Apartment For Rent

Finding apartments for rent is not always difficult but once you find your dream living quarters, there are often many obstacles to face before making the big move. Many landlords require much more information than they did years ago when accepting applications from possible tenants. These tenants are often turned away because of a number of reasons.


We’ve rounded up the latest places for rent via rental sites Zumper and Apartment Guide to get a sense of what to expect when it comes to hunting down affordable apartments in Plano if you’ve got a budget of up to $1,500/month.

Source:
https://hoodline.com/2020/03/apartments-for-rent-in-plano-what-will-1-500-get-you-1585625291

The first thing any prospective renter should know before even looking for apartments for rent is his credit score. You might be wondering what on earth your credit score has to do with apartments for rent but there is a tight link between the two. A landlord is likely to turn down an application for renters if they have bad credit.

Bad credit adversely affects your chances of landing that dream living space for good reason. The landlord really doesn’t know you. He has no real way of knowing whether or not you will make timely payments. Your credit history is a realistic indicator of your payment history. If you let your bills fall behind, you will probably do the same for your rental bills.

Some argue that landlords can use references from the person’s former landlord before turning down an application. People who are looking for apartments for rent do not always have the best credit, but they do meet their monthly obligations for their living space.

If a person is going through a tough financial time, he may have to make certain concessions to keep himself afloat. If his monthly rental payment is too high, he may look for other apartments for rent that he can afford. In the meantime, the renter has to prioritize his monthly bills.

The top priority for any person will be the necessities that he can’t live without. These necessities include food and shelter. He may show bad credit when it comes to his credit card payments but his rental property was kept up-to-date. Contacting his previous landlord would be the best way to establish this.

Of course when you have apartments for rent you probably have a lot of individuals applying for the same living space. If none of them have very good credit, you may want to talk to former landlords. Many of these individuals could be model tenants who followed the rules and made timely payments on a consistent basis. You may find great tenants for your apartments for rent if you do a little research.

Rental Property

A couple of years ago my parents bought a second home in a little town about an hour’s drive northeast of Toronto, Ontario. They already own a nice big house on a river with a gorgeous lot, big trees and great neighbors. However, they bought the second house to be used as a rental property until they retire in five or six years.

One local property owner is offering his tenants an immediate reduction in their rent amounts, and he hopes others will do the same as a measure of financial relief amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Source:
http://www.statecollege.com/news/local-news/property-owner-offers-rent-reductions-hopes-others-will-follow,1482827/

My parents are not new to being landlords. They have experience with renting, having rented in the past themselves, and currently renting out their guest cottage as a rental property. The difference with their new rental property is that it’s far enough away that my father can’t keep on eye on things and ensure that their latest tenant is maintaining the house and property to a sufficient degree. Of course, from time to time, my parents will take an afternoon and drive over to make sure all is well at their rental property and they do keep in touch with the tenant by telephone as well. So far they have been very fortunate to find responsible individuals that treat the rental property with respect and keep it clean an tidy, as they likely would their own home.

In the past my parents had some trouble with one tenant. She refused to take her garbage to the bin and would simply throw it out her back door, essentially into my parents yard. My parents have two small dogs who are allowed to run about the yard for their daily exercise. What a disaster it was the one afternoon my mother turned her back on them for a second, only to find they’d torn the trash bag open and had strewn garbage across the yard. After that, my parents approached the tenant and insisted that no garbage be left out where pets or wild animals could reach it. The tenant was quite rude and ended up leaving the rental property shortly thereafter, to my parents relief.

Of course there might be misunderstandings and differences from time to time, however my parents have found that the best route to success in renting out a rental property is to have a clearly defined tenant/landlord agreement signed, along with any rental agreement. That way ground rules are laid before any problems arise, thereby circumventing potentially large issues down the road. So too, it’s important to familiarize oneself with all rental laws including regional by-laws that might affect the rental property. Following these guidelines can really help to ensure good tenant/landlord relations and ensure that a rental property stays rented on a permanent basis.

