We Are Unable to Offer You The Property

Protecting Yourself and Your Rental Property

Benjamin Gene is the President of KPM,

and has over a decade of industry experience

Rising property values and a smaller inventory of affordable starter homes have led to a boom in the rental market. Few places can boast as strong a market as South Florida, where great rental opportunities get filled as quickly as they come up for rent.

This has led to a situation where landlords or agents get themselves into trouble with Fair Housing Practices in the way that they turn down prospective rental applicants. Today's guest post comes from Benjamin Gene, President of Keyes Property Management with a word of advice on how to do this and make sure you don't open yourself up to potential liability.

I’d like to discuss declining tenants for a rental. As some of us have seen, there are now “Professional Tenants” who will call around to speak with agents or owners of rental listings to try and trip them up on Fair Housing issues before suing them for breach of those laws.

What I would like to do today is tell you how to legally decline a prospective tenant. It’s actually very simple. Simply state, “I’m sorry. We are not able to offer you the property at this time.” No matter their response, including when they ask why, repeat the phrase again.

This way, you don’t open up any avenues to allow them to claim that you violated any Fair Housing laws. They may get frustrated at your insistence on repeating that phrase, but it will protect you or the owners from violations.

Additionally, at MyRentalScreening.com, KPM will provide owners and agents with a summary page of why a tenant has been declined. This is based on criteria that they agree to prior to filling out the application. The only reason you must put in writing why you decline a tenant is for credit reasons. You do this by providing an Adverse Action letter. At MyRentalScreening.com, we provide you with this letter. Remember, the only thing to say is, “I’m sorry. We are not able to offer you the property at this time.”

Borrowing Against the American Dream

Student Loan Debt & Its Effect on Mortgage Lending

Craig Garcia, President
Capital Partners Mortgage

Through the second quarter of last year, student loan debt lagged behind only mortgages as the largest consumer debt segment in the United States. And while mortgage debt has remained steady, with negligible growth over the last 10 years, student loan debt continues to skyrocket. 

That growth in outstanding student loan debt has ripple effects across the nation's economy, as younger generations see much of their spending power go to monthly payments on this debt. In turn, that keeps many from feeling like they can take the step of buying a house. Today's guest post comes from Craig Garcia, who gives a glimmer of hope, along with some advice, for anyone who still wants that piece of the American Dream that is homeownership.

I’d like to talk to you about student loans. A recent Federal Reserve study showed that student loan debt has become a major hurdle for younger generations looking to buy a home. Being in the mortgage lending business, and seeing what we see on a regular basis, I wholeheartedly agree. Most of you out there with student loans might say something like, “yes, we already knew that.”

What you might not understand is that one of the main obstacles actually stems from the mortgage loan industry itself. Loan programs are challenging. It’s why you shouldn’t just go and apply for a mortgage on your phone or without putting some thought into it. 

The four most common loan programs available to potential buyers all treat student loan debt and payments differently. That sets the stage for confusion. Let me break down some options available to those consumers with student loan debt, because our job is to help as many people as are able to successfully complete the home buying process!

1.     VA Loans – If your student loan payments could be deferred for up to a year after closing, then the VA will then be able to state that they won’t count any student loan payments against you when it comes to qualifying for a mortgage loan as a Veteran.

2.     Fannie Mae & Income-based Student Loan Repayment Plans – Your student loan lender has options to base your student loan payment on your income, temporarily offering you relief with lower, more manageable payment terms. The most aggressive loan program that will accept that lower payment when it comes to qualifying you for a loan is Fannie Mae’s conventional loan program. They will look at your new payment terms and accept those when determining your eligibility for a mortgage loan.

It’s important to remember that, in these circumstances, you will still need to be able to cover a mortgage payment and student loan payment eventually. Make sure you plan for those expenses and know that you will be able to successfully pay them.

It’s an unfortunate fact right now that student loan debt has become a large obstacle when it comes to purchasing a house, but it hasn’t made it impossible. If you feel that homeownership is the next step in your life, come talk to us at Capital Partners Mortgage today, and we can offer you advice and guidance as to how you can achieve this goal!

- Craig Garcia, President | Capital Partners Mortgage

www.capitalpartnersmtg.com

Keyes Luxury Report Gives Insights into High End Markets in South Florida

From the Sun Sentinel 

The luxury market in South Florida is unique in many ways. The defining characteristics of this rarified set of properties have led to "what luxury real estate agents are happily calling one of South Florida's best price and sales surges in recent memory."

Leading the way in bringing this information to the public eye, The Keyes Company's Luxury Market Report demonstrated a few of the reasons for this boom - when other cities might not be undergoing the same increase in sales of their own high-end listings.

Check out insights into the mind of Keyes' Vice President of Luxury, Kevin Leonard, and why this trend might continue here.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-bz-south-florida-luxury-home-market-spikes-20180718-story.html#

South Florida Bucks the National Retail Trend.

With the company expanding effortlessly and paired with the convenience of it, Amazon is starting to become the top choice when it comes to shopping.

The beginning of 2017 saw many business start to scale down their operations, with stores like Sears, JC Penny, and Macy's closing several of their stores. While other companies are completely shutting their doors, South Florida is still appears to be the spot for retail stores.

Areas like Bal Harbour and Wynwood keep up with heavy foot traffic that allows for these stores to remain in operation. Because of the surrounding atmosphere, shoppers that are having a good time are likely to be in a better mood to browse through the stores.

Read the rest here!

With apartment units rising in numbers, what does this mean for rent prices?

"We're starting to see rental prices wane, or at least pause." - Mike Pappas

Apartments are constantly being built, and with the approaching over building of apartments it may tip the rent prices in favor of renters. 

Market watchers estimate that this year will see the finished construction of 15,200 new apartments across South Florida, including 5,700 units in Miami-Dade County, 5,000 in Broward County and 4,500 in Palm Beach County. 

The pos-recession rise in monthly rents may stop or even decline as the number of apartments in South Florida increases.

See the full article here: The Real Deal: South Florida Real Estate News.