7 Tips On Watching Out For Home Auctions

I am really sadened over all the clients that contact us for Property Management. Sometimes only after they are too far done in the process of buying a home.  Many times using an online auction site.  Too late to back out or maybe they have already closed on it. All the advice or most of the help we can be shifts to making the best of a bad  situation because....
1.  The house may be in tier 3 area so even if we could find a tenant, they better not want to order a pizza or want cable tv or internet because those services are just not available out in outskirts of this 110 sq mile place called Lehigh Acres. 
2.  All the appliances, ac and water system have been stolen and there are no neighbors around to ask if they saw something
3.  Nothing is was it seemed.

Well I would like to give out some tips of things to watch for when you are looking at an auction home site. 7 tips that I would like to share are included in this blog:

1.  Pictures can be very forgiving-  You may not see that the place is in need of paint real bad.  Holes in walls don't show up well as a picture is not a 3D image.  Certain angles look better than others when it comes to pictues.
2.  Just because you see a nice looking place in a video or a picture doesn't mean that the place looks like that when you finally see it or have a manager see it.
The amount of work needed to make a home "tenant ready" may be more than you realize and needs to be taken into consideration before you buy.  Get a pre-tenant inspection.    
3.  If this is your lifes savings, think before you spend it on a home that just may not meet your expectations for cash flow. Count your costs, all of them, before you take the plunge.
4.  Get a Realtor involved-  If an auction site will not allow you to have a buyers real esate agent- who will on your side? Who has your back? My advice walk away and find a home another way. Its too big of an investment to not have help for your interests.
5.  If you are going to have it professionally managed, get them involved as early as possible. They know what is needed and will have an interest in making sure you get a good marketable rental that will be easy to place.
6.  Don't be pressured by a deadline. There is plety out there and there is no deal slipping away. This is a decision that needs to be taken very seriously and methodically.
7.  If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.  You need eyes and ears on the ground here that represents you. Don't buy blind.

I personally don't like auction sites and not because I can't make money from them. In fact we do make money as investors still need us to get the homes tenant ready and then placing a tenant, repairs etc are ongoing on any property.  I just know that they are many times not representing the properties properly. They don't have the regulaion or standards or ethics that must be adhered to by a licensed realtor.

I personally think that finding a property by a realtor helping you puts some boundries in place and lots of protection for a buyer you don't see. Oh and by the way, the buyers premium, that's usually way more than what you would pay a Realtor for a tranaction and in a lot of cases is highway robbery.

My passion for protecting my clients comes from a long list of people that were not treated fairly, honestly or appropriately while buying using an auction site. I am sure there are some good ones out there and I don't wish ill will on those ones but hopfully there will be more regulaions to protect against the not so good ones.

Cheers for now. Please check us out at http://www.aaarealtyllc.com

Tammy Rodriguez

Bad Tenants Beware

Who do we consider a "bad tenant"?  What makes a tenant marked as "bad". If you are a tenant and you don't abide by your contract or "lease" you don't have to be labeled a bad tenant. What is very important is to communicate with your property manager or landlord if no property manager. Let them know why you will be late or why you have this problem or that problem. If you get a non compliance letter, don't blow it off. Call and speak to your property manager and try to work things out.

We as property managers want a good relationship with all our tenants. It makes things much more pleasant and easier
For all parties. We want our tenants to stay for years to come. However we need to be on the same page. If you as a tenant lose a job or come in to some other hardship, it is so much better for all concerned to call and let the management company know and see if a delayed payment plan can be worked out. Its when a tenant ignores all attempts to contact and then either forces an eviction or a tenant abandons the property that makes for the title of a bad tenant.

That can force an eviction filing. Then this is what will make it difficult to rent the next home. This will follow you for like ten years. Its not worth it and its totally avoidable.  Then when you are asked to give your previous address, you may feel forced to lie and that in itself can get you in a leap of trouble.  Saying that you have been living with your family or a friend, alone will not really work in most cases and I will tell you why. This can be uncovered as a lie when the credit check is done. Previos addresses are listed on it. If we find an address rhat is not listed, we will ask for further verification and may deny you with loss of all deposits if untruths are uncovered.  Even property owners are becoming savvy with the tactics of some unscroupulous people that try to take advantage of them.

It will become harder and harder to rent when you start to stack up the odds against you when you try to cover up bad history. This trend of stopping potential tenants with even questionable backgrounds from renting could start to place people in situations they don't want to find themselves in.

Trying to have the upper hand by taking advantage of a homowner is only hurting the homeowner now but you also in the long run.

