We just observed the 10 year anniversary of 9/11. The take away for me was the reminder of how precious life is and the fact that our lives as we know it can be turned upside down in an instant.  So how does that impact owning rentals?

We need to be prepared.  Once you own real estate you need to have a living trust, a will, written instructions for family, insurance such as Term Insurance, that would cover the mortgage on the rental so the loan would be paid off and the surviving family members can receive the income from the rental.  Have a list of all your contacts associated with the rental – plumber, accountant, gardener, insurance agent etc. Have a file with everything related to the rental so people know where to go to get info. 

Make sure bank accounts have appropriate names on the accounts for the rentals.  I added my husband to my bank accounts even though I own the rentals so that in the event of my passing he can still access the accounts, pay bills etc.

Life can get complicated when things happen unexpectedly try to be as prepared as possible.

I have a client that knew he was ill and terminal and came to me to take over management of his rentals so that when the time came it wouldn’t be a burden to his wife.  Now, we are educating his wife about the properties and working with her.  Her comment to us all the time is, “Thank you for handling all this for me.  It is such a relief.”  I really admire her husband for taking action to protect his wife.  He truly loved her.  I feel blessed to be able to lift the burden and to protect her.

If you have property management needs in Santa Cruz County check us out we might be able to help you.  www.PortolaRentals.com

Kathleen

This month a new law was passed that stipulates if you apply for rental housing and you are denied because of your credit the property mgmt firm must give you your FICO score.  The State of California requires that if an applicant asks for their credit report you must provide it to them.

If you are looking for a great place to rent or a great property management company in Santa Cruz please contact www.PortolaRentals.com.

Kathleen

4th of July is a time to celebrate our independance, watch fire works, and have BBQ’s with friends.  It is also the one day out of the year that is the most frightening to your pets.

Please keep your pets inside, and with you.  Have the TV on to midigate the sounds of fire works and make a game out of the sounds so the animal isn’t so frightened.

Local SPCA’s say this is the day when they get the most influxes of lost animals into their shelters.

Enjoy the holiday, be safe and keep your animals safe too!

If you have interest in management of rentals or looking for a great place to live please check out our website www.PortolaRentals.com to see what we have available.

Kathleen

Today it is law that all homes have Carbon Monoxide Detectors installed in them. Having personally known people who have died from Carbon Monoxide it is well worth putting the detector in your home.

Rental properties have until July 2013, but in our company we have already installed them in all of our units.

If you have interest in rentals in Santa Cruz please visit my website www.PortolaRentals.com.

Kathleen

The biggest tip I can give renters is to get Renter’s Insurance.  We include with our lease a recommendation for Renter’s insurance – addendum.  It costs only about $150 for the entire year.  Your iphone to replace is more than $150 so it is worth it.

I have seen too many fires and the tenant falsely assumes the owner’s insurance will cover them.  It doesn’t.

Renter’s insurance covers: rent, security deposit, hotel costs, replacement of personal items from fire, water, smoke damage such as furniture and clothing.  So be protected.  Add it to your Christmas wish list.

If you don’t think this happens – I just had a fire and the first question to the tenant was, “Do you have renter’s insurance?”  Their response, “Yes”  What a huge sigh of relief for me.  I know they are taken care of and I can work with the owners insurance to get the home repaired.

Please check out my website at www.PortolaRentals.com if you are interested in properties in Santa Cruz or have rentals in Santa Cruz, CA.

Kathleen Richards, M.S. MPM, RMP

I recently rented a cottage in Santa Cruz and was surprised to see the tenants had a chicken coop with 2 hens and they collected the eggs daily.  When I would show the cottage the hens would scurry around the yard – no bugs at this property was my first thought.

As a property manager it is hard enough to find owners willing to rent to tenants with cats, dogs, birds (in cages) or even fish.  Now, we have chickens.  I was wondering what the city code said about chickens.  It is the rooster that people have problems with but apparently hens are a wonderful pet and very eco-friendly. The roosters are banned in urban areas but hens don’t require a permit of any kind.