Oakland Real Estate

I think buying some Oakland real estate is probably a wise investment. There are a lot of positive signs that the Oakland economy is starting to finally come around a little. While I think its going to continue its slow and steady growth for awhile longer, I suspect that in the near future Oakland is going to suddenly explode much like its neighbor Emeryville has. So if there is ever a time to buy Oakland real estate, it’s now while it’s still some of the cheapest real estate to be found in the immediate Bay Area.

The listing has gone viral – almost 60,000 viewings as of this writing — because it really points out how insane the real estate market has gotten in California.

Source:
https://pjmedia.com/trending/redfin-listing-in-oakland-goes-viral-800000-for-this-dump/

Oakland resides in what I think is the most ideal location in California, if not the planet. Just because I grew up there doesn’t mean I’m in anyway biased. I have lived in some other really nice California areas, including Santa Barbara, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, but Oakland is by far my favorite location. Oakland has the perfect combination of city and suburban interests, large portions of it manage to feel open, and almost country like. The Oakland hills have some of the best views in the entire Bay Area, and for that reason alone make a lot of Oakland real estate very valuable.

Oakland also has some of the best weather in the state, and that’s saying something considering we’re talking about California here. While Oakland may not have as many hot and sunny days as Los Angeles, it is a much more mild climate that I vastly prefer over the more Southern areas. Instead of upper 70s and low 80s all the time, Oakland seems to hover in the 68-72 region a lot. For many people, including me, this is ideal weather and is another reason why Oakland real estate should have some inherent value.

Oakland real estate is also ideally situated with respect to accessing other parts of the bay. Looking at a map, you can see that Oakland is pretty much right in the middle of the greater Bay Area, and is just a hop skip and a jump from San Francisco. With several Bart Stations in Oakland, and immediate access to the Bay Bridge, its easy to get wherever you need to go from Oakland.

So why is Oakland real estate still so cheap? Well, because its in Oakland, of course. Oakland still has a bad reputation with respect to crime, and several of its neighborhoods are pretty crummy looking if not dangerous. However, I’ve been hearing more and more about upcoming projects to revitalize these areas, and I think that owning some Oakland real estate now will pay off big in the near future.

Real Estate License


Global  Real Estate License School Software  market is a new report published by Research Trades in an effort to reveal not only the prominent but also the equally essential underlying aspects of this industry.

Source:
https://monroescoop.com/uncategorized/121158/latest-innovation-in-real-estate-license-school-software-market-2019-2025-future-strategies-and-current-trends-by-leading-key-players-real-estate-expressvaneddream-town-realtyaceable/

Recently my brother and my sister-in-law moved to North Carolina. My brother was having a hard time finding a job where they lived, and they decided to move closer to where her parents live. Apparently, her father has found my brother a pretty good job. Though my sister-in-law does not have a job there as of yet, she told me that she is planning on getting her real estate license. I was quite surprised to hear her say this, as this was also something I had thought of doing in the past.

I’m not really sure why I wanted to get a real estate license, but perhaps it was because I’d never seem to be happy at any job I ever had. I worked as a mail while putting myself through college, and in the process saw a lot of beautiful homes. Perhaps this is where I found an interest in selling real estate. This job brought out a love of beautiful homes at me that I did not know that I had. I thought perhaps getting a real estate license would be a great way to find a career I would love.

I never ended up getting my real estate license, though I did look into how it is done. I didn’t find as much information as I wanted to, but from my understanding, you may be able to contact a local realtor in your area to take the required classes. They may even help you through your real estate license process, in exchange for working for them for a period of time. They may even help you study, and perhaps give you advice on getting your career moving.

I wish my sister-in-law luck in getting her real estate license. I hope it works out for her, but I can say that I have my doubts. She is not always been a responsible person, and I can’t really say that she is a people person. If you want to get a real estate license and sell homes for a living, you really have to know how to deal with the public. You will be able to sell houses if you cannot sell yourself. She may have a lot of personal issues to work through before she could become successful, but I do hope that she gives it a shot anyway. Perhaps this time she’ll find a career that she can stick with.

