Quality renters hard to come by, TransUnion survey

This weekend TransUnion released the results of a survey of 870 property managers. The survey found that qualified renters are hard to come by these days.

In fact, more than half the property managers surveyed in the US say that it's more difficult to find a qualified renter this year than it was last year and that the majority of property managers are concerned they won't find quality renters for the rest of the year.

While we at CorporateHousingbyOwner.com have been fairly successful at finding quality renters, one of our biggest concerns to doing business today is that everyone wants a deal. There are qualified tenants out there, but they want to pay a lot less than the asking price, making it difficult for investors to turn a profit.

Read more results from the survey on the Transunion website.

Part II of II: The Pet Dilemma. How-to Ensure Good Pet Practices

As discussed in Part I of The Pet Dilemma series, allowing pets in your corporate rental enables you to attract a greater number of potential renters.

But if you allow pets, here are a few things to ask and a few rules to set to ensure good pet practices:

What kind of animal is it? Most animals are fine, but you may want to avoid allowing tenants with pitbulls or other animals that could be considered dangerous to the families living around you. A dangerous animal might require you to change your homeowners insurance and you don’t want to have to deal with that added hassle.

Is the animal noisy? Dogs like to bark, especially at strangers and passerbys. This can be very annoying and disruptive to neighbors. Make the owner agree that the dog will be kept inside most of the time and only outside when supervised by his owner. You may even set hours (i.e., the dog can’t be outside after 10pm) to ensure the dog isn’t barking late at night.

Who is going to clean up? Outline specific rules on what you expect your property (inside and out) to look like while the tenant lives there and upon returning the home to you.

Who will pay for damages? If the pet chews through your wood coffee table, spell out in your contract that the renter is responsible for all damages – big and small. Note: Don’t forget to collect an additional pet security deposit – typically 50% more than a regular security deposit – to insure your property against damages caused by the animal.

How old is the pet and is it house trained? This is actually a very important to ask as you don’t want a puppy “marking” up your carpet or having accidents in your bed. Make sure the animal is at least one year old and is house trained.

How many pets? It’s wise to limit the number of pets to one large animal and maybe two small animals.

Is the pet properly vaccinated? You don’t want any animals carrying or being exposed to disease on your property. Ask for proof of vaccinations and make sure they’re up to date.

Also, be sure to check with your insurance provider to ensure you’re effectively covered to allow pets in your corporate rental.

Overall, allowing pets can be quite lucrative. Be sure to ask the right questions so you product yourself from liability and your property from damage.

Divorced and in need of temporary housing? Corporate housing rentals can help

Sadly America saw a once happily married couple, Jon and Kate Gosselin, fall apart on camera last night. The Gosselin's announced on their TLC reality series, "Jon and Kate Plus 8," that they will be splitting for good.

The Gosselin's are not alone. In fact, we have worked with many individuals going through the uncertainties and difficulties of a divorce. That's because when a couple splits, inevitably one party is left to fend for their own shelter. The party looking for home usually ends up in a hotel or a friend's couch because they don't want to rush and buy a home if they're uncertain of where they need to live and the kind of house or apartment they're going to need for the long run.

So during this emotionally charged time we find a lot of divorcees turn to corporate housing. A corporate rental is furnished and the lease goes month-to-month as to not tie someone into a long term housing situation or breaking the bank. The property is fully furnished and includes a full-sized kitchen, bed and bedroom linens, cable and Internet, and all the creature comforts of a home.

While a corporate rental is not a long-term solution, hopefully it can provide comfort, privacy and dignity to the divorcing party left homeless.

Legislative win for Corporate Housing

As State and City budgets face huge deficits politicians are looking for new things to tax. In most states monthly rentals are not subject to lodging or other taxes. This is important in keeping corporate housing rates competitive and a viable hotel alternative. Keep an eye on your legislature to make sure these unnecessary taxes are not voted in.

The Joint Conference Committee on the FY 2010 Massachusetts State Budget released its report last evening. I am pleased to inform you that the committee did not include an expansion of the room occupancy excise tax to so-called "transient accommodations."

The compromise budget does include an increase in the existing room occupancy excise tax. The state portion of that tax will increase from 4% to 6% and the municipal local option portion of the tax will increase from 4.5% to 6.5%.

The House and Senate will convene later today to approve the conference committee report. This document cannot be amended - it is a straight up or down vote - so there is no danger that a tax on "transient accommodations" could be added. It will then be sent to Governor Patrick for his approval or line-item vetoes.

The decision of the legislative leadership not to include an expansion of the room occupancy tax in the FY 10 budget does not necessarily reflect their view of the merits of the issue. It more likely that the tax was not included in the budget simply because the amount of revenue that might be raised from doing so was too speculative to rely upon for their spending plans.

There are still numerous bills pending before the Joint Committee on Revenue to expand the room occupancy excise tax. In addition, the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government is still considering what action to take on the Report of the Special Commission on Municipal Relief (which report included a recommendation for taxing "transient accommodations").
It is quite likely that the Legislature might yet still move on those bills in this session as part of an omnibus municipal relief package. We'll have to wait a bit to see if that's the case, but for the time being you can enjoy this victory.

Part I of II: The Pet Dilemma. Should You Allow ‘Em?

I am constantly asked whether a corporate rental should allow pets. On one had, your property is furnished, so there are things that can easily be damaged by a pet. On the other hand, you want to maximize the number of renters you attract, after all, this is an investment and you don’t want your home sitting idle without any renters.

So, while pets can be a pain, I do think homeowners should make every effort to allow them. Here’s why:

First, you open the door to a larger pool of possible tenants. Traveling with pets has become commonplace these days and more traveling executives and relocated families are bringing Fido along for the ride. It’s also unlikely that an executive or family traveling with a pet for months at a time would want to stay in a hotel – so a corporate rental is quite attractive for this audience.

Second, you open the door to making more money. Yes, you can charge more for renter’s who bring along a pet – and you can demand a larger security deposit too. People traveling with pets expect this and are happy to oblige because they simply want to bring Fido along.

Third, you might increase your occupancy rate. Because you allow a larger pool of possible tenants, it’s likely your rental property will have very high occupancy rates – boosting your bottom line!

Fourth, if you own a single family home, it’s the best way to get more renters. Traveling executives like to be near their office, so they may not venture too far off into suburbia. But those that require temporary, furnished rentals homes AND have pets will turn to the single family homes listed for rent, even in a less desirable location (suburb vs. city) just so they can have a yard for their pet to play in and so they can be near parks. So I’m saying if you have a property not centrally located, allowing pets might be one of the few ways you attract a constant stream of renters to your property.

If you do decide to allow pets in your rental property, there are a few precautions and rules you must abide by first. Read Part II of The Pet Dilemma.