February « 2009 « AllPropertyManagement.com

Archive for February, 2009

Handling Disputes with a Home Owners Association

February 16th, 2009

If you live in a planned neighborhood you may have to deal with a home owners association, or HOA. Generally, these groups are quite useful as they see to the daily operations of your shared facilities and keep the community’s aesthetic value intact. But there may be situations where you butt heads with the HOA and the way you handle these situations can lead to your success or failure.

Well Thought out Argument?

Come to the group with a well thought out argument that is carefully worded and non-accusatory. If possible, document your attempts to remedy the situation on your own before you involved the HOA.

Listen to the Options

You may know exactly what you want done, but your solution may not be the most practical or even possible. Be willing to hear what solutions are actually available and be prepared to help if you can.?

Follow Through

If you’re able to come to a resolution, hold up your end of the bargain and make sure the HOA or any other parties involved hold up their side as well.

Dealing with an HOA should be treated like a professional transaction, but it can’t be discounted that this is your home and you have a personal vested interest in the outcome. Remember that the HOA probably is not as personally involved as you are and emotional pleas may fall on deaf ears, this is why acting in a professional manner is more likely to get a positive response.

Possible State Help in Foreclosure Prevention

February 13th, 2009

If you’re afraid that you may lose your home in a foreclosure there still may be some help available. Many states are trying different techniques to help homeowners who are in distress. Check with your state to see what sort of remedies they are offering and if you qualify for some assistance.

As many as 20 states are now launching formal foreclosure intervention or prevention initiatives. If you don’t happen to live in one of these states, there are other ways your local government can help, look for refinancing alternatives or rescue programs if you were preyed upon by an unscrupulous lender or realtor. Even if the assistance is as simple as a free hotline, the advice you get may be what saves your home.

In addition to helping those who are currently, or in the near future, facing foreclosure state governments are getting stronger and tougher with lenders and realtors in an effort to keep this situation from ever happening again. Hopefully, such pie in the sky loans will be illegal in the future and unsuspecting people seeking the American dream won’t be suckered in, only to lose everything when the market bottoms out.

If you’re in a financial crisis and worried about losing your home, contact your home loan company and your bank to see if they know of any state implemented programs which can help. Or do your own research and seek the help you need to protect your assets.

Don’t Forget a Property Inspection

February 12th, 2009

photo credit: AchimH

Are you in the process of searching for a home? How about an investment property? If you answered yes to either one of these questions you know how big of an undertaking this can be. That being said, this is no excuse to overlook important details. No matter what type of home you are buying you need to make sure you have it inspected before moving forward with the final paperwork.

What are the advantages of paying for a property inspection? First and foremost, you may learn about problems you cannot see with your own two eyes. For instance, would you know how to spot a cracking foundation? How about a roof that needs replaced? An inspection will turn up everything that is wrong with a property; no matter how big or small. In the end you will have a better idea of whether or not to buy the home, to walk away, or to renegotiate with the seller.

Some people skip the inspection because it ?costs too much.? This is not a good excuse to use. Generally speaking, you should be able to hire a reputable home inspector for approximately $500. While this is a lot of money you need to realize one thing: this could save you much more in the long run. For instance, if your $500 inspection turns up a bad roof that needs to be replaced at the cost of $5k you can see just how much you are saving. With this knowledge you can either ask the seller to replace the roof before closing, or have them take $5k off the cost of the home. All of a sudden the $500 for the inspection does not look that bad, does it?

It is important that you have a property inspected before buying. This is the best way to ensure that you know the good and bad of the home.

How to Keep your Pet in a Rental

February 11th, 2009

photo credit: Per Ola Wiberg (Powi)

Apartments.com recently completed a study that found that 84% of the respondents owned a pet and more than a third of those people said they encountered difficulties in finding a rental that will accept their furry companions. For some getting rid of their pets is out of the question, for others it’s unfortunately a too easy choice and the overpopulated animal shelters are a testament to this problem.