Real Estate Listings

My son and his wife are entering the stage of there life where they are going to be homeowners. They have been married for three years and have been saving their money and building their credit rating so they can afford a home of their own. They have been living a very frugal life, not taking vacations and working over time hours to make this happen. Their goal is to have more money and time once they move into their house. They have also been buying nice pieces of furniture to put into their own space when they get it. They went to the bank to get prior approved for a loan so that they would be able to put money down on a house when they found one they liked.

 The site, zoned NC1-40, is touted in the offering memo as having the potential for “Multiple Development Opportunities, Rehab for mixed use, Townhome, ‘A-pod-ments’, Etc” The storefronts have been vacant since the end of 2018, windows papered over, no hint of the building’s future until now.

Source:
https://westseattleblog.com/2020/02/real-estate-the-listing-that-answers-a-long-running-alki-question/

When they felt they were ready they met with a realtor and began looking at real estate listings. The realtor tried to convince them that they could afford a home that was a higher rate than they were comfortable paying. They had discussed this with us as well as their friends. We all gave them the same message; do not pay so much for a home that you are scraping by each month to make the payments. They both have good jobs with generous salaries. We suggested that they take on a house payment that they would still be able to handle if one of them lost their job or was cut back on hours. The last thing you want to see happen is to lose your job and your home as well. This had happened to friends of theirs so they knew it was possible. They told the realtor that they only wanted to look at real estate listings in their price range.

They are looking at a good time because it is definitely a buyers market. There are several homes that have been on the market for quite a while. One house that they drove past often on their way to our house had been for sale for over a year. When they had checked the price on the real estate listings when it first went on the market is was out of their price range. The house was listed by the realty company that they were working with, so they inquired about it. The house had a huge back yard and two bedrooms upstairs and two down stairs there were three bathrooms and a formal living room as well as a family room.

All the cabinets in the kitchen had been custom made by the owner’s father. The realtor told them that the house was one of the greatest values in the real estate listings in that price range. Even though it was higher than they wanted to spend they went and looked at the property. They loved everything about the house. They decided that they had nothing to lose by making an offer. They offered the highest amount that they had budgeted for, which was several thousand less than the owners had the property listed at. The owners were relocating to another state due to a job offer and were getting frustrated at not selling in the home. They took the offer. My son and his wife now have a beautiful home to call their own.

Buy A House

There’s nothing that compares with the experience of when you first decide to buy a house. When I decided on buying a house with my wife, it had not even been a dream of mine before. It was simply something that I’d never thought of before, something that I perhaps should have thought about, but had never occurred to me. You see, owning a house is such a classic American dream that you never even think about it until you really have it made. I was married to a beautiful woman and trying to buy a house in the Atlanta. I definitely had it made.

There should be a mandatory nationwide system of rating homes based on their energy performance.

Source:
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/03/02/opinion/seeing-green-when-buying-house/

Nonetheless, buying a house was no picnic. Although we found several houses that we really liked, none of them quite worked for us. We wanted the first house that we bought to be complete. When we were buying a house, we were also buying a home. We didn’t want to buy a house that was a so-called fixer upper. We wanted something that was well made, well maintained, and spacious enough for our needs. The problem is that it costs a lot of money to buy a house like that.

If you have ever tried to buy houses, you know what I mean. It is hard not to be torn in two directions when you first decide to buy a house. On the one hand, you want to get as spacious and beautiful a place as you can. You might even consider some of the old, decaying mansions that you see around the edge of town. After all, you can get them for so much less than they would be worth in their prime. On the other hand, you want to buy a house that is good now. You don’t want to have to deal with leakage, mold problems, structural integrity problems, and all of the other myriad issues that old houses run into. You want to buy a house, in short, that is ready made.

When we finally bought a house, We ended up compromising somewhat. You see, it made no sense to buy a house that was brand-new. In the first place, they were ugly and not well made. Although they would have a long life ahead of them owing to the fact that they had just been built, it looked like they would have problems almost immediately. We decided to buy a house that was built around the 1950s. It was stable, well made, and well within our price range.

