers:

Own their properties free and clear
Got the home from someone else (inherited) and don’t have a strong feeling about keeping it
Are landlords who are tired of tenants moving in and out

Talk to these sellers using words that show how everyone can win. Focus on how easy it is, how convenient it is, and how they will get steady payments. Don’t just try to get the price as low as possible.

What Good Las Vegas Agents Do That’s Different

Agents who know about investing in busy markets like Las Vegas offer more than just access to listings. They offer helpful knowledge.

The best agents:

Understand how to figure out cash-on-cash returns, cap rates, repair costs, and DSCR numbers
Know which areas are good for long-term rentals and which are better for short-term rentals (like for travel nurses)
Hear about off-market properties and sellers who want to sell quietly before others do

Working with someone like Steve Hawks helps you get past the usual hurdles. These agents build relationships with property managers, people in charge of estates by the court, and even people who fix and flip houses. They get news about properties that aren’t publicly listed and share them with their investor clients first.

Ask your agent direct questions: What’s the gross return here? What repairs would help increase the rent? Who bought the last house in this area, and why?

Las Vegas: Like the Rest of the Country, or Different?

Yes, Vegas has some housing issues like the rest of the U.S.—not enough homes and higher costs because of inflation. But it also has special good points for rental property investing:

No state income tax in Nevada
Lots of jobs in entertainment, shipping, and meetings/conventions
People moving from California because of how they like living there and the lower cost

These things mean people in Las Vegas will likely keep needing to rent houses and apartments. Besides renting for long periods, smart investors are now looking at:

Housing for travel nurses (mid-term rentals)
Rentals for companies
Renting to Section 8 tenants. The government helps pay the rent steadily, which lowers risk.

Having different types of properties in Las Vegas can help make up for lower cash flow right away. You also get long-term tax benefits and the chance for property values to increase.

Making Your Property Worth More By Fixing It Up

If the market isn’t making your property more valuable fast enough, you can do things yourself to help.

This is called forced appreciation. It means making improvements that directly lead to getting more rent or increasing the property’s value. Ways to do this include:

Updating old kitchens or bathrooms
Adding an extra bedroom by changing the layout
Turning a garage or unfinished space into a rental studio
Making outside areas better to make the property more appealing

This is the main idea behind the BRRRR method: Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat. When you increase the value and rental income after fixing it up, you can get your money back faster with a new loan. Then you can use that money for the next property.

Even small fixes can change your numbers a lot. For example, adding a washer and dryer inside the unit might make it more wanted and help it rent faster.

Tech Tools That Do the Hard Work

Using data to make decisions is now key to successful rental property investing. Use technology to find, analyze, and buy properties faster than others.

Good tools to use are:

PropStream: Has property data for the whole country, shows what similar properties sold for, helps find owner info, and checks for liens.
DealMachine: Great for keeping track of where you drove, sending mail to owners, and checking seller info.
AirDNA: Helps guess how much you can rent short-term and mid-term rentals for.
Rentometer: Compares local rent prices and trends.
Google Sheets + Scripts: Lets you build your own tools to figure out ROI and DSCR.

With the right set of tools, you can find deals every day. You can check market info automatically. And you can keep track of all your potential deals without paying for extra help.

Create Your Own Way to Find Deals By Reaching Out Directly

Marketing directly to sellers puts you in charge of getting potential deals. Over time, having a steady way to find deals can work better than using agents or wholesalers. And you can often buy properties for a better price.

Ways to do this yourself include:

Sending postcards to owners who don’t live in their properties in certain areas.
Paying for ads on Google when people search for things like “cash offer Las Vegas.”
Making Facebook pages or groups for sellers who are having problems.
Hosting online talks for homeowners about probate sales, tax sales, and similar topics.

Try different things (A/B testing) and see how many people you get deals with. Not many people might answer—maybe 1% to 2%. But the deals you get are often much cheaper. Focus on finding good potential sellers, not just getting a lot of contacts.

Thinking Long-Term: Get Ready for Chances in 2025

Not every deal you find in 2024 will be a big success right away. And that’s fine.

If interest rates go down, or rents go up another 5-10%, a deal that seems “tight” today could make a lot of money later. For now, manage your properties well, study your markets carefully, and don’t take on too much debt.

A good plan for rental property investing includes several ways to create value:

Money coming in each month now (even if it’s a little)
The property value going up in the future
The chance to increase the property’s value by fixing it up
The option to get a new loan in 12–24 months

Buy early, buy smart, manage well.

Ready to find your next investment property in Las Vegas? Work with a local expert who understands both making money each month and long-term value. Let’s talk about what you want to achieve and make a plan that fits your budget and the local market.

Citations:

National Association of Realtors. (2023). Real estate market trends 2023. Retrieved from https://www.nar.realtor
National Real Estate Investor Association. (2022). Off-market acquisition methods survey. Retrieved from https://www.nationalreia.org
Realtor.com. (2023). Rental property return analysis by state. Retrieved from https://www.realtor.com/research