But don’t despair, if you have a pet it’s not impossible to get a rental. First of all you need to know a bit about the breed you own. People with pit bulls are obviously going to have a hard time convincing someone to let them rent with a potentially dangerous breed. But if you have a well behaved pet that is not a known aggressive breed, you stand a chance of convincing your landlord.

Look for individual landlords are they’re more apt to be flexible with the rules whereas large rental corporations are not. And then be willing to prove to the landlord that you’re a good pet owner and that your pets are well behaved. Let the landlord meet the animal and have your routine vet bills available.

And if all else fails, put your money where your mouth is. Some landlords will find an additional security deposit satisfactory, others will want a little bit of a boost in your monthly rent. Use whatever bargaining chips you may have to keep your treasured pets with you and be persistent, there are ways to rent the apartment you want even with a pet.

Cheap Vacation Properties: Is now the time to Buy?

February 10th, 2009

photo credit: woodleywonderworks

Is now the best time to search for a vacation property? Many people will tell you yes because the cost of these properties is on the way down in many parts of the county. The poor real estate market is working in the favor of the consumer. Not only does this mean that there are more options out there, but you will also find that prices are more affordable than ever before.

Even though cheap vacation properties can be appealing you need to make sure that the time is right for you. Sure, the market may be calling your name but if you cannot afford to make a purchase you need to stay in the background for the time being. In other words, a deal is not good if it does not suit your life and finances.

In addition to vacation properties selling for cheap you will come across a large number of foreclosures as well. Buying a foreclosure means you can get the vacation home of your dreams without paying market value. In most cases, foreclosures are even more affordable than homes that are simply ?marked down? because of a bad economy and market.

If you have been thinking about buying a vacation property and your finances are in order, now could be the time to buy. Just make sure you are truly ready to make a purchase, and that you are not doing so only because of the low prices.

There are many people shopping far and wide for the right vacation property. Are you going to join them? If so, saving money should be your first order of business. Remember, it is a buyer?s market.

Repairs that Sell a Home

February 9th, 2009

You’ve tried everything from stripping the house of all personal touches, baking cookies at open houses, improving your curb appeal and yet you just can’t seem to get the house to sell without drastically lowering the price. There is still one step you can take that may make your home more attractive to prospective buyers and get you that coveted sale.

The first step is discovering what parts of your home need repair and then ranking them in order of most important or most appealing to others to least valuable. ?If you have a realtor working for you they should be able to tell you what buyers are most interested in. If you don’t have a realtor, ask your friends to come in and give you an honest opinion of what mattes most to them.

Repairing electrical and plumbing is an expensive venture but may be worth it in the end. This is a repair that can scare off prospective buyers and cost you the sale.

Obvious broken items should be fixed as well, like doors that hang askew, missing drawer pulls, broken switch plates, et cetera.

You should also take the time to have home fix jobs professionally repaired or repair them yourself correctly.

If there is an expensive repair that you don’t want to take the time to fix, consider giving a buyer a certain amount of money to be used towards this repair. This may be all the encouragement they need to jump on the deal.

Real Estate Geniuses Make Mistakes, Too

February 9th, 2009

You probably know the names Mortimer Zuckerman and Sam Zell. They’re real estate magnates who buy sky scrapers like the rest of us buy duplexes. A Bloomberg.com?article?by Bob Ivry reveals that Zuckerman’s company, Boston Properties, Inc. is reporting a $165million loss on three Manhattan skyscrapers purchased in ?May of 2008. To put the number in perspective, Zuckerman also owns the $2.8billion GM building on 5th Avenue. Sam Zell has received massive credit for selling his 500+ buildings in February, 2007, right at the peak of the real estate market.?

