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A Lesson From Lennar & CEO Stuart Miller

Home Construction

Lennar Construction has become a leader in the residential and commercial building industry. But getting there wasn’t always easy, as former CEO and current Executive Chairman Stuart Miller can attest. There are always large risks associated with building homes because not only are you anticipating the needs of the market, but you are also attempting to predict what the supply and demand will look like months from when the project begins on an empty plot of land. With risk, there is no reward.

You can view Stuart Miller’s Resume on LinkedIn

When Miller took over as CEO of Lennar Construction, a company that his father founded, he saw the immediate potential to expand the business. To do this, he developed what he has come to call his golden triangle, a mantra composed of three powerful words: starts, sales, and deliveries. He has used this methodology to push Lennar forward while minimizing the risk associated with the home building industry.

Strategic Priorities

Miller has focused this ideal to combat the volatility that is often associated with the unpredictable housing market. Because the housing market is filled with speculation rather than promise, to be successful, a company must account for this and build the processes that work together in order to achieve the outcomes that you desire. Each process must play a vital role in helping the other processes to be successful.

Miller’s leadership scope has focused his company’s efforts on key decision-making, which can set it apart from the competition by creating a flexible and dynamic operation.

  1. Create strategic partnerships with land banking companies. These companies can help provide a future supply of buildable land while also allowing you to secure that land at affordable prices. With this type of partnership, there is less risk of acquiring land in the ebbs and flows of supply and demand.

  2. Hold minimal land. Many construction companies want to hold on to just the right plots of land for future development, but this could cost time and money as those projects may not get underway for years. By minimizing the amount of land in holding, the costs can be significantly reduced, creating more cash availability for the current projects under development.

  3. Focus on operational efficiency to minimize cost management. With a focus on consistent starts, Lennar has put this at the core of their work. They can increase the market share while stifling the impacts of rising land costs.

  4. Navigating the dynamics of the market. Rising land costs can be a huge hindrance to a company’s success in the housing construction market. This means strategically outlining home site availability and production. Without understanding this, the rise in land costs can create obstacles that prevent the success of the project and ultimately impact the company’s bottom dollar.

  5. Keep tabs on interest rates. While interest rates are unpredictable, strategic planning and monitoring can help to provide insight on when to begin a project and how to approach any economic uncertainties that come with the fluctuations in the market. With proper planning, a company can weather any financial storm that may arise.

These strategies have allowed Stuart Miller to help Lennar propel past the competition. With his time at the helm, the company expanded its operations into commercial buildings and also expanded its services to clients to ensure they lead the industry. By consistently remaining in tune with the market and with that industry, Miller has been able to keep Lennar on the leading edge of home building.

Leading Differently

The leadership doesn’t end there. Miller laid the foundation for the future of technology in the building industry by having the foresight to anticipate how innovations such as 3D printing can help produce high-quality homes in lower production times.

The Lennar way of managing the home building industry is what keeps them ahead of the competition. If you live in one of the 20 states in which they operate, you have no doubt seen one of their many projects. Through unique investing and taking advantage of the most opportune moments to acquire land and real estate, they can create the home, neighborhood, or commercial dream for their clients. Through smart investing and utilizing the right channels, Lennar has been able to set the standard for home construction. There is a reason their name is synonymous with success.

Homes for Families

Their way of doing business and building within the industry has led Lennar to hold a reputation that far outpaces the competition. They seek to build quality homes that their clients can enjoy for generations, not just a few years. Miller has always cared about people and has made it his mission to ensure that those who will benefit from their projects are put first. At the end of the day, Miller understands that opening the door to a new home isn’t about the company that built it; it’s about the family that lives in it.

Reference: https://www.crunchbase.com/person/stuart-a-miller

Reference: https://investors.lennar.com/corporate-governance/leadership

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Popular Seattle Suburbs To Buy A House In 2021

City Of Seattle Homes

Moving to a new city is challenging, especially if you don’t know enough about the area you’ll soon call home. Looking for a perfect place where you’ll buy a property is an essential step in everybody’s life and therefore requires serious research. If you’re considering the Seattle area, you can use this article as a guide to the best Seattle suburbs to buy a house in 2021.

