In apartment investing and ownership, let’s be honest: it’s all about the money. As an investment tool, it’s one of the most dependable, historically speaking, and has one of the greatest ROIs. Yet, many investor-owners are shortsighted when it comes to generating revenues. In other words, they look to rent, deposits, and pet deposits for cash flow, but fail to see the bigger picture: their tenants are a target audience for complementary service offerings.

Consider the following 3 ways you, too, can generate additional revenue by meeting the needs your tenants typically go elsewhere to meet.

Space rental – There is a great likelihood your current tenants are renting additional space, off property, to store items that do not fit into their current unit. You can benefit from this trend by either offering existing storage space for rent, or by investing in the creation of an onsite storage facility that tenants can rent.

Cleaning services – Just like you contract HVAC or plumbing services, you can also contract cleaning services. Simply identify a reputable provider (housecleaning, carpet cleaning, etc.) with whom you can develop a mutually beneficial agreement wherein you send all tenants to his/her service in exchange for a referral percentage. There is a bit of creative license here, and many providers already offer such deals, so just be sure to do your homework.

Recycling options – Some tenants are pretty passionate about their recycling options and would be willing to pay for such services that aren’t already included. As such, you could offer a front door pick-up of plastics and paper that is transported to a recycling facility for a fee. Again, there are options available in many communities in this respect, so creativity is welcomed.

The key, of course, is to really know your tenants. If you do your research and spend the necessary time and effort, you’re optimally positioned not only to price and market services like these, but create your own set of ancillary services that boost the bottom line.