Real Estate Update

Hector Lesende asked:




The Miami real estate rental market is booming. Finding a qualified tenant that will maintain the property in good condition and pay the rent on time is a challenge. Miami-Dade County Housing Authority – Section 8 is an excellent way of finding tenants with most of the rent guaranteed by the US government and timely inspections done yearly. The benefits of renting to Section 8 tenants far outweigh the detriments. The landlord must follow all the procedures, rules and guidelines of the Section 8 process in order to comply with all the requirements.

The Section 8 rental process is as follows:

1. Finding the tenant. Miami-Dade Housing Authority produces a list of available homes for rent in the Miami real estate area. The landlords can be added to the list so that all potential tenants can find available properties for rent. Be advised that Section 8 tenants do not have two months deposit plus the current month rent so you must be flexible.

2. Fill out the voucher. Each tenant has a voucher that must be filled out thoroughly and notarized. Any mistakes in the voucher will delay the process. The application will be rejected and all mistakes must be corrected. The Section 8 rental process begins once the voucher is delivered to the field office.

3. Survey. A property survey is conducted to insure that the rent requested is comparable to the rent charged in the Miami real estate area. The survey is a crucial step in the process. The landlord will receive a call from Miami-Dade Housing in the event the property does not pass the survey. The landlord will get the opportunity to lower the requested rent amount or cancel the contract.

4. Initial Inspection. According to the new guidelines the landlord gets only one chance to pass the initial Section 8 inspection. If the property does not pass the inspection the tenant must get another voucher and start the process again. The inspection consists of the following: no dead bolt locks, no exposed wiring, covered fixtures, weather tight doors, no dead bolt locks, no exposed wiring, covered fixtures, air conditioner must have heater, smoke alarms, electrical panel box, water heater, windows, bedroom must have a closet, windows must have screens, kitchen must have range hood over the stove, bathroom must have ventilator fan, all window bars must have openings, no scaling paint, no trash or junk vehicles in yard, among others.

5. Rent Increase. There is usually a yearly rent increase. The landlord must request the rent increase in writing two months before the lease is due and the re-certification is done. The maximum amount of rent increase is 8% unless a freeze is in effect for that year in the Miami real estate market. The landlord will not receive a rent increase if there are errors filling out the forms, or the forms are filled incorrectly or not turned in on time.

6. Yearly inspections. The property is inspected once a year by Section 8. You will receive a list of items that must be repaired, if any. It is specified if the tenant or the landlord is responsible to do the repairs in the list. You have 30 days to do all repairs and if you fail the second inspection the rent payments are stopped. The payments will resume after all repairs are completed. The payments are not retroactive. The rent will stop permanently if no repairs are made.

7. First Rent Check. The landlord must be prepared to wait for the first check to arrive in the mail. The first check can take up to five months to arrive. Section 8 has tried to speed up the process but has not corrected it yet. After the first check is received and the tenant is in the system all consequent checks are received every third day of the month in a timely manner.

The Miami real estate Section 8 rental process takes about a month to complete and the landlord must be diligent in following up and keeping track of the inspection and the survey process. It is in the landlord’s best interest to follow all the procedures so that the property can be rented quickly in the Miami real estate market. The best thing to do is to go in person to the Section 8 office and find out the status of your property and potential tenant. Don’t assume that everything is fine. Miami Section 8 has an overwhelming number of tenants.

The process of renting to a Section 8 tenant is difficult and time consuming but definitely worth the effort. The tenant is not allowed to move into the property until the survey and inspection are done. Miami Housing Authority will not pay the rent if the tenant is allowed to move in prior to approval and no initial inspections are conducted while the tenant is occupying the property. Section 8 tenants are highly regulated and must confirm to very strict rules and regulations. Renting to Section 8 tenants is a viable alternative in today’s Miami real estate market.

cheryl jack asked:




Investing in real estate can be overwhelming and scary. It is important, if you are new to investing, to get good property investment advice. It is important to learn as much as you can about the real estate market, property investment, and your local area before you begin investing in properties. Here are some places you can go for reliable advice. The internet is a good place to start gathering general information about property investment. There are scores of websites devoted to real estate investment, flipping houses and other types of properties, and beginner’s guides to the housing market. The important thing is to take your time as you sort through all of the information that is being offered to you. Make sure that the web sites you search for information are reliable sources and not just sites trying to sell you something. Real estate agents are another fantastic resource if you want to learn about real estate investing and buying property. Real estate agents in your local area will have tons of information on your local housing market and how to begin investing in it. Your real estate agent will know how to help you find properties to invest in and how to tell the difference between something worth buying and something that should be passed over. Mortgage brokers and lenders are another valuable resource for property investment advice. These are people who understand the money side of real estate investment and can teach you how to make the most from what money you have, and how to tell the difference between a good deal and a bad investment. It is always important to learn about something before attempting it. Finding sound property investment advice will help ensure that you are able to make money instead of losing it.

Kev Moore asked:




Paphos in Cyprus still remains the number one resort on the Islands West coast and this of course has done wonders for property values in the area. There is however still lots of room for even more growth in this lucrative Cyprus property market. Bargain Cyprus properties can still be located all over the Paphos area by those astute investors or holiday home buyers who know where to find them. The prospect of finding good deals on Paphos property substantially increases when prospective buyers open up their options to include resale properties too. The development of property in the Paphos area has been expanding for several years now and many of the older builds are now finding their way onto the Cyprus resale property market.

It’s not just older properties either that are sold under the banner of “resales” because there are large numbers of virtually new built Paphos villas and apartments being sold as resales too. These will usually be in the form of property that was originally purchased “off plan” by speculators with the intention of selling at a profit on completion of the development. Whilst the owners are awaiting a sale they may have been rented either to the lucrative Cyprus holiday rental market or to short term tennants. Many such lets would be to people wishing to live in the Paphos area whilst they await completion of their own new build Paphos properties.