Sammamish

Living in Sammamish offers diversity – there is a distinctly suburban feel, but there are also many stores, restaurants, coffee shops, and parks nearby where you can walk around and relax. The Sammamish area is very safe, family-friendly, and simply breathtaking. If you decide to buy a home here, you’ll have a wide selection of spacious homes to choose from, and many of them are new construction. Living here will ensure that you’re connected to nature all the time, as you’ll be surrounded by beautiful landscaping, hills, lakes, mountains, and trees. There are lots of bikers and pedestrians as this is generally an active community. There’s also a chance that you’ll be welcomed several times by locals as you move here since the sense of community is strong.

Duvall

Duvall is built along the Snoqualmie Valley River, and it’s the definition of small-town living. It’s quiet and adorable and one of the best Seattle suburbs to buy a house in 2021, especially if you like the rural feel and beautiful nature. If you want to grow your own vegetables, this place is worth considering. Many families and young professionals live here, as well as people with farm animals. The public schools are highly rated, and Duvall is generally considered one of the area’s safest suburbs. It’s a quaint old place with unique charm, deep Washington roots, and culture.

Living here will allow you to be close to many large towns and workplaces. If you’re an active person, it’s good to know that there are multiple bike trails across the area, and there’s also a hiking trail nearby. There are diverse dining options, festivals, classic car shows, summer concerts, and plenty of other entertainment options all year round. Main St. is where you’ll find several places to eat and drink coffee, the library, multiple parks, grocery stores, doctor’s offices, and much more.

Maple Valley

You should check Maple Valley if you’re seeking great value for your money and an affordable home. This charming place is especially appealing to family-oriented buyers because it’s served by the highly-rated Tahoma School District. It’s not only one of the state’s fastest-growing suburb areas but also an area with one of the highest median incomes per household in King County. Real estate agents confirm that plenty of new construction homes are available, including senior housing options, townhomes, and single-family residences in planned developments. Houses usually come with multiple-acre land where you can raise horses, cows, sheep, alpaca, etc.

Redmond

Redmond is best known as the location of the Microsoft headquarters and the “Bicycle Capital of the Northwest”. This area is a popular choice for tech workers since it’s home to many nationally known high-tech companies, including Tableau, Nintendo, SpaceX, and Hyperloop. Redmond is a magnet for successful businesses due to a lack of business taxes, unlike its neighboring towns.

If you’re considering buying a home here, you can find everything from rustic farmhouses to modern villas. The area offers increasing diversity and high quality of life with:

  • Good schools
  • A healthy economic base
  • Plenty of parks with a variety of recreational opportunities
  • Diverse shopping and dining options
  • Safe neighborhoods

Furthermore, arts and culture are dominant here with year-round entertainment and events. If you like live performances, you’ll love Redmond. Even though there are plenty of places to work here, a typical commute time is around 20 to 30 minutes if your workplace is in Seattle.

Shoreline

Shoreline is one of the best Seattle suburbs, located at the north end of the city. People living here like the RapidRide bus that takes them to downtown Seattle quickly. They also have easy access to Richmond Beach Park, and everything one may wish for. Shoreline has 14 beautiful neighborhoods and a strong sense of community. There are many social events, neighborhood projects, and volunteer opportunities, so one can adapt quickly. There’s always something going on here, so you could never be bored with all that’s happening around you. Shoreline has its own school district, with excellent public and private schools and a community college. There are many homes on the market, including contemporary ones built in the 1980s and newer.

Renton

Renton’s location is on the shores of Lake Washington, and it’s a place where families and businesses simply thrive. It offers lots of opportunities for work and pleasure. There are hundreds of software companies located right here and plenty of gorgeous parks, spacious playgrounds, and excellent schools. Renton has an impressive collection of public art and a popular vintage-style shopping center called The Landing. The most popular recreation area is Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park. It’s where you can swim, play volleyball and organize a picnic. You’ll also love The Cedar River Park, which has:

  • A giant playfield
  • Access to the Cedar River hiking trail
  • Renton Community Center
  • The Carco Theatre

Even though Seattle home prices have been on the rise for many years in a row, home seekers are glad to know that Renton has an extensive inventory of affordable homes. Housing options include everything from newer family developments, townhomes, new construction as well as vintage homes.

Interested in buying a home in one of these suburbs?

If you’ve already fallen in love with one of these places, you might want to start planning your long-distance relocation sooner rather than later. Thoroughly research each place and find out the crucial points which will help you settle in and adapt faster. Once you have all the needed information, and once you’ve found the perfect home, it’s time to organize your Washington move. To avoid losing any precious time, you should find reliable moving experts that can lead the process and make everything go as smoothly and stress-free as possible.

The bottom line

As you can see, all of these best Seattle suburbs offer significant benefits and various lifestyles to meet anyone’s needs. Good luck with buying a home in whichever suburb you find most suitable!