Remember your security deposit is not your last months rent.  If you can't pay the rent, surrender the property.  Do it properly and legally. There is a legal and right way of handling it.  When you go again to rent you will be able to explain the bad circumstanses and move on.

I hope you willconsider these words prior to making a mistake that can cost you dearly.  Please subscribe to my blog and also check us out on the web at http://www.aaarealtyllc.com

Cheers for now,
Tammy Rodriguez 

Renters advice on qualifying for a home Part 2

In part 1 we spoke about some of the things that can happen when you lose a job or for some reason are not able to make the rent. How you handle this situation will determine your future problems when trying to rent.

Owners of rental properties are getting smarter and wiser with regards to renting their home to just anyone. They understand that the risk is high that if they do not do the proper job to pre-screen a potential tenant. Because of this many homeowners are hiring Property Management Companies to find a good quality tenant. As a property management company owner, we are very thorough in screening for a tenant.

We will uncover most of any untruths. There are certain things that are consistent with a potential tenant that has issues with non-pay, evictions or damage to a property. You will usually see that they will put on the application that they have been living with a friend or family member. This is what we call a red flag. There are ways of verifying addresses. We take several steps to check on previous addresses and if we uncover a inconsistency, we may stop right there and deny the application. Additionally credit reports also report on addresses.

There are other places that may come up if there is an eviction. Potential tenants many times don't realize that not disclosing an address they lived in does not mean that won't get "caught". The name or the social security number or sometimes just date of birth will uncover a lot of things about a person.

So as you can see with some of these above comments, it is pretty tough to hide your past. So now due to credit rating, job history and other reasons not only can't you buy a home but you are going to find it more and more difficult to find a rental home to live in when you do the wrong things or are irresponsible in your past rental history.

I mentioned in the beginning that this blog would be about helping you rebuild after you have created a mess even for a rental property and you want to rebuild your credibility. That is what we will end this blog post with. The following are things that you can start to do to rebuild your reputation and the possibility of getting into a home that you like, is desirable and start to rebuild your life.

1. Get a copy of your credit report- Once you have that, make a list of the most important items that you should fix or can pay off to help rebuilt your credibility for a landlord. These items will include utility bills that are in collection, cell phone bills in collection, cable or satellite bills in collection. Then once you work on paying them or settling them off or however you want to handle it, keep all your receipts and be honest. Admit when you have messed up and show the work you have done to make it better. This will go a long way for some owners.
2. Write a letter explaining why you messed up even if it is to say you were irrisponsible and have had a change of heart. Again being up front will always help. If you whole past is just horrible, only time will probably help you. You may be able to have a family member or friend co-sing or guarantee that they will pay if you don't.

At some point no matter how bad you have messed up your credibility, you can start to rebuild. Making any progess is better than no progress. You need to look at the fact that you will not be able to move ahead in your life untill you start taking some responsibility. Walking away from a rental is a serious matter. The recourse for doing so has been expanded and it will have an effect on the future for you. It can be recorded on your credit, eviction on public records and there are also sites that are being created to be able to pass bad tenant info on a tenant if they do damage, don't pay, leave without proper notice. A person will run out of options eventually and can find themselves in a very difficult situation.

We wish you well and hope that you take the opportunity to follow us here and at our web at http://www.aaarealtyllc.com while we have more information to help you with all of your real estate and rental needs.

Renters advice on qualifying for a home Part 1

In this two part blog, we will discuss rent qualifying and offer some advice and comments on what people can do to avoid a black eye as a renter. It is easy to have a black eye but even easier to avoid it.

It has been reported that 2010 was the worst year for homes sales in 47 years! Even then the majority of the home sales were foreclosure/distressed sales. What is it going to take to return to a modest sales year? Is 2011 going to be better? What can make it better?

You know as a property manager of over 200 homes I have seen the quality of even renters go down the tubes. To find a good tenant you sometimes have to turn down anywhere from 5-8 applicants that just really can't qualify. Much of this can be avoided. It's not just one thing. Many have evictions (several of them) and the list goes on and on. How are these people going to be able to rent forget about purchase? People need to start putting their lives back together. They need to understand that the choices they are making are going to hurt them for many years to come.

It is completely understandable when life has hit you hard with a job loss, reduction in pay etc. that you have some difficult times financially. But always walking away from your responsibilities is not a good choice. If you show some responsibility it can make a huge difference when someone needs to make a decision on whether to rent to you or not. Also one day hopefully you want to be able to put your life back together again and have that American dream of home ownership. It can be done. When you stop feeling sorry for yourself and start on a plan of rebuilding your life, it can and it will happen for you.