There is even a good chance that your resale Paphos property may never have been lived in at all. Speculators and investors will be advertising these villas or apartments for sale as soon as they are nearing completion and they need to sell to reinvest the capital in the next development. Often as not these properties will have one or two “sweeteners” included in the deal such as fully equipped kitchens complete with all the white goods or maybe even air conditioning thrown in too. Don’t get the wrong idea though these hard nosed Paphos property investors are in it for the money so they may be hard to *****. The bottom line is however that they make money from money so in many ways they could be seen as motivated sellers.

As the old saying goes “money talks” and buyers that have their finances lined up ready are always going to be in a good position to drive a bargain. Property in Cyprus is not immune to this golden rule and particularly in a thriving area such as Paphos so like the boy scouts it pays to be prepared. Unless you have been marooned on some desert Island for the last 50 years you will know that there is big money in property so these sellers do have room to manoeuvre. If you can’t get the deal you want (within reason) move on to another property. Don’t allow yourself to be blackmailed with the usual lines like “this is the last one” the price is going up next week” or any of the other hard sell patter that will most likely be headed your way.

There is always another Paphos property to buy, in fact new villas and apartments are coming onto the Cyprus property market on an almost daily basis. The very fact that all this development continues at such a pace almost guarantees buyers a good deal because the Paphos property developers and speculators have got to sell somewhere. There is little doubt that prices in Paphos and the surrounding area will continue to rise steadily for some time to come so buyers wishing to cash in should move soon. Paphos villas and apartments are ideal for the small investor or private buyer due to their ease of rental especially to the booming holiday market. If you are considering purchasing property in Cyprus Paphos may be a great place to look.

Beth Campbell asked:




Today, there are many money making trends that exist. Some are worth it while others are complete scams. One long standing trend that has been around is that of flipping houses for real estate profits. Not only does it really work, it can bring in killer cash!

When you find a property that you want to flip, it is important to do the research. Make sure you buy property that mainly needs cosmetic repairs. Avoid costly structural repairs. In making repairs and improvements, you will want to look at ways you can get the job done as cheaply and efficiently as possible. Doing this will save you a lot of money in the end, allowing you to make a higher profit for yourself.

After you have found the property and have done the research, now it is time to buy it. Make sure you buy homes at a much cheaper price than you will be selling it. One way this can be done is by purchasing HUD homes at cheap rates, and then fixing them up to be sold at higher prices. You will have to own the home for at least six months before you can sell it. Many lenders will not want to deal with you if you have had the home for any lesser amount of time. Some investors and lenders will even require that you own the home for nine months.

Now that things are set in place, it is time to start planning the sale of the house. Here are some tips as to how this can be done effectively allowing you to maximize your potential for profits:

1. Usually, the longer you wait, the more you can sell the house for but you also have to consider how soon you need to recover your investment.

2. Get the house appraised after you have made all of the necessary repairs so you know how much to ask for it.

3. If you do not have to get your investment back immediately and can afford to wait, wait until the market comes to a peak. The market tends to rise and fall, and obviously, you want to sell when the prices of homes are higher.

4. If you can sell the house yourself, you can cut out the realtor fee but if you cannot sell yourself and use a realtor, be sure you deal with someone with experience and a high sales record. Try to keep the sales commission at no more than six percent.

It is also important to know who you will be targeting and how you will need to target them. People you can target are lawyers, mortgage brokers, CPAs, notary publics, and title representatives. You can get a list of such individuals from a mailing broker and mail them postcards and news letters letting them know you are in the business of buying up foreclosed properties as well as properties that are sold in the process of a divorce. You can also tell them that you purchase probate and distressed properties. As they see your cards, they can pass them along to their clients so they can get in touch with you. You may be able to get some good prices on properties to fix up and flip this way.

Gerald Mason asked:




Buying rental properties is a great way to make money. You may not reap the financial rewards right away, but as things move on you will begin to watch the money roll in.

Of course investing in rental properties is a bit more difficult than that, but all in all it is easy to do if you put your mind to it.

Just remember there is always a risk involved when buying a rental property.

But this is no different than any other investment you can make; risk is a part of investing.

If you are interested in buying a rental property to make money there is one technique that you should look into.

Have you ever heard of buying one rental property a year for 10 years?

If you do this you will have a cash cow set up in no time at all. This idea can be tweaked to meet your needs, but this is the basic gist. If you buy one rental property a year, within 10 years you will have 10 different properties bringing you money.

This means every month the rent checks will be rolling in, but you will not have to do anything more than manage the properties. It does not get much better than that when it comes to real estate investing.

Buying a rental property can be done anywhere in the world. You can buy rental properties at the beach, in college towns, or anywhere in between. The choice is yours. The most important thing to remember is that the rental property you buy should have potential.

You will want to be as sure as possible that you can rent it out on a regular basis. After all, having a property that is not being rented out is not making you any money. So just as long as you can find a tenant to rent out your property you will be in good shape.

It may sound difficult to buy one rental property a year, but all in all this can be an easy task if you plan for it financially. Make sure that when you are doing this that you never over extend your budget.

Many people make the mistake of relying on the money that they will make on rent to pay for the mortgage. Even though things may work out this way, you do not want to rely on this way of paying your mortgage. Always make sure that you have the money to make the payment even if the property sits stagnant.

Overall, buying rental property a year for 10 years can get you loaded. If you want to make money in real estate, try out this technique. It may be hard now, but in 10 years you will be proud of yourself!