The Santa Cruz Sentinel, Home & Garden section, Saturday, June 12, 2010, written by Laura Copeland, lcopeland@santacruzsentinel.com and www.santacruzsentinel.com had a 2 page article on chickens and how they have taken off in Santa Cruz County.  Scotts Valley Feed sold 3,000 chickens in 2009 up from 150-300 just four years earlier. 300 were sold out in 45 minutes.

If you want more info about raising hens there are workshops, of course, this is Santa Cruz County. Contact 831-466-3444, www.diggardensnursery.com To read the entire article you can find it online or click the links above.

I wonder how soon I will see hens listed on my rental apps under pets?

Please check out my website at www.PortolaRentals.com if you are interested in properties in Santa Cruz or have rentals in Santa Cruz, CA.

Kathleen Richards

On the news this morning was a report of a rash of arsons on vehicles near downtown Santa Cruz.  Whenever I see a fire situation or a flooding situation on the news my first thought is, “I hope they have insurance.”

With every lease we have tenants sign we have a Renter’s Insurance Addendum where we recommend that they get insurance for their personal belongings.  It usually costs around $150 per year.  Yes, it is so cheap. Your laptop, iphone, leather jacket, bike all add up to more than $150 to replace.

I had a very sad situation happen when a tenant moved into a property and 2 days later came into the office asking if we had heard….well we had not, we did placement of this tenant the owner handles the management.  Well, the tenant’s dad got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and stepped into 2 inches of water!  The entire house was flooded and it came from the malfunctioning ice maker on the fridge.

The gal asked, “who is going to pay to replace my items”, my response was, “did you have renter’s insurance?”  “No. ” “Well, then I guess you are paying for your lost belongings.”  The owners insurance will pay to repair the house but not replace her belongings.

What she could have gotten compensated for in this situation would have been:  hotel cost, funds for rent, replacement of personal belongings etc.  Instead she had to stay with family.

I have recently discovered another local company called, Home Asset Defenders which is a great service.  The company comes into your home or business and documents with text and photos and values all your belongings and can provide the info to your insurance company in case of loss.

The company is:  Home Asset Defenders (831) 761-9656 www.homeassetdefenders.com

Please check out my website at www.PortolaRentals.com if you are interested in properties in Santa Cruz or have rentals in Santa Cruz, CA.

Kathleen Richards

Last weeks post was about Party Houses well since then I attended a community meeting with the Mayor of Santa Cruz, Planning Dept heads at the Santa Cruz Association of Realtors office to discuss a new ordinance.

To back up a bit an emergency ordinance was passed by the City stating that if property owners got numerous complaints about noise, and the police had calls to the property the City could refuse a permit to the owner to expand living space.  This is a direct response to the slumlord landlords in Santa Cruz that pack in the students, collect outrageous rent and do nothing in the way of being a good neighbor.  As a result surrounding neighbors have had it and apparently the City has too.

One gross violation cited by the Mayor was a property near UCSC that had the basement converted with nothing but drywall separating living spaces and extension cords running to each space, no escape route and about 13 people living in the house, who knows how many in the basement paying who know how much.

Back to the community meeting.  A new ordinance to alleviate unsafe housing (health and safety, and zoning violations) is being proposed where property owners of 3 or more units in the City would be required to register for annual inspections which would be done by City inspectors.  If the property passes inspection the first time around there are provisions for not having to have another inspection done by the city for a period of 3 or 5 years.  Self inspection would be the responsibility of the owner.  However, what has property owners upset is the annual fee would still be required which is currently set for $100 per property and $40 per each additional door.

Property Management companies that already conduct annual inspections and the Housing Authority feel they should be exempt because we are already doing inspections.

In addition, vacation rentals are getting hit with a proposed ordinance that would regulate the number of vacation homes allowed in certain areas.

The final ordinance is scheduled for a vote at the July 20th city council meeting.  If you want to give your input contact the City or attend the council meeting.

I understand cities are in financial difficulties but creating a negative business environment in the city isn’t going to help our unemployment rate which in Santa Cruz County is around 13%.  There is fear that if vacationers have to pay more for rentals they won’t come and stay.  If tenants have to pay more for rent they will move.  If investors have these ordinances in place it brings down the value of their properties when it comes time to sell.

