Living Littleton

One of the frequently asked Questions that I see on various internet sites, is the one asking if there is a web site available for researching rental properties.  Up until now, the most common response was to steer people to Craig’s List, with the caveat to be careful, because like many things on the Internet, there are always people out there who figure out a way to scam users.

I recently attended a class on property management tips that was sponsored by the Denver Board of Realtors, and taught by Mr. Peter Meer.  Mr. Meer is the Owner/Broker of Meer & Company and currently manages over 150 single family homes.  Mr. Meer is also a speaker, trainer, consultant, and is frequently called upon as an expert witness in lawsuits.

In his presentation, Mr. Meer mentioned Craig’s List that in his opinion, it was “the number one site for rental scams”.  Being a Realtor, I’ve also seen warnings about Craig’s List from the selling side of real estate.  In this class of about 35 people, we had two attendees give examples of personal fraud that they experienced.   That ratio is one out of 17, which should give you an example of how wide spread this is.

The first example was where the rental manager drove up to a home with potential tenants to show them the property, only to find someone else in the home showing it to another individual.  The “rental agent” that was in the process of showing the home had “lifted” the company’s logo off the internet and had made fake business cards to present to clients he was trying to scam.

In the second case, the rental agent drove up to the home, to show it to a potential tenant only to have another lady drive up minutes later, and ask why she was still showing the home, because the lady claimed she had already sent in her deposit.  She sent in a deposit, but it wasn’t to the legitimate property management company. 

This scam works pretty much the same way, whether it involves a rental or property for sale.  The individual gains access to a property and have their own keys made.  They then advertise these homes on Craig’s List, meet the potential renter or buyer, and then extract a deposit from those interested parties.  After they’ve paid their deposit and first month’s rent and signed a lease, they’re then given a green light to move in.  That’s when the fraud is mostly likely to be detected; when someone that isn’t authorized is found to be living in a supposedly vacant property.  In the case of home listed for sale, the victim’s loss is usually limited to the some form of a deposit, unless the fraudulent person allows the victim to “rent” the home until the closing is consummated.

The Red Flag you may be a target for a scam, is if a home rental price seems to be a particularly good deal.  This is easier for someone from the same town, but is very hard for someone that’s unfamiliar with a particular city, as they generally have no idea of what local rental cost are.  Mr. Meer feels that some sort of regulation will coming to deal with this problem, but doesn’t think it’s imminent.   One attendee, at the class, said New York State requires a $10 fee for each real estate related advertisement on Craig’s List.  While a $10 fee won’t limit a scammer, paying that fee creates a paper trail. 

Other than Craig’s List, people had to rely on classified ads, which are dying, or contact property management companies and have them find them a rental.  This is something most people are reluctant to do in the initial stages of their searches. 

Now here’s the great tip that was given by Mr. Meer.   While there isn’t a single site that renters can go to, there is a site where property managers can go to list their rental properties.  This site is called www.RentMarketer.com and is a site where managers can pay a one time fee for each property and then have it syndicated on up to 100 rental sites across the country.  As a potential tenant, go to this site and then click on “Product”.  From there, go to the “Platinum Package” then click on “view sites”.    This is work in the sense that you have to sift through many sites, but take comfort in the fact they are all legitimate rentals. 

Here’s a great source of many favorite websites.  Just go to www.AllMyFaves.com for a huge list of popular web icons that take you directly to the site.  Not only will you see sites you use frequently but ones you’ve never tried.

   On November 19, RTD will be having an open house about the extension of the southwest line at the City of Littleton City Council Chambers, located at 2255 W. Berry Ave 80165.  Come to see a presentation of the environmental study and provide your input for the project.  Public comment will end on December 18, 2009, so this may be your best chance to be heard. 

  You can view the Southwest Corridore Extension Environmental Evaluation online at; www.RTD-FasTracks.com.  After November 3rd, you can view the document at the Bemis and Highlands Ranch Libraries.  

Time allocated for the open house will be from 6 to 8 PM.

   We get bombarded with solicitations for getting your free credit report, but as some of you may have found out, there can be strings attached.  You are entitled to get one free report a year, from each of the three main reporting agencies.  To do that, go to; www.AnnualCreditReport.com.  Happy reading.

Even though lending has supposedly gotten better, lately, it’s still not easy.  For young buyers, a good source of a home loan may be mom and dad.  With the fall in interest rates, these loans aren’t as common as they once were, however, may are still being done.  Our youngest son and his wife have borrowed money from his wife’s mother for their first two home purchases.  Yes, interest rates many be down but returns on investment vehicles are down, too, and that’s why these types of loans are still popular choices.

