Archive for the 'Investors' Category
Foreclosure Vandalism
July 31st, 2008 categories: Buyers, Investors, Sellers
You’ve seen or heard stories of angry homeowners who, when dealing with foreclosure, trash their house before leaving. Some spray paint the walls or siding. Others break every window with a baseball bat. Sometimes homeowners turn on all the water faucets and plug up the drains before departing.
These homeowners, angry at the bank for foreclosing, think it’s somehow permissible to turn the home into a total nightmare. They don’t stop to think about the consequences for the next set of first-time home buyers who have pinched, saved and worked hard to qualify to buy a bank-owned home priced at the bottom of the market, in “as-is” condition.
Desperate homeowners also strip assets from their house. These fixtures are not personal property, which mean they should stay with the house. The following items should not be removed from a home that is in foreclosure:
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Cabinets and counter tops
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Appliances such as stoves, built-in microwaves, dishwashers, etc.
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Furnaces and air conditioning units
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Plumbing and copper pipes
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Romex or other electrical wiring
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Light fixtures and ceiling fans
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Doors and hardware
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Flooring, ceilings and walls
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Windows and vents
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Medicine cabinets, sinks, tubs, toilets and showers
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Sink drains and faucets
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Built-in shelving / bookcases
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Landscaping, fencing, built-in pools and spas
People who vandalize a home they are losing through foreclosure are not harming the bank by their illegal actions. They are harming innocent home buyers who, just like they once were, are hoping to achieve the dream of home ownership.
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Investors, Keep Your Tenants Happy
May 21st, 2008 categories: Investors
Tenant problems are one of the biggest reasons, if not the biggest reason, that most landlords quit investing in real estate and sell their rental properties. If you want to be a successful landlord, you need to find the time to choose the best tenants and keep up with apartment maintenance. Here are a few bits of advice to help you get new tenants and to keep the ones you already have happy.
Keep it clean – No one wants to live in a dump and that’s what you’ll be trying to rent out if you don’t keep the apartment clean. You want to make a good impression of your property and you.
Details, details, details — Go over the lease with tenants in excruciating detail and walk through the apartment with the tenants before they move in. The last thing you want is any surprises a few months down the road.
Finish up repairs in time — One of the most common complaints you’ll hear is the difficulty in getting something fixed. Invest some time and money to keep your rental properties operating in top condition.
Spruce things up a little — Paint and maintain the exterior of your buildings and do some landscaping. If the outside looks rundown, no one will want to see what the inside looks like let alone live there.
Do your homework on prices — If you’re losing tenants, maybe you’re charging too much in rent. It doesn’t take long at all to pick up a newspaper and do some homework on what others are charging for rent.
Offer amenities at no extra cost – Consider throwing a few perks into the lease to keep your tenants. Think about things like washers and dryers, updated appliances, garbage disposals, and maybe even paid utilities in order to get an edge over other landlords.
Check backgrounds – It’s smart to do a background check on any potential tenant. True, you’ll still be taking a chance on a stranger, but at least it will be an educated one by running a check. Look for things like criminal history, payment issues and other possible red flags.
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Foreclosures Are for the Birds (Or Not)
May 12th, 2008 categories: Buyers, Investors
In the WSJ Real Estate Journal, there’s an eye-opening article called “Overwhelmed Homeowners Foreclose on Fido.” It’s heart-breaking to hear that people are leaving their pets behind in the house or backyard when they vacate their foreclosed property.
“Call it reckless abandonment. Shelters and animal rescue organizations across the country are packed cage-to-cage with dogs and cats, even birds and reptiles, that have been ditched or dropped off as scores of foreclosed-upon homeowners relocate. It is a disturbing trend and a sign of the tough economic times that has prompted a number of organizations to form hotlines for pet foster homes and to implore pet owners — or what the industry calls “pet parents” — to seek help for their animals before they head off.”
If you want to help, consider adopting a pet and then visit 1-800-Save-A-Pet.com to search their online database of available cats and dogs.
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