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Landlord Newsletter Mid March 2008


















































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"Of all the sites out there, the LPA by FAR has the most extensive resources, the most knowledgeable help, the most expertise, and is quite possibly the best real estate site I've used in my career."
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Louis C., LPA Member since February 2001.






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Timothy Spangler, Author of "From the Rat Race to Real Estate", LPA Member since December 2003






The Web site was founded by John Nuzzolese, and he is a "nice guy" like we were when we started. He learned many lessons the hard way, like we did, and so you will benefit greatly from his experiences, and from being part of this group.
Kind regards,
Sandy Midea, Author of "A Fool's Guide to Landlording"






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The LPA Newsletter
Mid March 2008

Dear Fellow Landlord,
Are you finding more rental applicants are former homeowners with bad credit? I am too, but don't rule them all out because of their credit...yet. If you are interested in one of these prospects, check their credit history carefully to determine if they will be a good risk as a tenant, despite their damaged credit due to the current housing crisis. If you find a long term trend of lateness and bad debts, I'd say pass. Just because someone has a good reason for their bad credit, it doesn't mean they are going to be reliable rent payers.
In this newsletter:

  • Ask the Attorney, with Eviction lawyer, John Reno
  • Article: By LPA Member and Book author, Dr. Danielle Babb on the Fed's proposal to alleviate the housing crisis
  • Landlord Article, by me. The Top 5 Ways to Ruin a Good Tenancy
  • Truth & Lies. A look at what tenants may say and mean.
  • Free Form download
  • Recent Tenant Excuses
  • Recent Success Quotes

    Please e-mail us if you have any questions or would like to add or share any material / information. Have a great month!
    John Nuzzolese
    John@theLPA.com



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    Ask the Attorney

    The Landlord Protection AgencyThe Landlord Protection Agency® is proud to introduce John Reno, Esq., a highly experienced Landlord - Tenant attorney based on Long Island, NY.

    If you have a landlord tenant problem you'd like to ask a question about, please feel free to e-mail me your question.


    Submit a landlord / tenant question for Mr. Reno

    Dear Mr. Reno:
    I have just received my judgment from the court for an eviction of my tenants. Now they have the right to an appeal. It states they can appeal “on a question of law” to the Supreme Court. What does this mean? - Maria S., New Hampshire.

    A: That means they can have a re-trial of the facts of the case. They can only appeal if they can show that the judge misinterpreted the law or misapplied the law. Tenants rarely appeal. It's very expensive.

    Dear Mr. Reno:
    Hello, I have a tenant that paid me a security deposit and the first month's rent by personal check. I cashed the first month's check immediately and it went through. However, her security deposit didn't. When the check was returned to me for insufficient funds, I spoke with her about it and she sent me a copy of her account balance showing she had the available money but they had a hold on some of it. It all seemed perfectly understandable. In fact, a few days later, she sent me a certified bank check for the available amount ($1200). It's now been over a month and I've asked her to send me the remainder. Of course, now, she's completely avoiding my emails and phone calls. For the month of March, she paid her rent with a personal check, and it seems that it may bounce, since they just now put a hold on it in my account... I can only assume they tried to cash it and it didn't clear. I'm not sure how I should proceed. I've prepared a "demand for payment notice" regarding the security deposit, and if the rent check does indeed bounce, I plan on immediately sending her a failure to pay rent notice. If I'm not mistaken, it can be a felony in Maryland to write bad checks, so I'm not sure what would be the best route for me to pursue. Should I try to evict based on breach of contract for the security deposit? If so, would you have any suggestions on how I should begin that process. Or should I see if the rent check actually clears and pursue that? Any help in the matter would be greatly appreciated.
    Respectfully, Danny A., Maryland

    A: In most jurisdictions it's a misdemeanor to write a check on insufficient funds. The police (when they are in the mood to be helpful) can get these funds paid because when the person is criminally charged, the D.A. makes them make good on the check to get the charges reduced or dismissed. So go for it.

    Read more from John Reno, Eviction Attorney




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    Bernanke's Big Bust

    By Dr. Danielle Babb

    Dr Dani Babb The Fed Chairman on Friday March 14th outlined what the Fed is proposing to alleviate the housing crisis. Here are the highlights, and the negative outcomes as a result as I see them - government stay out if these are going to be the plans!

    1. Prohibiting lenders from issuing loans that borrowers cannot repay. BIG problem here. We have no accurate way of assessing this. The traditional method, FICO scores, is no longer accurate. The FICO doesn’t take into consideration mortgage resets, and is fairly easily manipulated by people who fix credit. FICO says plans are in the works but a new algorithm wont be released until 2009. Also, more people today earn non traditional income - income working from home on 1099s and so forth. These people are often highly qualified but may not be able to get a loan.

