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

FREE DOWNLOAD Move 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.

John's Rant

Don't shy away from screening - even with friends and relatives.
I recently had a disagreement with a close relative who is also a landlord about screening tenants. He was about to rent one of his most valuable condos to an unqualified tenant. When I say unqualified, I mean unqualified in the respect that he barely asked for her full name, much less a rental application and credit report. This person had never rented before and had a dog as a housemate.

Because this renter is a the daughter of a friend's cousin, he felt obliged to provide a furnished vacation rental for her at the price of a studio apartment. Mind you, the rental in question is a condominium with a market value of approximately $1 million along with a seasonal rent of $6,000. per month. His reasoning is that the apartment may likely be empty until next rental season, and why not collect a few extra bucks.

This brings me to the analogy that I used. Suppose you have new 2006 Rolls Royce that you maintain meticulously and a friend's cousin's kid wants to rent it for a few months. Well, I'm sure you'd feel nervous letting any stranger near your valuable car at all! Wouldn't you? Of course! Well, I say it's the same with a condo or house rental as it is with a Rolls Royce. Too many expensive things can go wrong. So screen carefully!

Some tenants steal.
Keep an inventory list for each rental property.
Include appliances, brands and serial numbers if possible. If you have the original paperwork and owners manuals, put that in the file. Anything from faucets, ceiling fans to hoses and lawnmowers.

Contractors
I recently had some work done to fairly new home and was disappointed with the quality. It seems the contractor gave me a good price because he wasn't planning on doing a good job! Because he knew it was going to be a rental property!

It is so important to work with reliable contractors as a landlord or property manager. You'll likely need relationships with plumbers, electricians, painters, tilers, appliance repairmen, carpenters, landscapers, roofers, siding contractors, window installers, garage door company, heating and air conditioning technicians, cement contractors, etc.
The thing that gets me about some of these guys is that some of them will give you a different quality of workmanship when they know they are working on a rental property! Imagine that! You are paying the same price for work as you would if were your own home, but some of these guys think it doesn't have to be as good if tenants live there. What gives?! When this happens to me, I have a real problem with it. Now, when starting with a new contractor, I make it clear that I am expecting a quality job. If I am happy with it, we will have a future with more work together.

Contractor Prices
We always want or need the best deal possible. Use your judgement, but remember the old saying: you get what you pay for. If you want the best, you have be prepared to pay higher than handyman prices.

Remember this triangle when deciding on hiring a contractor for work you need done. You can have 2 sides of the triangle on a job, but never all three. Choose wisely.

Now that you've used your new Tenant-Finder™ Telephone Worksheet and mastered the art of telephone tenant screening, we have gone a step further. The LPA's latest form, the Tenant-Finder™ Prospect Qualifying Chart makes the next phase of tenant screening even easier!

FREE DOWNLOAD for LPA Newsletter subscribers. Limited Time Only: (Exp. 7/31/06) Tenant Finder™ Prospect Qualifying Chart

Rating a prospective tenant can sometimes be difficult for even the most experienced landlords depending on the circumstances. Wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to take all of the emotion out of the decision making process and rate your prospect by a factual system? The LPA's new Tenant-Finder™ Tenant Qualifying Chart takes the guesswork out of choosing a new tenant.

Before jumping to the next step of signing a lease prematurely, or even worse- handing over keys (Cardinal Landlord Rule: never turn over keys without a fully screened tenant, signed lease and all the money up front)

I feel very strongly about strict tenant screening because I've suffered the consequences of my mistakes many times. I want you to learn sound screening techniques so you won't have to experience the dark side of landlording; namely the nightmares of tenant problems and evictions.

After completing your Tenant-Finder™ Pre-Screening Telephone Worksheet, and meeting with the tenant, you can use the Tenant Finder™ Prospect Qualifying Chart to evaluate your new prospect.

Renting your property should never be a total gamble. You must have a reliable system of selecting quality tenants in order to be a successful landlord. - John@theLPA

LESS PEOPLE ARE RENTING HOMES IN EUROPE

Over the last 20 years there have been significant changes in the choices people are making in whether they wish to rent or own their house, flat or apartment. In the early 1980's West European countries averaged between 50% and 60% of homes owner occupied as opposed to rented. However as years progress into the early 2000s there have been some very significant changes with most countries seeing a significant reduction in the number of properties rented. Some of the most significant changes in the percentage of properties rented in Western Europe are:

From 1980/81 to 2001/02

• UK from 42% to 30%
• Luxembourg from 39% to 26%
• Netherlands from 58% to 46%
• Spain from 21% to 11%.

One possibility for this trend is the increasing standards of living combined with market changes improving the choice and availability of financial products to purchase properties. However also to be considered is the very significant differences when comparisons are made across countries. Below is a summary of the most recent data found on the percentage of homes rented for each country.

click for the full article...

"Retain an open mind. Even if you think the experience of your years, regardless of their number, makes you wise, do what has to be done with a disposition open to change or chance. Sometimes what seems to be a detour will turn out to be the fastest way to your goal." - Chuck Norris

"All that is required is the will, and the courage, to do it." - Homer H. Hickam, Jr., Author of Bestsellers "October Sky" and "Back to the Moon".

"We are what we think: All that we are arises with our thoughts- With our thoughts we make the world." - Budda

A Way of Being
- Gary Link, Attorney at Law

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

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