Some of the pitfalls to avoid if you are a complete mess in your financial responsibilities?

• Pay your utility bills! One of the biggest red flags on your credit is a utility bill that is in collections. Pay it off. Then never let that happen again. I am telling you right now that this alone can get you a turned down application.
• Pay your cell phone bills. Again for the same reasons as above. This is an everyday bill that you need and should always be current with. We know how important this communication tool is to people so if you are irresponsible on how you pay this bill, it can hurt you big time.
• Evictions- Most evictions can be avoided, period. Don't just push your limits. Most landlords understand that circumstances that lead you to not pay your rent happen. It's how you handle it that makes for eviction most times. If you call and explain your circumstances and then even if you feel you have to leave, do it the right way. Surrender your keys to your landlord/property manager. That will avoid an eviction. Don't try to go a month or two living in the home not paying the rent, that is sure to get you an eviction. So now you may be faced with an eviction, how do you find a place to live? In most cases you will have to find someone that will guarantee the rent to be paid (co-signer), a much higher security deposit. Ask about our programs that we offer at AAA Realty LLC that can help put you in a home even with a prior eviction.
• Previous Landlords- We check them. We will find out if you lie. We have ways of determining by tax records and other public records if you try to hide your previous landlords. Putting that you live with your parents or a friend, relative is a huge red flag to us. We will assume that you are hiding something and we will do our due dilligence to see if we uncover a lie. If we do, you will not only deny your application, we will also keep all your deposits because you lied and wasted our time. It's in the application. It's a serious matter. There is usually things that can be worked out so you don't leave on bad terms with your landlord. Always passing the blame just won't work. As soon as we are told all the horible things about your landlord, our antente goes up. We want to see if this is credible and make sure it is not just an excuse to not pay, etc. In most cases, let me just say, this is the case. It is in your best interest to have a good relationship with your landlord/agent.
• Employment- We verify. We want to see that you have some stability. Jumping from job to job and having time inbetween is not a good thing. We understand that times are tough and people are losing jobs. That is completely understandable. We look back over 2 years. We want to see some stability in there somewhere. After all, we need to be convinced that you will pay your rent.

In part 2 we will discuss how you can start to put your life back together and still become a responsible renter, even with the "black eye" we spoke about.

Cheers for now and don't forget to check us out on the web at http://www.aaarealtyllc.com

Solving the Foreclose Crisis

I read an opinion once that is an idea I shared with this other broker to solve the problems with the economy especially in the housing market.

Very simply stop the foreclosure process and have the banks/lendors rewrite homes at todays market price to the current homeowner. It will save on the foreclosure process and all the monies involved in that as well as continue to have some cash flow for the banks/lenders. This will stop the deteriating neighborhoods, crime increase and depression evolving from the change in life losing a home causes. Medical issues will be greatly reduced also.

I know that this just seems to simple but really if you think about it, this is not rocket science. But we all know that all this special interests, red tape rediculous political nonsense will not allow the simple solutions to the difficulties we are experiencing as Americans.

You can help. Write to your congressmen/women and tell them to get it together and be part of a solution for this housing crisis so that we can all get back to the America we all are proud to be part of.

Check out our website at http://www.aaarealtyllc.com

Two Weeks Into the Mayor Race

Two weeks in and we have raised approx $350. Doesn't sound like much but it's a start. As a small business owner, I plan to rise above and ask all other small business owners to join me and make a big statement. Small business is still the backbone of America and it's the backbone of Lehigh Acres.

To see the website that we have put together to make this cause happen, go to www.tammyformayor.bbnow.org or also check out our small business at www.aaarealtyllc.com

We look forward to your support and we will keep you updated on future blogs.

My Best,
Tammy Rodriguez

Tammy Rodriguez- Owner/Broker AAA Realty- Running for Honorary Mayor of Lehigh Acres

EffectiveJanuary 1st, 2011, Tammy Rdoriguez became a candidate for Honorary Mayor of Lehigh Acres FL. As such, she must raise as much money as she can for the Lehigh Community Services, a local Lehigh organization that helps those in need in Lehigh Acres.

To kick off this race, AAA Realty will host a bake/yard sale this Saturday, January 8th from 8am to 12pm. They are in need of items to sell to make this event a success. If anyone would like to donate items they no longer use or no longer need, please contact or stop by AAA Realty LLC with week. The number to call is 239=368-8520 or stop by thier office at 55 Homestead Rd N Lehigh Acres FL 33936