renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Why Your First 2 Weeks of Dating are Exactly Like the First 2 Weeks Your Rental is Listed
- 01/15/11 07:33 AM
Early impressions can be very telling. In relationships, they can save you a lot of time and heartache.
For example, when you first start dating someone, the first 2 weeks really are pivotal. One really wrong move and it is over, right? So, it is important to pay attention and try to figure out how to stand out (in a good way...). It's also important to figure out what they really think of you, as they usually won't tell you outright. Do they think your nervous tic is endearing or pathetic? When you bring up your issues, are … (3 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: 2011 Should Be a Fun Year to Work in Real Estate! Really.
- 01/02/11 05:12 AM
"What?? Are you crazy? Is moonshine still a big draw in Charlotte?" you may say.
Sure, I've read the news and understand the dire straits the housing market is in. And, no, there is no gold rush (that I'm aware of...) coming to Charlotte; we're getting hammered like everyone else. My reaction is just based on the sheer need of buyers and sellers to transact real estate and what that means to real estate professionals.
Pat Riley, the legendary professional basketball coach, used to tell a story to his players before big games. He would talk … (1 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Groupons & Free Property Management
- 12/29/10 08:38 AM
I'm a big (recent) fan of these "Groupons." What a great deal for consumers! Groupons are like regular coupons, except on steroids; they offer discounts of 50%+ to use at local businesses. I am impressed and now a big supporter.
Early last week there was a groupon for one of the top restaurants in Charlotte offering $60 worth of food for $25. What a great deal! I bought one and used it the next night. It was as advertised; we ordered the food, got the check, and gave them the groupon coupon (I'm a poet and … (1 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Mr. Smith’s Appointment Implies Real Estate’s Future is in Rent-To-Own & Rent-To-Sell
- 12/17/10 05:16 AM
"Since they collapsed into conservatorship in September 2008, Fannie and Freddie have received $151 billion in taxpayer assistance. More will certainly be needed."
"If this Mr. Smith goes to Washington as head of FHFA (Federal Housing Finance Agency), he will face a monumental challenge at a crucial time: how to protect taxpayers from even greater losses incurred by Fannie and Freddie."
(Gretchen Morgenson in this week's NY Times)
So, it looks like NC's own Joseph Smith, Jr. will be tapped to run the FHFA. Big deal! Somebody's got to do it, right? And when you're looking … (0 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: The Options Available to Owners of Vacant Homes
- 11/15/10 05:36 AM
As a Charlotte property manager specializing in lease options (rent-to-own and rent-to-sell), we get many calls from home sellers "exploring their options" about their vacant properties (unlike Obama, my puns are typically not intended). So, as a public service, I'll run through the available options:
Strategic default (I think this is what it is being called): Stop paying the mortgage and taking the credit score beating like a man Put the property on the market for sale: If the home is special and priced well, it will sell in some period of time. If not, eat the mortgage … (0 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: $200 Rental Application Fees- Genius?
- 10/14/10 08:33 AM
I don't find myself being amazed at things very often, but I have to admit I was taken aback when I saw a large property management firm change their application fee from $25 to $200.
My initial thoughts were, "who is willing to pay that?" and "how can I justify charging that much for a rental application fee?"
I don't know why they changed their rental application fee, but I have a guess- they got way too many applications from candidates who would never qualify to rent! Their people were inundated! So they used common sense.
… (2 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Delayed Rental Walk-Throughs Cost Everyone Money
- 10/08/10 10:17 AM
Unfortunately, I'm yawning as I'm writing the title of this article. I'm not sure how to jazz it up a little (maybe "Lindsey Lohan falls for property manager during rental walk-through! Then she heads back to rehab." I'm intrigued at least.
That would be a nice segment into this! Instead, coming in a close second in terms of excitement, I'll give the definition of the walk-through so we're all on the same page: A walk-through is simply visiting a rental property after a tenant moves out and assessing the damages. Then, one would deduct the damages from the … (0 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Reaction to Proposed FHA Loan Changes for Those in Lease Option Contracts: “No Sweat”
- 09/25/10 03:02 AM
There has been a lot of discussion surrounding proposed (and current) changes to tighten FHA loan guidelines. Heated discussions. Unhappy folks. Panic.
Real estate agents are unhappy. Buyers are unhappy. NAR is not happy. And if mommy isn't happy, nobody is happy.
Why is this? Well, if more buyers are pushed out of the market for not having the proper qualifications now, the real estate market will continue to worsen. If that happens, who knows what the effect will be for the economy in general, and especially for those that are employed in the real estate industry.
… (0 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Are You Practicing Insanity with your Home for Sale?
- 09/18/10 07:38 AM
The definition of insanity is to do the same things over and over again and expect a different result. Is this what is happening with all the vacant homes still being listed for sale (that shouldn't be)?
I'm not talking about occupied houses where the occupants would like to move, but don't have to. I think they should have their houses on the market; they could get lucky. As the Lotto says, "You've got to be in it to win it!"
I'm talking about vacant homes that are sucking dollars out of the owners' pockets month after … (2 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: What’s the Difference Between “Rent-To-Own” and “Rent-To-Sell”?
- 09/13/10 06:37 AM
Another popular question I hear from prospective clients is:
PC: "What's the difference between rent-to-own and rent-to-sell?"
Us: "There is none!"
PC: "Well, if that's the case, why don't you eliminate the whole "rent-to-sell" terminology? I've heard of rent-to-own, but this rent-to-sell thing is new to me."