Black Creek Group Mexico – Corporate Profile

Black Creek Group Mexico - Corporate Profile

The Black Creek Group is an investment firm specializing in property management for individuals seeking informed advice for their real estate investment portfolios. The company is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, with satellite locations in Atlanta, Georgia, Newport Beach, California, Dallas, Texas, Rutherford, New Jersey, West Hartford, Connecticut, and Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, which is a suburb of Chicago.  In total they have 9 offices across North America (2 in Mexico).

The Black Creek Group utilizes the experience of veteran analysts and traders, all of whom bring a unique perspective when it comes to analyzing market fundamentals and commercial real estate trends to formulate their investment options. They are entrepreneurial and hands-on, which means they can act quickly in assembling high-quality portfolios for their investors.

The Black Creek Group is among the premier real estate investment managers operating within the United States, with an average of $67 Million $/SF across 29 markets and over $22 Billion properties bought or built. The firm is diverse in its investments, with a keen knowledge of regional dynamics that better leverage an investor’s ability to enter top-tier markets in the following real estate investment sectors:

Industrial – Investments in quality bulk and last-mile distribution warehouses in both high-barrier entry and secondary markets that have long-term growth potential. They firmly established relationships in their markets, which offers unique opportunities to carry out transactions at a swift pace for their investors. They primarily invest in both Class A and Class B industrial real estate.

Multifamily – Investments in suburban garden and mid-rise communities with an average of 200-600 units and located in high-growth markets that have limited new construction in the immediate area. They are dedicated to expanding their presence in supply-constrained areas with solid demographic and strong fundamentals.

Office – Investments in Class A and Class B multi-tenant buildings in highly populated suburban locations offering convenient access to amenities, public transit, and a highly-skilled workforce. They provide best in class service for tenants in supply-constrained central business districts and suburban-central areas with diversified tenants.

Retail – Investments in well-placed neighborhoods and community shopping centers focused on grocery and needs-based retail. The goal is to acquire retail investments where in-person shopping is still strongly desired by consumers and located in densely populated areas that consumer traffic still thrives and continues to grow.

INVESTMENT SOLUTIONS

The Black Creek Group has six investment solutions to choose from and ranges from diversification to an exclusive solution that was previously offered only to large institutions but can now be provided to individual investors.

Black Creek Diversified Property Fund

This fund is a perpetual-life real estate solution that offers investors access to the industrial, multifamily, office, and retail property sectors in one portfolio with a monthly income.

Black Creek Exchange

This solution is allowed under IRC Section 1031 and 721, whereby an owner of appreciated real estate may exchange an investment property for the acquisition of high-value commercial real estate property.

Black Creek Industrial REIT IV

This is a finite-life real estate investment solution where investors can access private real estate, mainly in high-value distribution warehouses.

Black Creek Industrial Fund

This is a perpetual-life, core-plus private investment solution managed on behalf of certain industrial investors and focused on investing in mass distribution and light industrial properties in key distribution markets throughout the United States.

Build-To-Core Industrial Partnerships

In this solution, investors can choose to join ventures with institutional partners seeking advantageous risk-adjusted returns through developing and/or repositioning industrial properties located in key distribution markets throughout the United States.

PREDEX

PREDEX invests in institutional U.S. private core real estate funds and employs a low-cost, passive strategy that now provides private investors access to this option.  Previously, only pension funds, insurance companies, endowments, and foundations were able to achieve stability and diversification-of-portfolio benefits that are challenging to find anywhere else except through the convenience of an interval fund, which is how the PREDEX solution works. An interval fund is an investment company that periodically offers to buy back a stated portion of its shares from shareholders based on a net asset value and continually offer those shares at a price based on the fund’s net asset value.

BLACK CREEK MEXICO SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY PHILOSOPHY

Since its founding in 1993, they have strived to do the right thing for the communities they are involved in and work closely with. They have a deep commitment to minimizing their environmental footprint and creating a positive impact on the communities they operate in. They have a history of sustainability, which includes a continuous evaluation of their environmental impact and the establishment of strategies that benefit social efforts in the community. They operate their business in a conscientious and environmentally aware manner by being energy efficient, finding ways to conserve water, protecting local wildlife habitats, and prevention and reduction of material waste when building properties.

