It wasn’t long before the replies from potential tenants started rolling in. Since it was advertised online, most of the potentials chose to reply using email, which was actually great for me - it was easy to collate the information about them and arrange a viewing with several of them at once.

As I read their emails, I found myself immediately screening them into good possibilities and bad. I discovered you can tell a lot about a person by what kind of email they write in reply to such an ad - whether they bothered to write a coherent message or just sent me a text-message style query without the normal politeness or niceties you’d expect. I arranged to meet some from each category, and interestingly the ones who hadn’t been professional about their communication with me generally turned out to be unreliable - and I figure if they can’t turn up punctually to a viewing, then they may also find it hard to pay their rent punctually. Those who treated their response to the ad more professionally certainly gave me a better overall impression - and it’s one of those responses who’s become my now reliable tenant.

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Screening Potential Tenants for your Rental Property By Email

One of the big changes that we’ll be seeing is an end to the first time homebuyer tax credit. Not an entirely shocking announcement as this tax credit was so generous it was pretty clear that it would not be permanent.

Another change will be that the government’s purchase of mortgage backed securities will end. In 2008 almost all loans in the secondary market were bought by the government by stepping out of the market, mortgage rates are almost certain to rise, causing a whole slew of repercussions.

To make matters a little bit worse guidelines are being tightened on loans. The goal is to lessen defaults but it will ultimately mean fewer people can purchase a home and the qualifications will be more stringent.

Of course this is just the FHA’s announcement about their plan, it’s not a certainty at this point but it does seem fairly certain that things will go forward.

photo credit:?Kamal H.

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New FHA Insurance Fund

Business Attitude

Treat your tenants with professional respect. Don’t gossip with tenants or become their buddy but treat them with respect, a polite demeanor and take them seriously. Let them know that you will listen to their complaints in an even and fair manner and treat no one with favoritism.

Be Available

Whether it’s you, a manager, or a property management company, someone always needs to be available to deal with tenant issues. Some of these issues will be emergencies and others can be handled later, but no matter what your tenant will want to be heard. Taking initiative and routinely contacting your tenants through a phone call, email, letter, or in person will go even further to let them know they matter.

Safety First

Always put your tenants’ safety first and don’t be afraid to let them know this. Let them know when safety related repairs are being made or if you’re taking steps to prevent break ins and theft.

Additional Conveniences

Whenever possible, give your tenants those little extras. Bus tickets, group discounts, a picnic table, new landscaping or any little thing that you can provide that will be appreciated by most of your tenants. If they feel respected and like you care they’re more likely to treat you with respect and hold up their end of the agreement.

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4 Ways to Keep Your Tenants Happy

How will you celebrate this auspicious occasion? Daydream about it for a moment - will you celebrate with a fancy meal at your favorite restaurant, or a party in the house that you now fully own? And it’s not only the one-off occasion of the day you make the final repayment - there is also all the time after that when you have this extra money available to you, now that it’s not going into the mortgage - what do you think you might do with it? Of course, some of it should be invested, but spoiling yourself with a couple of treats is a fair deal.

Sometimes we get bogged down in the everyday events of life and paying off the mortgage is just another one of the many chores we’re burdened with. Take a moment to remember that it won’t always be that way, and your day might get a bit brighter.

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Celebrating the End of Your Mortgage

• Clean it beautifully, declutter your rooms and make everything sparkle - a less than perfect house sells faster if it looks clean and neat. If necessary, pack away some of your belongings and store them until you move.
• Repair those niggling faults that you’ve been putting off for years - a dripping tap will make a prospective buyer wonder what else is wrong with the plumbing, even though everything else might actually be in order.
• Don’t spend a lot of money, but be prepared to put time and energy into improving the appearance of the house - this might involving painting walls or fences, doing some serious gardening work or washing windows and window frames.
• Importantly, do enough research to be sure you are asking the right price for your house - ideally, that means just on market value and be open to offers slightly below market value. If you need to sell your house quickly, you need to immediately attract buyers in the right price range so there’s no point overpricing it and expecting people to make much lower offers - these people might dismiss your house without looking at it.

photo credit:?The Pug Father

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Selling Your House As Fast As Possible

Information is power, of course, so make sure you get your tenants to complete an application form, or tell you in an interview, about their basic rental and employment history. Check in with their employer to make sure they really work there, and call their previous landlord to make sure they usually pay the rent regularly.