Collections Agents

In the debt collection industry, collectors are a company’s front-line offense and defense. They bring in revenue and are the first point of contact for debtors. The higher the productivity of your agents, the higher the income of your company.

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2019/12/26/how-automation-can-improve-debt-collection/#7b1f752a52af

If you have ever been seriously late in paying a bill you may have had to deal with a collection agents. They can sometimes be pesky as they will send frequent letters and call repeatedly to your home or place where you work. The best thing to do to avoid being visited by collection agents is to pay your bills on time.

There is a set of rules which monitors the actions of collection agents which is called the Collection Agents Act. Any business that employs collection agents has to follow the guidelines of the Act. If that business does not follow the rules that are laid out by the Collection Agents Act they may have to give up their bond, have their collection license suspended or even cancelled, and can have their bond forfeited in order to pay compensation to those who had financial losses.

According to the Act people employed in this profession are prohibited from doing a variety of actions. The collection agents can not collect more money than what is owed or add any fees to the debt of the debtor. They can not make the debtor pay without giving the information to the debtor such as name of the creditor, the balance that the debtor owes, and the identity and authority of the party who makes the request for the payment.

The collection agents can not use the telephone to call debtors before 8 in the morning or after 9 in the evening and can not call on Sundays and holidays. They are required to give information which is correct as not to mislead the person who they are trying to request payment from. A debtor’s employer can only be contacted to verify that the debtor is employed or if payments that have been specified by court order in garnishing wages have been made. Agents also have no legal course of action as they can not send the debtor any documents that look like legal court documents.

Within the scope of their restrictions the agents can still get in touch with you by ways of phone, in person, or by mail. Sometimes in any of these instances the agent will do so many times until the debt is paid. It is their job to make sure that the debtor pays the bills from the company in which they are employed. Collection agents can be seen in a negative light considering they can be annoying at times contacting you many times but know that they are just employees of the company in which you owe the debt to. By paying your bills in a timely manner than you will not have to deal with collection agents.

Ultra Modern Houses

What could be more fun than living in a house where the walls open up to let in the sun, or where you could walk in and ask your home to turn on the lights? There are some great ultra modern homes out there, and some of the aspects involved are going to become standard in all new homes one day. The housing market is not great right now, but that does not mean there are not those with the means and the will to get what they think would be an amazing place to live. Searching for these very modern homes, however, can be a chore.


Washington Beach House in Heacham was completed earlier this year and could be used as a sleek and modern family home or a holiday let, all in an enviable location just a stone’s throw from the beach.

Source: https://www.edp24.co.uk/edp-property/washington-beach-house-at-south-beach-heacham-is-for-sale-1-6434944

Smaller communities may indeed contain some ultra modern homes, but you may never know it. That is when reaching out to various real estate agents can help you out. You can tell that what you are looking for and how much you think you can afford to pay. It may take a while for them to find what you need, as this type of modern house is something that is indeed rare, but they may come up with something eventually. Having more than one agent is also a great idea, as that means you have more of a chance of finding what you want in a timely manner.

You may find that in order to get the ultra modern home that you seek, you may want to have one built on your own. You can then dream up anything that you want, and find all of the latest things on the market. When you do this, your modern house is truly your own. You have designed it and may have even participated in the building of it, and you are also the only ones who have lived there. You can also update and new and more interesting things come on the market that fit in with your idea of what truly ultra modern homes should be like.

Another option when looking for ultra modern homes is to think about high rise apartment buildings or condos. These are not technically homes, but they can have all that the same type of house has to offer, plus some added security that might be very welcome. Such places are probably easier to find, though you may have no say in the design. If those things are not a problem for you, may want to opt for apartments and condos while searching instead of thinking your only option would be ultra modern homes set apart from all others.

Home Improvement Loan

So, you are thinking of fixing up the house a bit. Maybe repaint or put on a new roof, or even add that extra room you have been talking about for years. With home values good and property moving in the market well, now might be a good time to consider home improvement, maybe even do more than you were originally planning.