Fostering mutually beneficial relationships within the communities within which they live and work is a simple ambition. The Black Creek Group furthers this aim by creating jobs in the markets they have offices and where they own and manage properties. This is another example of the civic-minded philosophies that drive the Black Creek Group to create a more positive impact in the day-to-day operation of their business transactions. They have cultivated a work culture that promotes employee health and well-being and even pays their employees for taking time off for community activities and volunteering at local charities and events.

Additionally, the Black Creek Group has proven its commitment to corporate social responsibility by placing great emphasis on the importance of ethics and proper business conduct by maintaining a global anti-corruption policy and through their corporate governance initiatives.

Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BlackCreekGroup

Building Our Bridge – Seattle Housing Authority Residents Crossing the Digital Divide

Housing Authority Seattle

The Seattle Housing Authority’s Rainier Vista community has been hosting dual-language Tea & Technology Talks since April of 2018 to seek resident input on a new computer skills program coming this summer. Building Our Bridge – Seattle Housing Authority Residents Crossing the Digital Divide is an SHA resident-led, City-funded initiative to bring digital literacy skills to the Oromo, Vietnamese and English-speaking tenants of this low-income family community in Seattle’s Rainier Valley.

Septuagenarian Edward Frasier III attended the 4th Tea & Technology Talk on Friday, February 15th, 2019 to discuss the project over cookies and beverages. Surveys of proposed class topics and volunteer pledge sheets were distributed, and Frasier remarked, “You know, when you get old, you forget things. It’s not that I don’t know; I just need a refresher.” 

Ben Wong, Elizabeth Kennedy, Dorene Cornwell – Building Our Bridge Project Team

The beautifully developed curriculum for the program has been generously donated by the Seattle Public Library. Topics over the next two years will be selected from Email, Mouse & Window, Keyboarding, Internet, MS Word and Resume-Writing, Social Media, The Source and Parent Engagement. The Seattle Public Library brought a Vietnamese Basic Computer Series to Rainier Vista in 2016, and a Somali series in 2018. 

There has been a buzz in the Rainier Vista Oromo community about parent engagement and use of the Seattle Public School system’s The Source. The Source opens on-line access to parents and guardians to their children’s attendance, assessment scores and secondary student assignment grades. By allowing parents to track their children’s progress, The Source helps students move more quickly into advanced learning options and get on the college track. In so doing, The Source addresses academic barriers faced by Children of Color in communities experiencing economic hardship. 

Computer skills classes at Rainier Vista in will be conducted in Oromo, Vietnamese and English cohorts, and the project hopes to open the program to Somali instruction in 2020. Representatives from each language community will have the important opportunity to shape the program by meeting to review resumes and conduct interviews for (6) bilingual computer instructors and computer instructor assistants. More than 45 applications have been received so far.

The Building Our Bridge project was created by three Seattle Housing Authority residents (Elizabeth Kennedy, Ben Wong and Dorene Cornwell) who wanted to expand the Full Life Care-Seattle Housing Authority Mobile Lab Project. For two years, the Mobile Lab Project brought a mobile computer lab with devices and instructors to residents of (9) Seattle Housing Authority Low Income Public High-rise and Senior buildings in North Seattle. 

Kennedy and Wong were instructors on the project, and they teamed up with Cornwell to bring the mobile lab to the Seattle Housing Authority’s immigrant and refugee communities in South Seattle. With the loan of (4) Windows laptops, (3) Chromebooks, a mobile hot spot, and (3) plastic tubs on wheels from community partner Full Life Care, it is poised to do just that.

The Seattle Housing Authority has supported the project with use of space for classes, and staff time from Rainier Vista Community Builder, Jen Calleja. One challenge the project is still trying to address is how to meet families’ needs for child care so parents can take classes. 

Like the Mobile Lab Project before it, Building Our Bridge is financed through the City of Seattle Technology Matching Fund grant. The Technology Matching Fund has seeded technology programs in the City for more than 20 years. 

Seattle Neighborhood Group has partnered with the project to act as fiscal agent. Located in Seattle’s Central District, Seattle Neighborhood Group has been building relationships and working to engage people to create safe neighborhoods for 25 years. “Building Our Bridge makes a vital difference in the lives of SHA residents by providing them with opportunities to develop job readiness and technical skills, and build the confidence needed to make a positive difference in their respective lives and communities.  Seattle Neighborhood Group is proud to be a collaborative member in this important project,” Linda Spain, Executive Director, Seattle Neighborhood Group.

This article was submitted by Elizabeth Kennedy, Project Manager for the Building Our Bridge Project.