You’d think Mortimer Zuckerman would feel pretty badly. You might be feeling badly about purchasing a property at the peak of the housing bubble. But Zuckerman doesn’t feel badly. “We do expect to get somewhat less rent in those buildings than we thought we would, but it doesn’t mean the buildings are worth less,” replied Zuckerman to a question in a recent interview.

His position seems to make sense. Real estate is about long-term planning and ups and downs won’t greatly affect your position provided you’re not burdened by too much short-term debt. As long as income of a piece of property is enough to sustain its maintenance and ownership, Zuckerman seems to think that property values will bounce back in the long term. Hold onto that and if it isn’t enough, consider what recently happened to Sam Zell. The brilliant real estate mogul who sold out of the business during the market’s peak, privatized Tribune Co., which is currently seeking bankruptcy protection.

Even if you had sold out at the peak of the market, there’s no guarantee that you would have put your money into a safer investment. Zell’s made billions in real estate and even he is left wondering “what did I do wrong?”

Are You Ready To Invest Again?

February 8th, 2009

If you or your company chose to stop investing in new properties as a response to recent uncertainty in real estate markets, at what point will you continue investing toward long term goals? According to Ronald Oral in MarketWatch, the US Government is hoping that you’ll restart spending soon.

In a move Presidential economic advisor Lawrence Summers hopes will go a long way to sparking economic renewal, plans are being submitted for a federal “bad bank” that picks up toxic mortgages from other banks. The hope is that such a bank will remove much of the uncertainty in the mortgage and loans sector, inspiring private investors to pour money into banks that will then offer loans to eligible buyers.

For many large property investors, the recent downturn has been taken in painful stride. For smaller, more personal ventures, tightfisted banks have brought investment projects to a screeching halt. By offering banks a way to free up funds, the Treasury has found a way to assure newly risk-averse bankers that the financial world is going to keep turning. You will continue to hear talks of the “next great depression” and “endless recession” for some time, but there is tremendous value in being able to look back at how banks failed in the past in the hope of making them work for the future.??photo?credit:?epicharmus

How much should you fix up an Investment Property?

February 6th, 2009

Do you own an investment property? Are you thinking about buying one? If you answered yes to either of these questions you are probably aware that it is your responsibility to make repairs and upgrades. And while you want your investment property to look good, while also being in excellent condition, you should answer the question: how much should I fix up my investment property? This is a difficult question for many owners to answer.

How much you fix up your investment property depends on many factors. For instance, what are you doing with your property? Are you going to rent it out? Are you in the process of selling it? The main purpose of your investment property will help you decide which repairs to take on. For instance, if you are getting ready to sell your property you need to make sure that it is appealing to potential buyers. On the other hand, if you have tenants you want everything to be safe but you may not want to go overboard with upgrades.

Of course, your budget will also determine how much you fix up your investment property. If you are in good shape financially you may have the money to make many changes, both big and small. But on the other hand, if your money is tight and you are trying to save you may want to keep things the way they are for the time being.

If you own an investment property it is your job to decide what repairs and upgrades are necessary. Base your decision on how you are using your investment property, as well as how much money you have available.

Mortgage Rates Drop

February 6th, 2009

The administration recently announced that its going to put another $800 billion into the credit markets to help with consumer and mortgage lending. The response is that mortgage rates on a 30 year fixed loan dropped to around 5.77%, making this a great time for those who have homes to refinance and for those who have a little extra money to purchase.

With most housing markets in a slump, its prime time for real estate investors to pick up some undervalued homes, maybe even a foreclosure deal or two. And add to that a drop in mortgage rates and you’ve suddenly found an amazing deal that is really hard to pass up.

If you’re thinking about diving into a real estate purchase for investment purposes, check with your financial advisor and make sure you’re getting the best deal possible on the land or home you want to buy as well as the mortgage loan you take out.

Remember that if you are refinancing you will be paying closing costs again and some other bank fees, but if the loan percentage is less than a half of a point lower than your previous loan then you’ll most likely make up the additional fees in new savings.