Of course, there are ways for tenants to get around this - if they’ve been making late payments for rent, then they’re unlikely to give you the contact details for that landlord, and it’s not so easy for you to know if they’re telling the truth when they say they’ve been staying with a friend for a few months or living with their parents - both of whom aren’t going to tell you otherwise. That’s why using your instinct is also important. Do you get a good impression of the prospective tenants? Are they professional in their communication with you? Do they dress in a way that fits their occupation? Using your instincts is just as important as gathering the facts, and you should combine them to decide on the best tenants for your property.

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Choosing Tenants: Information vs Instinct

New Orleans… it’s been in the news a bit recently. Beginning with Hurricane Katrina, the national spotlight turned on the city as it never had before. And with the Saints winning the Super-Bowl, the nation’s attention is again on New Orleans. And then there’s the vampires. Good god, the vampires. It started with Anne Rice and her “Interview with the Vampire”. Today it continues with Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse novels, or as they?re more widely known, the basis for HBO?s “True Blood”, in which New Orleans is veritable Mecca for the undead. No matter how you look at it though, New Orleans is an exotic city and even arguably the most unique in the United States.

Bourbon Street

photo credit: eschipul

Back when New Orleans was founded, the center of the city was its French Quarter. Today, the city has expanded, but the French Quarter is still the heart of New Orleans culture. Bourbon Street runs straight through this quarter. Largely quiet during the day, the street comes to life at night with its many bars, restaurants and strip clubs. The party of all parties is, of course, Mardi Gras. Bourbon Street is also home to the Cafe-Lafitte-In-Exile, the oldest gay bar within the United States. As it is with many famous streets, once you leave the touristy areas, Bourbon street becomes a street like any other with a quaint residential area and shops established to serve the locals.

Garden District

photo credit: *clairity*

Initially, this area was home to a number of plantations built by Americans who had no interest in living among the creoles who called the French Quarter home. The neighborhood came to be known as the “Garden District” because of the vast, beautiful gardens surrounding the plantation mansions. Since the late 1800’s however, those plantations were subdivided and smaller Victorian homes were built in their place, leaving only the mansion itself intact. The neighborhood is now known more for its astounding architecture.

Longue Vue House and Gardens

Image via wikipedia

Originally there was a house here owned by Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Bloom Stern. In 1934, however, work began on landscaping the grounds with several beautiful gardens. The Sterns decided their home did not allow them to fully enjoy their new grounds, so their original house was moved and a new one constructed in its place with three stories and twenty rooms. The new house is unique. Each of its four facades bears a different appearance to match the garden on that side of the house. Though damaged during Hurricane Katrina, the house and gardens have since been repaired. The home is open daily for tours.

Pontchartrain Hotel

Pontchartrain Hotel

Opened in 1927, this historic hotel has been a mainstay in New Orleans for over 80 years. An earlier hotel existed on this site as far back as 1825. Since opening, the hotel has had a number of notable guests including George H. Bush, and Tennessee Williams who worked on his famous play “Streetcar Named Desire” while staying there. The hotel closed for extensive renovations in July, 2007, and will now serve as a home for retirees with the rooms being converted into senior apartments.

Saint Louis Cemetery #1

photo credit: CGehlen

There are three St. Louis Cemeteries. This one is the oldest. Founded in 1789, when it was the main burial ground for the city, it is still functioning today. With that in mind, one might picture expansive grounds. Saint Louis Cemetery #1, however, is only the size of one city block. Despite that, over 100,000 dead have been interred here. The graves in each Saint Louis Cemetery are above-ground vaults. This is due to cultural tradition, not New Orleans water table. Tours of the cemetery are available.

St. Louis Cathedral

photo credit:?faungg

This is, simply put, the oldest continuously operating cathedral in the United States. So how old is it? The first church on this site was constructed in 1718. The church has been rebuilt from scratch three times, the most recent in 1789. The current church was in turn largely expanded and rebuilt itself in 1850. And while we’re inundating you with dates, the church was upgraded to cathedral rank in 1793 and designated as a minor basilica in 1964. Surprisingly, this is not the largest nor grandest church in New Orleans. That said, it is obviously the most historic, which is why it is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans.