Samantha Lepidi. Program Assistant; Elizabeth Kennedy, Project Manager Building our Bridge

Seattle Renters Criminal Records

Seattle City Hall Building

I am putting you on chargeable notice that since I have to rent to murderers (that has plea bargained, like O.J.) Arsonists, People that want to start a meth lab, tenants that have been evicted for non payment and property damage time and time again. There is no such thing as a Rental Application. YOU HAVE TAKEN COMPLETE CONTROL OF MY PROPERTY. Therefore, YOU need to be responsible for it. Going to see if Tim Eyman can get something going but until then anyone that wants to rent from me must bring with him/her a letter from each of you(signed) that you are responsible for any damage, and is like a co signer. I can’t ask how he expects to pay me, so you must guarantee me rent on time every month. My rent is all going to be tripled because my insurance is going to go sky high. So it’s blood on your hands to force this on someone who is trying to live on retirement and make an honest living. I would be afraid to even go into an apartment to show it, not knowing if he is really dangerous. The apartment house right beside me (I used to own it) has had 3 arsons, Easter there was a shooter shooting out of a window about 15 feet from my front porch. so get your reference and co signer papers ready. that is all I need. No applications will be asked for. Just your written assurance that you are responsible for his or her actions. What’s worse is you are putting all the neighbors life at risk. Endangering people who even go for walks around the block. You say asking about their criminal histories or how they expect to pay their rent is discriminating.

THE PEOPLE WHO ARE BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINST ARE THE LANDLORDS. SHAME. I always went through Rental Research for screening and it worked out. It wasn’t even me who decided who would be best to rent to but for sure I didn’t have to rent to a criminal. No he doesn’t deserve a place to live to the point of thinking WE all are responsible for his bad choices. I will refuse to rent to Mayor Murray because for you to send a referral would present a conflict of interest. But I would not want him around my great grand sons at this point in time.

Now for the mobile home and car dwellers. We already have that in Georgetown. They park a mobile home and the drug buyers come and go. I am enclosing a couple pictures I took thru my front gate Sunday. Is this really what you want all of Seattle to look like? I kept going out taking pictures and this mobile home left last night but another will be back.

Georgetown Seattle Trash

LL

Cash Me Out in Seattle – Your Ugly Home Buyer!

Seattle ugly homes cash me out

Real estate in the Seattle area is booming and prices are soaring. The prices in Seattle are climbing steadily since the market crash in 2008 and the market has rebounded in a way that has surprised many people. The median home price for Seattle real estate was an astounding $420,500 during the second quarter, compared to the national average of $239,167. Seattle real estate is selling at a record pace. This means that people who want to sell their homes, now is the time. It is a sellers market but sometimes moving quickly enough to get your home market ready can be difficult. Whether is be because you don’t have the money or the time, selling your home can be quite daunting.

Owning a home can sometimes be a huge financial burden. For some people being able to keep the house that they currently have can come at too huge of a financial cost to either themselves or their families. It can either be because they lost their job, or a divorce has them in financial dire straights, or maybe because they inherited a house that they don’t want to keep. For whatever reason unloading a troublesome property can bring about an enormous amount of relief. As of July 2016, there are currently 1,316 properties in the Seattle that are in some stage of foreclosure and this could have been prevented if the property was sold in a timely fashion. But sometimes selling a piece of property can be time consuming or tiresome. It can be expensive to update and renovate the house. People do not always have the money to make the necessary repairs to the house to attract buyers quickly enough. Most people do not want to move into a house that needs a ton of work. No seller wants their home to sit on the market for longer than a month especially when they need to recoup financially. Sellers do not realize that there are solutions available that can help them sell their home in a very short time frame.

The solution to this problem is easy. Cash Me Out Northwest has been serving the Seattle are real estate market for over a decade and has been the answer for homeowners looking to unload their burden quickly and efficiently. Their motto is “Keys for cash, no hassle!” which means that they offer stress free property liquidation. They will buy your property even if your house has zero (or even negative) equity. If your house has the following issues: poor condition that no bank is willing to finance any potential buyers, liens, code violations, legal problems attached to it, Cash Me Out Northwest will still buy it “as is.” There is no renovating or updating that you will have to do to the house. Cash Me Out Northwest will buy the property regardless of condition. Home owners can rest easy knowing that when it comes time to sell their homes, Cash Me Out Northwest will take care of the whole process from start to finish with little effort on the owners part.