If your budget will not accept all the things you would like to do to your house, a home improvement loan is a good way to go.

If you are thinking on taking out a home improvement loan against the equity in your house, there are some things that you need to consider.


If you’re considering a home remodeling project, you’re probably thinking about borrowing money, as this work can be quite costly.

Source: https://www.9news.com/article/money/personal-finance/bank-rate/a-guide-to-using-mortgages-and-loans-to-pay-for-home-renovations/73-58d0e713-e03c-4966-832c-33d6b13cd40f

First, are you going to do the work yourself? If so, you need to plan exactly what it is that needs to be done and how much money you are going to source through your home improvement loan. This will entail pricing out all, and I mean all the supplies and equipment you are going to need. Do not forget also that there are some hidden expenses that some people do not consider such as city licenses and the like. Once you have prepared a complete and thorough list of expenses, you can begin to shop around for a home improvement loan.

There are many sources including savings and loan associations and companies that specialize in home improvement loans. My suggestion is that you borrow a little more, say ten or fifteen percent higher than you think that you will need. Sometimes, the unexpected arises such as additional costs to rid your attic space of those annoying termites just when you start putting in that new ceiling.

As always, you have to talk to a home improvement loan expert who knows the business and has a good reputation. However, as in dealing with most experts, it is important that you have some idea of what you need before you go to a consultation like this.

Remember one thing, a home improvement loan is not just for the do-it-yourselfer. If the job you are thinking about requires a contractor, many of these companies have good and sometimes cheaper access to a home improvement loan for their customers. I would ask that question first, before I discussed the job I wanted to have done on my house.

Taking on a home improvement loan should not be a big financial burden. The interest rate should be much lower than on your credit card or other unsecured loan. Consider also, how much the home improvements you are contemplating would maintain or even increase the value of your property. A home improvement loan may turn out to be a very wise financial decision as well as making your home a more pleasant and desirable place to live.

Rent Increase

An unexpected rent increase can break the bank for someone living on a fixed income. Yet in today’s economy, a rent increase can be as commonplace an occurrence as the rising costs of gasoline and electricity.

If most utilities such as heating and electricity are included in your monthly rent, the rising costs of those necessities can lead to an increase. New development and community improvements which make your neighborhood a safer or more cosmopolitan or attractive place to live, and thus more marketable, can also bring about a rise in the amount you are required to pay each month.


The supply of rental homes is shrinking, and that continues to push rent prices higher, particularly on the lower end of the market.

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/19/renting-a-single-family-house-just-got-more-expensive.html

Whether you rent your apartment, condominium or single home from a company or a private landlord, it is critical to have a solid understanding of your rights as a renter. Renters should always be familiar with all the terms and conditions of their leases, the rules and regulations for the community in which they live, the grounds for eviction from their rented homes, and the responsibilities of both themselves and their landlords for repairs, grounds and dwelling maintenance and pest control. Of course, renters should also be aware of the guidelines for when and how a landlord or rental company can impose a rent increase.

The legality of the cost of your rent rising depends on a variety of variables. Laws and regulations governing landlord and tenant rights vary from state to state. In addition, there are other variables governing rent increase including whether or not a property is rent controlled and specific laws pertaining to disabled renters. Renters should familiarize themselves with state and country laws to understand whether, when and how they could become subject to a rent increase.

Regardless of location or the type of property one is renting, one commonality is that if rent is specified in a lease, a rent increase should generally not be imposed during the time period specified in that lease. In many or even most cases, someone faced with a mid-lease rent increase would have grounds for legal argument. The time for discussions and agreements regarding a rent increase is generally during lease renewal, when the renter will have the right to find alternate living arrangements without financial obligation to the landlord or rental company.

Just as it is important for renters to understand their rights regarding a rent increase and the other intricacies of landlord/tenant relationships, landlords must understand their own rights and obligations. In the interest of fairness and to avoid possible legal complications, a landlord should always notify a tenant of any other changes to a rental agreement in writing. In the case of rise in the cost of your rent, this notification should occur well in advance of when the change will take place.