The Cabildo

photo credit: Ken Lund

Adjacent to St. Louis Cathedral stands The Cabildo. This beautiful building was the seat of local government during New Orleans colonial era. As with much of New Orleans, the original building burnt down during the great fire of 1788. Since being rebuilt, it has served several purposes, especially as a courthouse. This building was also the site of the Louisiana Purchase ceremonies in 1803. In 1895, it was suggested the building be demolished as it had fallen into disrepair. Fortunately, the building was ultimately saved through the efforts of artist William Woodward. Since 1911, the building has partially housed the Louisiana State Museum.

The Presbytere

photo credit: sfmission.com

Also adjacent to St. Louis Cathedral, The Presbytere was originally constructed by the cathedral to house members of the clergy. However, it was never used for this purpose. The building was first used for commercial purposes, then by the Louisiana Supreme Court as a courthouse. Today, it partially houses the Louisiana State Museum. The Presbytere obviously shares much of its history with The Cabildo, which is fitting since the Presbytere was originally designed to match The Cabildo in order to better frame St. Louis Cathedral.

A poll by CNN in 2007 found New Orleans to be the top city in the United States for nightlife, live music, cheap food, antique markets, flea shopping, wild weekends, cocktail hours, and girlfriend getaways. Suffice to say, if you strip away the attention the city has gained due to the hurricane, Super Bowl, and vampire lore, you’re still left with a lively and unique city. Granted, it also ranked dead last when it comes to safety and cleanliness, so perhaps it’d be best to leave the kids at home.

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Historic Sites in New Orleans

Do some research first into the most popular vacation rental property destinations that are within a couple of hours’ drive from your home - buying your investment property too far away can be problematic later on, if it’s too far to keep a good eye on it. Do take into consideration your own family’s preferences for what makes a good vacation destination, because if your family likes an area, chances are good that other families and holidaymakers will too, and you will have a high occupancy rate on your property.

Then book in to a couple of different properties in the destination you choose. For example, if you’re spending a week on vacation, try to stay in at least two different properties, perhaps in slightly different areas, or different styles of accommodation. Try them out for yourself and you’ll have a much better idea of the exact kind of property which should be most successful as an investment. Plus, the bonus is you get your own vacation as well!

photo credit:?the_tahoe_guy

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Find Your Vacation Rental Property While On Vacation

Screen Everyone

Make it a policy to screen every single person who wishes to be a tenant of your property. Use the same thorough procedures for each one and you’ll get great tenants and avoid future lawsuits.

Security Deposit Policy

Establish a fair security deposit policy that fits within all local guidelines and is timely and then stick to that policy fastidiously.

Written Record

Get in the habit of writing everything down and keeping written records. When dealing with others, try to get them to sign all documents as well.

Make Maintenance a Priority

Stay ahead of repairs and maintenance and respond promptly to any tenant notifications. Handling these issues promptly will keep tenants happy and may prevent costly replacements or major repairs.

Be Available

Be promptly available to tenants and employees whenever they have an issue to bring up. Let people know you care about them and your property and you’ll receive equal respect.

Security Priority

Make security a priority and do the big and little things that make tenants feel safer, deter criminals and makes your property more desirable to the public.

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Tips for Good Property Management

• Talk to your bank or lender. It’s actually better for them if you are able to keep paying on your mortgage, even if it is at a lower rate for a while, compared to foreclosing and them having to sell your home. They might offer several different options, if you ask early enough, like restructuring the loan over a longer period of time, or reducing or suspending payments for an agreed length of time.
• Your lender might also provide financial counseling and advice which would include assistance to help you set up a budget and pay at least part payments towards your mortgage.
• Get a second job for a limited period of time. It may involve sacrificing hobbies or family time, but if it is only for the short term and it obviates the need to sell your home, it’ll be worth it. If you’ve lost your job, be prepared to do any kind of work for a while rather than waiting for a new opportunity in your own profession.

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Top Ways You Can Avoid Foreclosure