The first step in the process is calling Cash Me Out. Make sure to schedule about 20 minutes for a conversation on the phone with a home buying expert. They will ask qualified questions about your home and your situation in order to get a better of idea of how they can help you to sell your home quickly or help you decide if the company is the right fit. This is also an opportunity for you to ask any questions you might have regarding the process. Ask as many questions as possible. Educating yourself is an important part of this process and the Cash Me Out experts will be able to answer your questions and put your mind at ease. The second step is a home consultation. An expert visits you at your home and will complete a walkthrough of both the inside and the outside of the property. Do not be concerned about the condition of the home. Once again, there is no judgment and Cash Me Out will buy the home regardless of condition. They will also leave you with a professional Market Analysis so you can know how they decide on a sales price. This will also be a useful tool if you decide not to sell with them and wish to use a traditional real estate agent instead. Based on that evaluation and that market analysis, a cash offer will be made within 24 hours. There is no haggling or hidden fees or costs. The offer amount is the total amount that you will net from the sale of the home. You can either accept the offer or reject it.

There are many reasons to use Cash Me Out Northwest especially if you are trying to sell a home in the Seattle market. It is a very competitive market right now and for people who need quick cash for their home, using this company can help expedite the process. Now is the time to sell, and it never hurts to contact them to at least know where you stand with your home. Cash Me Out has even been able to help clients sell the most unsellable properties on the market. They can help you get the maximum amount from your property with absolutely no effort on your part. Do not hesitate and contact them to get the most value out of your property.

Call them now: (206)202-9682
Cash Me Out Northwest serves all of Washington State.

Seattle Landlords Face New Rules

Seattle new landlord rules

Seattle Landlords don’t just face new rules, they actually have had their rentals taken away from them. Biggest land grab I ever heard of. The only thing now that a landlord has, is his name still listed as the owner and has to pay the inflated property tax or they will take it completely away form him. I believe this is a set of rules that will fall under its own weight. I want to state my source of information is taken from the Times paper and from emails from the Mayor and some city council members. I want to make it clear that I AM NOT MAKING THIS STUFF UP. Even the Mayor and Council members know this wont work but are trying to make the tenants dependent on them so they will vote for them. They have promised the tenants a little too much this time all at once trying to make them think they actually care about what they call discrimination. Don’t even know what that word means anymore. Absolutely anything a landlord does now he will be discriminating and can be sued. WOW They have just hired two new staffers to the tune of $200,000 to enforce the rules and the Times says the city will have to ramp up its sting operations. Might as well laugh here, wont help to cry. lol

Tenants must be dancing in the streets. The tenants union must be getting a lot of new members. Boy oh boy they are going to show those greedy old white landlords that they are in charge. Some old sayings are still true today. “Be careful what you wish for, it might come true”. Here is what the tenants have got from these new rules. From the day a landlord puts his rental on the market he loses all control of it. The tenants are running the rental business, not the landlord that owns the property. I have no idea what a new application will look like but the old legal applications are no good anymore. FYI I have a pile of applications that I have always had out for people to pick up and fill in and leave. I look them over and the ones that I think can afford it I contact them and they come back for a personal interview and a through look through the property. Then they have to pay $60 and I send it all to a company called Rental Research. They get the $60, not me. They can tell immediately if someone has a real poor rental record, if they have been evicted, if they have a criminal history, and if they have a good record of employment. Some people simply don’t make enough money to make it possible to pay the rent and have anything left to live on. NOT A LANDLORDS PROBLEM.

Here are what landlords CANNOT ASK ANY PROSPECTIVE TENANT.

New Ordinance:  http://seattle.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=2802901&GUID=1B597DBF-2FC5-4766-BAC5-F5E8F511F3D6&FullText=1 (Ordinance 125114)

  • Has he ever been evicted.
  • Does he have a criminal record.
  • Does he have a good work history.
  • If they show up with a months rent they can’t be turned down. You have to rent to first come, first served or you are discriminating.
  • You can’t ask for a lump sum damage deposit (too hard on the tenant) He can pay it a little each month. IN OTHER WORDS WE CAN’T GET A DAMAGE DEPOSIT OF ASK HIM/HER A THING TO BASE WHETHER TO RENT TO HIM/HER AT ALL.  I have always charged  a damage deposit up front of a thousand dollars. This is to insure they wont move out the first night with the washer, dryer, fridge and stove. After they stay five or six years I have never kept one dime of the damage deposit. I expect to have to replace the carpet and paint. But to let a guy move in that you don’t know a thing about with maybe $10.00 on a damage deposit, it would take him 100 months to pay that. Dream on.

