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Our Newsletter is designed to give you cutting edge information and advice regarding real estate investing, property management, and the economy that can help to make your business all that it can be.
February Features
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February Economic Highlights
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Using Promotions to Attract Great Residents
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List of Buyers and Sellers for Bay Area Real Estate
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Buying is Cheaper than Renting in 72% of Cities
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12 Ways to Collect Rent On Time
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Property Management Tip: How to Profit From Additional Occupants
February Economic Highlights
Mortgage Rates
30 year fixed - 4.81%
15 year fixed - 4.08%
5/1 ARM - 3.69%
1 year ARM - 3.26%
Source: Freddie Mac
Prime Rate - 3.25%
Source: Wall Street Journal
10 Year Treasury Rate - 3.65%
Source: CNN Money
Unemployment Rates
National - 9% (down from 9.8% in December)
California - 12.5%
U.S. Western Region -10.8%
Average Hourly Earnings - $22.86 (up from$22.78 from December)
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Using Promotions: Attracting New Residents
By Fast Forward Property Management
Owners and property managers invest a great deal of time and money to attract and keep high quality residents. High vacancy rates can quickly turn a highly profitable investment property into a money losing liability.  When a tenant leaves, you lose money by not being able to collect rent and can spend a considerable amount of time and money painting, repairing, cleaning, and advertising your unit. No matter how great your property and staff are, you will inevitably have tenants move. Generally speaking, the longer a great tenant stays, the more profitable the return is on your investment. At Fast Forward Property Management we have used a variety of promotions that increase revenue by keeping the vacancy rate very low. We do this by attracting the best residents quickly and going the extra mile to keep them long-term. Promotions alone will not attract and keep residents, but will give you an edge above the competition if your property is well managed. This month’s focus is on attracting new residents, and next month’s feature will share ideas to keep great residents.
Click Here for Full Article
List of Buyers and Sellers of Bay Area Real Estate
![oddsends3.6[1] 4](https://b6019b438a-custmedia.vresp.com/34edbe5a8c/oddsends3.6[1]%204.gif "oddsends3.6[1] 4") We attend several Bay Area chapter meetings of Commercial Real Estate Investment Exchange and have a list of buildings that are on the market as well as buyers who are looking for specific types of properties to purchase.
Click Here For Buyer Wants
Click Here for the Listings
Buying is Cheaper than Renting In 72% of U.S. Cities
By the Basis Point
Recently Trulia compared the median list price with the median rent on two-bedroom apartments, condominiums, townhouses, lofts and co-ops listed on its website, and compared that to ownership costs including mortgage payments, property taxes and insurance. It determined that buying is cheaper than renting in 72% of the largest U.S. cities, led by Miami and Las Vegas. People have to live somewhere, right? And if your credit is shot… Trulia’s CEO stated, “Following the principles of supply and demand, renting has become relatively more expensive than buying in most markets.” RealtyTrac has reported that 2.87 million homes received notices of default, auction or repossession in 2010, while apartment vacancies are at a 2-year low. It is no surprise that the top 10 cities where buying is cheaper are all in Florida, Nevada, Texas, Arizona and California, as, except for Texas, those states were among the five with the highest foreclosure rates in 2010.
www.thebasispoint.com
12 Ways to Collect Rent On Time
by Jeffrey Taylor
1. Provide Envelopes
When I give keys to a new tenant, I give them 12 to15 small yellow envelopes with my business address printed on it. Each month, my tenants buy a money order and a 44 cent stamp, and mail it to me using the 6 x 9 yellow envelopes. These envelopes are a bright Canary Yellow for a reason - they are a constant “visual monthly reminder” for the tenants to use only to pay rent with. Plus, when the postal carrier delivers mail to my mailbox, I always pick out the yellow envelopes first.
2. Send Monthly Bills
I send out a monthly bill every month to my tenants with a self-addressed, stamped, return envelope. They tear off the bottom portion of this bill and mail it back to me in that envelope. Also, on that tear off portion of the bill, there is a place for them to write in any
repairs/concerns they have.
Click Here for the Full Article
Property Management Tip
Profiting from Additional Residents
By Fast Forward Property Management
If your resident on the lease has someone move in, they can automatically be entitled to many rights merely by living there, even if they do not have a written rental agreement. It is advised that they sign the rental agreement so that they understand what is expected of them in being a resident of your  property. This will also help you to collect if rent payments should ever get behind. You can write into your lease that guests who stay past a specified time period without the written consent of the owner is a violation of the rental agreement. You can also write into the lease that there will be additional rent at a set amount for anyone who moves into the unit without the written consent of the owner.
To reduce expenses, charge an additional fee per resident if some utilities are included in the rent such as water and garbage. To charge an extra $25 per person, per month is reasonable and can add significant profit for large properties. Writing this into the rental agreement will allow you to collect the extra fees to compensate for extra utility usage.
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