Inform yourself about your local rental market.

Sid Davis, a real estate broker and author of “A Survival Guide to Selling a Home,” says that before deciding to convert your residence to a rental, you should make sure the numbers work for you.

As he notes, most large realty firms have rental departments that can help you assess the relative strength of your local market. Agents who list many rentals on the Multiple Listing Service can quickly estimate how much rental income your property could command.

Advertising (online or in print) can also help, Davis says. Survey the ads to see how numerous they are for your type of property (single family, townhouse or condo/apartment) and going rents.

“You might even wish to run a test ad to check out your rental market. This is not unethical, so long as you don’t mislead any potential tenants,” he says.