The prospective tenant is entitled to move in if he depends on unemployment benefits, social security, child support payments, veterans benefits, and any other assistance programs. No employment record good or bad is needed.

I stand corrected if I am wrong here, but anyone I know on social security gets around $1100 a month. This is NOT enough to pay rent, utilities, and have anything to eat. Unemployment benefits don’t last forever and child support payments are worthless. If child support payments have to be honored then the guy paying the child support should have to be the ones agreeing to make the rent payments. Also, just because you have a paper showing how much child support you are supposed to get doesn’t mean you get it. NOT THE LANDLORDS PROBLEM.

That just touches a few of the new really important rules that makes it so a landlord loses all his rights to his property completely. I want to state here that as a landlord I am not and never will be Mother Teresa. I think it’s fine if you want to give someone free rent but it should not be forced on you. Before this batch of rules were published a week or so ago, the city started the scheme over a year ago. Every person with a rental, had to register their rental and pay $175.00. THEN we are told we have to pay for an inspector to come and look it over and tell us what he/she thinks needs to be done. It has nothing to do with what the tenant or the landlord might think. How is that fair? The city encouraged at that time for anyone with a Mother in law or fixed up garage to make them available to rent. Prior to that they had shut down the mother in law units. lol But heck we can get $175 dollars each so the more the better. That was a legalized shake down, and if that wasn’t bad enough they now put out the landlords new rules. Can you imagine having a nice little apt connected right to your house and you have to take in the first person that wants a place to rent? He/she can have a criminal history, a past of evictions, no job history of any kind. OMG what were they thinking? They want the tenants to vote for them and be dependent on them. There are more tenants than landlords so this is democracy gone wild.

The Times published a nice tid bit. Big rich developers wont have a problem. They will never have to have any of these tenants that would fail any kind of a fair application. They just pay the city a big chunk and use it as a tax write off and laugh all their way to the bank. But the paper says they are wondering about enforcement. It says the City will have to ramp up its sting operations. They are having to hire two new staffers to the tune of $200,000 to help with the enforcement of just the first come first serve rule.

A landlord with a duplex that he thought was a good investment will have to take first come first served, no questions asked. Clean the place up really good and pay for the city to inspect it. The landlord will need to make any changes they tell him too and lets say he gets a guy that wants to practice his drums, and maybe have a little band practice, or a guy that wants to move in some junkers and work on cars in his yard, or a lady with a bunch of little kids to run through his flower beds. lol

This is not even fair to the good tenants out there and I have rented my little house out for 40 years right beside me. My criteria was getting someone who had a good job that was near by because I figured they would stay the longest. Most have always been here 6 years or so, til they get married, or buy a house of their own. It’s a big job to get a place ready to rent. I pay a cleaning lady $600 to scrub it top to bottom and hire someone to make any repairs necessary. I can’t afford to rent to someone who will only be there a month or two. As for the first come, I want to give you a good example. I had my for rent sign out, applications in a pile, cute little two bedroom house with a bath fitter bathroom. I turned lots down right at the top because there was no way they made enough to stay afloat if they paid their rent. Some were two people wanting to share the rent. I learned this wont work. One will pay his half, but the other wont, and it’s an on going fight and you never get all your rent. It costs approximately $4500 to do a legal eviction. Out of a big stack of applications I chose a black guy. City seems to think we don’t want them as renters. I chose him over lots of others because he had a good job nearby and could walk to work. It was a perfect fit. But under first come first served he would have lost out. So you are not helping blacks that are hard working and honest.

One more little scam is the rent vouchers. I had two woman with them come look. One was a little black lady with a small child. She loved the place, big yard etc. but my rent was $850 and she was allowed $1400 for rent. That is three hundred a month more than my social security check that I worked 68 years for. lol Instead of being happy and saying she wanted the place, she did not want to give up the $1400 she was allowed. I told her to go find a nicer  place but she said mine was the nicest she had looked at and maybe we could make a deal. There was no deal to make if everything was on the up and up. She implied that I could cash her voucher and take my money. Give her the change. I thought something is wrong here. We taxpayers are paying your rent not letting you get extra cash on top. I said my rent was $850, cash or check only so she left. Later called wanting to come back and make a deal, I hung up. Sooooo. They get this voucher and then try to find something cheaper and get the landlord to cash it and either take a kick back for himself and give her the rest to spend by trying to do a little under the table wheeling and dealing.