I think the focus should be on punishing the violators not the 90% who do follow the rules.  The violators will just find another way around it or will gobble up resources by fighting what the City plans to do.

My solution would be:  If you are a UCSC student you must live on Campus.  The university needs to provide housing for all its students.  Only graduate students could live off campus.

If code compliance violations are as rampant as the city suggests then there should be a fee attached to every property owner in Santa Cruz via property taxes to pay for enforcement.  I own property in Santa Cruz but I would rather pay a small fee in my property taxes than have certain property owners singled out.  That is not fair for a few to shoulder the burden of even fewer violators.

Please check out my website at www.PortolaRentals.com if you are interested in properties in Santa Cruz or have rentals in Santa Cruz, CA.

Kathleen Richards

In the June 9, 2010 Santa Cruz Sentinel Newspaper, www.santacruzsentinel.com page B3, there is an article by Shanna McCord about the crack down on party homes in Santa Cruz.  The City Council passed an emergency ordinance not allowing repeat offending property owners from making renovations to their properties that would increase the number of bedrooms or the capacity to house more people.

As a local Property Manager, I agree with the City Council.  I think property owners should be forced to follow the same laws that we do.  I think property owners (and I am one myself) need to be responsible owners not just to their tenants but to their neighbors.

I have lived next to a party house and I can tell you it is hell on the neighborhood.  I complained but what can you do with an owner that lives out of the area or just doesn’t care.  I took the route to be friendly to the tenants and let them know when the noise was too much.  It helped until the next round of students moved in and it started all over again.

As a professional property manager, I do not allow my residents to disturb their neighbors.  If I get a complaint I check it out and then the tenants get a 3 day notice to perform or quit.  If it happens again they are given notice to move.  I make it very clear to tenants prior to moving in what is acceptable and what isn’t acceptable.

If you communicate clearly what is expected of people and what they can expect of you 99% of the time they do the right thing.

In my experience when I get calls from property owners who want me to rent their property on the west side of santa cruz I ask how much rent they get and when they tell me $5,000 for a 3 bedroom I know that I am not the property manager for them.  I don’t want to work with this type of owner.  They want to get as much money as they can, they rent rooms, they don’t maintain the property and the kids have parties and ruin the property further because their rationale is that I am paying all this money for this crappy place…

I work very hard to have an excellent reputation in the community and I realize students need a place to live and this type of owner only makes things harder on everyone, me the professional, the students who are responsible, the neighbors who want to live in a quiet area and get along with their neighbors and the city council.

Enough complaining – here are some steps to take if you do live next to a party home.

1. get to know the students
2. take pictures of problems
3. call the police, again and again if you have to
4. contact the property owner and try to work with them
5. contact the property management company if there is one
6. complain to the city council, the university
7. if all else fails, have an attorney write up something on behalf of the neighborhood and have letter sent to students, university, and owner.

Sometimes making yourself the squeeky wheel does work but I do find if you take the steps to be friendly with the students they will often respond better when you knock on the door asking for the music to be turned down.

Please check out my website at www.PortolaRentals.com if you are interested in properties in Santa Cruz or have rentals in Santa Cruz, CA.

Kathleen Richards

I keep things that are of interest to my business and this posting is from the Santa Cruz Sentinel July 17, 2008.  I thought I would share with you some of the tips and tricks for stain removal.

• Grease – use cornstarch, cornmeal and talcum powder to soak up
• Dried blood, juice, felt-tip pen or urine – Ammonia – purchase nonsudsy unscented household version
• Stubborn stains – Hydrogen Peroxide 3% solution
• Pencil, Mascara, Color Candle Wax – denatured or isopropyl rubbing alcohol
• Old Perspiration, Pet Stains – White Vinegar is very effective on removing odors for carpets and upholstery.
• Removal of bumper stickers, crayon on wood floors – use Mayonnaise let sit and wipe
• Pool Hair – shampoo with Ketchup, leave for 15 minutes, rinse out with baby shampoo.
• Hardwater stains – vinegar works wonders.

Please check out my website at www.PortolaRentals.com if you are interested in properties in Santa Cruz or have rentals in Santa Cruz, CA.

Kathleen Richards