Five Fundamental Mistakes RENTERS Make by John Adams
TEASE:
It’s the apartment you want, in the location you want at the rent you can live with. And your application has been accept and your deposit check has cleared the bank!
The only step left is to sign on the dotted line and pick up the keys, RIGHT?
Seems like a lot of us think so, but we’d be wrong, according to our own Fox5 Real Estate Expert JOHN ADAMS, who hopefully has some better advice!
Q: John, what’s this all about?
A: NOT SO FAST! NOW IS THE TIME TO PROTECT YOURSELF. AFTER you SIGN, it’s too late!
A: I have identified 5 specific mistakes that we see renters make again and again. Let’s take a look:
- Not reading the LEASE
When you fail to read and understand the lease agreement, you are setting yourself up for problems. If you ignore the lease, you are much more likely to end up being evicted and causing your credit rating to get worse, not better.
2. Not taking pictures of the property
The one single area most often leading to eviction and credit problems is the matter of security deposit.
Did you cause the damage, or was it there to begin with? If it’s your word against theirs, you will probably lose.
But if you’ll take lots of photos when you move in, and have them time and date stamped, you will, at least, have some evidence to back up your story.
3. Not paying the rent on time
I know you have extenuating circumstances, but so does everyone else, and you must pay the rent on time if you hope to ever buy a home of your own!
If you don’t pay the rent when it’s due, you should know that the landlord will file a dispossessory action in local court, and also know that you will very likely lose in court. That simply makes your credit worse, and makes it less likely that you will buy a house anytime soon.
4. Not communicating with the landlord
When times get tough, renters have a tendency to ignore communications from their landlord. While that action is emotionally understandable, it is the exact wrong thing to do.
If you don’t communicate with your landlord, he believes that he has no alternative except to go to court, and that simply hurts you. And finally
5. Not making plans right now to buy a home now.
There are specific action steps that you can take to move from being a life long renter to owning a home of your own. You should begin laying the groundwork now.
This needs to be a high priority if you want owning to become a reality.
My strong advice is to focus your attention on two areas: building your savings and boosting your credit as much as you can. These two steps will make ownership a reality faster than anything else you can do.
I believe that “once in a lifetime” opportunities in real estate tend come along about four times a year if you are expecting them and you are ready to take action!
THE BOTTOM LINE:
Take control of your own financial future, and begin making plans now to own your own home. You don’t have to pay all cash and you don’t have to have perfect credit, but you do need a plan.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: for most Americans, owning your own home is STILL likely to be the best investment you’ll ever make.
TAGLINE:
Atlanta native John Adams is a broker, broadcaster, and writer who owns and manages the residential real estate in the Atlanta area. He answers any and all real estate questions on his award-winning radio show every Saturday at 10 a.m. on the MONEY99 Digital Network. You can contact John through his website at Money99.com, where you will find additional information about the radio show.