    2. Making lenders verify income and assets. I have no problem with verifying assets. But, it's difficult to verify income by many of today's workers. For instance, many of us work off of 1099s and take business deductions. This makes it nearly impossible for the bank to see how much we really make.....

    click for Dani's full article...

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    The Top 5 Ways to ...

    ...Ruin a Good Tenancy

    By John Nuzzolese

    Imagine having the perfect tenants in your rental property. Maybe you already have them now. What we really hope is that these perfect tenants will remain perfect. To continue doing all the right things and not doing any of the wrong things. We want them to obey the lease agreement religiously, take care of the property and pay the rent on time or early. Imagine a tenant who leaves the rental better than it was found. Is this idea from the The Twilight Zone or something you can really have?

    Most of the time, when we actually have a tenant that seems "too good to be true", something happens either suddenly or gradually turn our tenant to the dark side.

    These are what I feel are the top 5 ways landlords ruin perfectly good tenancies

    1. Are They Friends or Tenants? Failure to maintain a professional distance from the tenants. Too often a landlord will fall victim to one of the oldest Landlord Traps by lowering his guard and allowing the tenants become personal friends. Rarely does this end well.
    2. Broken Promises Failure to fulfill certain promises made to the tenants in the beginning of the relationship is a leading cause of the breakdown of the tenant's trust and respect in the landlord.
    3. Greed In the real estate business for many years, I have found one thing to be universally common....

    click for John's full article...


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    FREE DOWNLOAD

    Important move-out instructions. Saves the landlord time and moneyMove Out Instructions Reminder Letter
    This is one of my favorite forms because it saves me time and money when tenants move out according to our instructions. It is one of the LPA Forms that is often overlooked, probably because it is not listed on the LPA Essential Landlord Forms page. It is one of our Free Forms, but I consider it an "essential form" just the same.

    We send this form to the tenants about a week or two before they vacate. It reminds them specifically of certain tasks and cleaning they should perform in order to get a full security refund. This letter instructs the tenants how to lock up and secure the rental until it can be inspected by the landlord/ management, and also where and how the tenants should return all keys.
    We have found this form to be very effective in helping tenants to be more cooperative when they are moving out.



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    Tenant Truths & Lies

    You'll Never Hear your Tenant Say ...

    "I'm wanted by the FBI, so I gave you a phoney credit report."
    Click here to read what they really say!

    Click here to read more Tenant Truths & Lies



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    Tenant Excuses

    "The wedding dresses are almost done! As soon As I finish, they are supposed to pay me." - My tenant is a temperamental seamstress who depends on her dressmaking to pay the rent. I see this tenancy winding down. Kim, Irvine, CA

    Amber responded to the unlawful detainer notice by arguing that I owed her money, not the other way around. When I asked her why she lied to the courts, she said:
    "I talked to my friend in the homeless shelter and she said I had to respond to the notice even if it was a lie." Even funnier, after the eviction, she was still using me as a reference. I guess she's still in the homeless shelter. - Brenda Rumball, Everett, WA

    "I can't talk to you about this now because I am having a panic attack." You are three weeks behind on your payment in an attempt to get current on the $2000 + you are behind in rent. Wonder if the mortgage company would give me an extension because I am having a panic attack about paying my bills???? - Mark and Marlene Smith, New Hampshire

    "Could you please file a Landlord/Tenant Complaint so I can get financial assistance to pay you the rent?" - I did, and they got the financial aid but didn’t give it to me! Her request ended with her eviction -of course! Melissa, PA

    "I'm probably moving at the end of the month anyway and you still have my security." I said Probably? Where's your 60 days written notice as agreed in the lease? I'm sorry, but if you don't pay the rent, an attorney fee will be added to what you owe. - Kelly, CO

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    Quotations...


    eleanor roosevelt quotes Yogi Berra quotes Thomas Edison quotes Benjamin Franklin success quotes



    "Avoiding the phrase 'I don’t have time...', will soon help you to realize that you do have the time needed for just about anything you choose to accomplish in life." - Bo Bennett

    "Five minutes of today are worth as much to me, as five minutes in the next millennium. Let us be poised, and wise, and our own, today." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

    "I cannot believe that the purpose of life is to be happy. I think the purpose of life is to be useful, to be responsible, to be compassionate. It is, above all to matter, to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all." - Leo Rosten

    "How much did your last tenant problem cost you?"
    - John Nuzzolese

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    Books by LPA Members

    The Landlord Protection Agency is proud to recommend the following landlord books written by LPA Members, Dr. Dani Babb, Robert Irwin, Timothy Spangler, Tony & Sandy Midea and Dan Auito. Just click on the book for more information about it.






    real estate investing, landlord books





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