Well, it's a matter of perspective. A rental tenant who aspires to be a buyer would use rent-to-own as the correct terminology. Example:
"I want to rent-to-own this house. This means I'm going to rent the house, work on my credit until I can buy it, and … (3 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Lessons from the Banking Crisis for Properly Structuring Incentives for Rent-To-Sell
- 09/06/10 04:17 AM
Potential clients of ours ask, "Why do you charge a "Realtor Fee" of 5% or 6% when a rent-to-own tenant buys our home (rent-to-sell)? Some of your competitors provide the tenant, keep the upfront option fee, and then let us manage the property. We then only pay the attorney fees when the tenant buys."
We answer, "So you don't experience something akin to the banking crisis."
"What does that mean???"
Let me explain.
I've been reading a lot of books lately on the banking crisis over the past few years. There were two things that … (1 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Importance of Getting Paid from Rentals in the Next 5 Years
- 08/14/10 07:25 AM
"Go to where the money is." (Business Axiom)
According to an article in Barron's this month, the future of the real estate market is in rentals for the next five years. Most real estate agents are hoping this news is akin to the Bush White House claiming the existence of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (WMD); hopefully, it is just another example of faulty American intelligence.
However, the supporting information for a rental uptrend (as well as brokerage to be on a continued, extended downtrend) is pretty compelling; if this is what is going to happen, then … (3 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: 700+ Credit Score Tenants Not the Best Option for your Rental Home?
- 08/08/10 08:12 AM
I was talking to a prospective Charlotte property management client the other day and he had only one criteria he really cared about. He wanted to make sure that we placed a rental tenant into his home that had 700+ credit scores. That was it.
I told him I didn't think that was a good idea; it would reject a lot of better suited applicants. He told me I was crazy (in so many words).
Well, let's do the whole Benjamin Franklin pro's and con's thing. Then we can make an educated decision.
First, the overall … (2 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Wouldn’t You Want the Market to Know Your Rental is For Sale?
- 07/27/10 06:06 AM
As a Charlotte property manager, we work with many clients who are looking to rent-to-own a home. As the banks continue their non-lending ways, this group of clients continues to grow.
To find homes for them, we look through many sources. Homes listed for rent-to-own (aka lease option or lease purchase), homes for sale, and rental homes. We approach the agents of these homes and ask if their client (the seller) would be open to a lease option arrangement; some of them are and some of them aren't. Lately, obviously, sellers are more open to this arrangement.
… (1 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: 52 Consecutive Weeks of Writing- Some Random Thoughts on the Real Estate Industry
- 07/17/10 04:14 AM
Writing a blog every week is hard! My hats are off to the people who write multiple times a week, and especially to those that do it every day- kudos!
My thoughts haven't changed in the past year on the near future of short-term residential real estate (next 1-2 years). Rent-to-own and rent-to-sell (as well as short sales and working with serious investors) seem to be what the main growth areas will be.
As foreclosures continue to rise, banks will not even pretend to relax lending guidelines.
As the US economy sputters, FHA loans will not … (0 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Making Rent-To-Sell’s Story Sound like BP’s
- 07/07/10 04:14 AM
The following two descriptions are about the same $99.00 special on a hotel suite on the Gulf of Mexico:
Come to our wonderful beach hotel on the Gulf of Mexico (get a suite at a discounted rate!). Yes, there is oil washing up on the beach and don't think about eating the seafood. Please feel free to bring your own firewood as we will be burning BP's management team in effigy at our nightly bonfire.
Our waterfront suites, which are normally $1K a night, are now heavily discounted and available immediately! Enjoy our two Arnold Palmer-designed … (5 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: The Only Property Management Question You Need
- 06/19/10 03:15 AM
Wow! Only one?
As a Charlotte property manager, we have potential customers contacting us everyday about managing their rental homes. Their questions typically boil down to two:
How much can my house rent for? How fast will it take to fill with a tenant?
These two questions are not mutually exclusive.
This leads the property manager to ask the true follow-up question:
How fast do you want the property to be filled?
Duh, today or tomorrow would work! What type of question is that?
It's the only question.
Here's the logic: if … (2 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Solving the High-End Home Sales Stagnation with Rentals and Rent-To-Own
- 06/12/10 04:28 AM
Realtors everywhere are breathing a sigh of relief with the upswing in home sales in April and May. Things seem to be picking up a little, they have some money in their pockets, and there appears to be a light at the end of (what has been) a very dark and long tunnel of diminished sales activity.
Though, with the end of the tax credit, it looks like the roadrunner might have just lathered some white paint on the wall ahead as pending home sales are dropping fast.
Owners of higher end homes in Charlotte, defined here as … (1 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: The Top 3 Reasons Why Good Property Managers Matter More Now (Reason #3)
- 05/31/10 04:49 AM
3. The skills needed for selling a home have (and will continue) to trend to more of a solution-based, "cash now, sell later" approach; outright sales are becoming scarcer as there are less qualified buyers available in the market
Consumers are having a more difficult time selling their homes. More people want to sell, but the weak market is not allowing them to at retail prices. 50% of all sales in 2010 have been either short sales or foreclosures. Now that the Obama tax-credit has gone away, first-time home buyers will become an even smaller percentage of buyers; the … (0 comments)
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renttosell: Charlotte Property Management Weekly: The Top 3 Reasons Why Good Property Managers Matter More Now (Reason #2)
- 05/22/10 09:51 AM
2. Tenant selection is getting harder
I remember when we first starting offering property management services, there was a large property management company in Charlotte that had very simple tenant screening criteria:
Their income must be 4X rent at minimum They must have good landlord history They have 600+ credit scores I thought, "Wow! They must have some pretty good tenants if they keep those standards. If they can deliver a tenant within a reasonable time frame, it would definitely be worth using them!"
Now, flash-forward to today. If they are using these criteria to find tenants, good luck! People … (3 comments)
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