     There are companies, that for a fee, will set up the loan, create the promissory note, record it, do the payment processing, and annual tax statements.  They will also handle collections on delinquent accounts.  If your child defaults, and the percentages are very low, by having all the documentation done, you can also qualify for a tax loss under IRS rules.  

      I’m not going to go into all the pluses and minuses of this program, here, but I did want you to consider this as an option.  Do an on line search for “intrafamily loans”, to get additional information and companies that provide these services.

    Here’s something you may want to book mark for when you are looking for things to do or places to eat.  It’s a site called Yelp.com.  Here you can find a couple of dozen of categories filled with recommendations for all sorts of things like where to eat, arts & entertainment, shopping, nightlife, or local flavor.  Other cites are also represented, in case you are planning a trip, but it’s a great source for all our local activities.

   On the weekend of September 19 & 20 the first ever Colorado Fall Home Show will be held at the Colorado Convention Center in downtown Denver.  The creators of this event expect to have approximately 300 exhibitors present, show casing the newest trends in remodeling, energy conservation, and green living. 

  I’ve always enjoyed going to the shows held in the early spring because of the wealth of new ideas that are presented every year, and I’m expecting no less from this event.  It’s amazing how much you can learn plus the contacts you can acquire to aid in your research on areas of interest for your own home. 

  Tickets for this event are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors, with kids under 12 admitted for free.  In the past, you could get discounted tickets at King Soopers for events like this, but I can’t say for sure, yet, on this one.  You can print out a discount coupon from their web site, that will also get you $2 off adult admission.  That site is www.gardeningcolorado.com/fall/default.htm.

As I was driving down one of my neighborhood feeder streets, I passed by one of the many firework tents, that are so prevelant this time of year.  What caught my eye was the 20 foot inflated pirate.  When I saw that the name of the comapn;y was Davey Jones Fireworks it made sense, until I started wondering, “did Davey blow off his hand and lose the use of his right eye by playing with firworks?”

For people in need of contractors, there are now two sources they can check out.  The first one is Chiefmall.com where you just enter the city your searching for and the type of work you need done.  After that you are provided with a list of contractors that you can contact.  You can also list the job you need and have the contractors contact you.  The negative aspect of this site is that the contractors aren’t pre-screened.  All they need to do to be listed is pay the monthly fee.

Another option is to try DoneRitght.com.  According to DoneRight, contractors in their directory are constantly monitored for things like having all required licenses to be current, proper insurance, and no unresolved complaints with the BBB.  DoneRight also regularly gauges customer feed back.

   We’ve all read articles lately about how the government is doing everything it can to drive home loan rates down to the 4% range, to stimulate the economy.  Most of these articles originate from various departments of our federal government, and while I agree rates at 4% would be a big boost, I’m afraid we’ll never see them.  I attended a loan conference last week where they explained what was going on in the home loan business.  Their assessment was that the government had already done everything they can do to cause home loan rates to fall into that 4% range.  If that was the case then why aren’t they there, yet?  According to the speakers, it was because the banks weren’t allowing that to happen, for two main reasons. 

   First of all, the rates are already at historically low levels, and while loans may be tough to get because of all the new loan restrictions, banks are presently swamped with people trying to buy or refinance their current homes.  Because banks don’t want to hire additional personal to handle this influx, they currently have all the business they can handle.  If the banks would allow the rates to actually go to the 4% range, they wouldn’t be able to handle the increased influx. 

    The second reason banks don’t want to let the rates drift lower is the fact the banks get to keep the yield spread, from where rates currently are to where they would be if the banks let them go to 4%.  This means when the banks go to sell the loans on the secondary market, they can sell the loan to investment companies for more money because these loans are paying a higher return than what the current cost of money is currently paying.  This increase in income is being used by the banks to bolster their reserve accounts, which has taken such a beating with the loan foreclosures.  The government requires banks to set aside funds to cover these loan losses.  When there isn’t enough money to cover these loses, banks are declared insolvent.  By boosting these reserves, the lenders are making themselves healthy, again, and thus in a better position to pay back the government’s TARP funds.

   While you may not like the fact your rates may be higher than they need to be, don’t be fooled into waiting for those magical 4% rates to appear.  They’re still at historical low levels.