I think the only protection a landlord has is to not rent out his property. Sell it or leave it vacant (they may make that illegal too). You cannot hand over your keys to the first person who staggers in with the cash (heck the buddies at the corner tavern could all chip in, then come party once he got moved in). They could move out the fridge, stove, and mess it up in less than a week. A bum is a bum, a scammer is a scammer, a good renter doesn’t mind having his past checked out.

The city wants to make it easy for tenants to not be turned down but when my tenant moves, I am going to never rent it out again. I will move into it myself. It’s better than my house and I will use mine for storage. This will not increase the number of rentals in Seattle. This will not help good reliable tenants who will be at work and the welfare gal will be first to come, but you have to finish your shift. The day of reckoning will come and actually then renters will lose the most. When they head out with their list rules to show old Whitey they are in charge, old Whitey wont have anything to rent.

I think this violates the law of contracts somehow because we can’t make any agreements with the tenants at all this way. A little landlord is like a little business so if that set of rules can be enforced on us the little car dealer down the street that sells cars, with nothing down should not be allowed to ask a prospective buyer anything. He cant ask him if he has been in jail for running a chop shop, He cant ask him if he has ever had a car repossessed has a job or what his employment record is. Unless it is on all businesses then they are DISCRIMINATING against landlords.

FYI. I don’t feel anyone is entitled to a thing they didn’t work for. You are where you are because of your choices. I don’t feel sorry for the little black girl with 7 babies. She learned when she got pregnant the first time what caused it. After years of welfare and housing vouchers, help with utility bills has just made them expect the government to provide for them. The government has no money. They have to take it from the taxpayer to give to you. I did not work all those years and end up with a little rental to supplement my social security check thinking oh gee just cant wait to let a criminal or someone who has never gone to work a day in their life move in. My motto is unless I am married to you, gave birth to you, or adopted you I OWE YOU NOTHING. Somehow the government wants to say that blacks and LGBT people are better than us ordinary whites. They get to go to the head of the line. They get the favored treatment. They are no better or any worse and the playing field should be level. If the government wasn’t trying to control us to win votes we would not even have a problem.

Please readers, think about what I have written carefully even if it does not affect you today, think about what a person living alone in a house might get hit with. You might be required to take in a homeless person. Don’t laugh, its no worse than what they just did to people who own a rental. Remarks will be most welcome.

LILLY

Seattle Micro-Housing

Seattle Micro Housing

The Seattle Council is considering allowing micro-housing in the city. If you’re not in the loop of what micro-housing is exactly it’s a much smaller option of living. Typically they are the size of a bedroom and they have common areas like kitchens and bathrooms that everyone shares. Yesterday the Seattle Council held a public discussion for comments and feedback. As you know with the Seattle Council, it’s ultimately their decision if it goes through or not. Over the years I have learned one thing and that is the Seattle Council will do what they want. It’s about the money and less about the people. This solution will certainly move forward but will be regulated so they can track the money easier.

Supporters suggest it’s an affordable solution to housing. While I like their ambitiousness, I assure you it won’t be cheap or even affordable. It will be expensive and Seattle residents will continue to pay their crazy rent. The demand is high for this so why would they make it cheap? Think about it.

Even though I understand the strain of more people in the city and even more parking issues, I do support micro-housing. Not because “it’s going to be affordable” (because it won’t) – I support it on the principle that land owners should be able to do what they want with their property. It’s also very common in other countries and we’re just behind the times on many issues including micro-housing.

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Seattle Home Prices On The Rise

Seattle Home Prices Going Up
There has been lots of news recently about home values increasing.  I know some have increased in my area.  The Seattle Times is reporting this as well.  According to the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home-price index, Seattle jumped 1.9% in July.  Of course very few mention that the market is down 18% from 2007.  I guess by not mentioning that it builds customer confidence.  Also according to S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home-price index, there were only 3 large metro cities that made gains.  These were Seattle, Tampa Florida, and Washington DC.

If you read the Emerald City Journal, you probably know I’m not a fan of buying a home.  I just don’t understand how someone could pay $250K for a home and another $350K in just interests and think they are going to make a profit on that.  Add in the property taxes and it’s just ridiculous the amount you pay in the end.  The “American Dream” is alive and well I guess.  I’m happy people are still falling for this because these are suckers paying for all the roads, schools, and city expenses.  America needs you to believe.

 

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Seattle Micro Housing

Seattle Micro-Housing

The Seattle Council is considering allowing micro-housing in the city. If you’re not in the loop of what micro-housing is

First Time Home Ownership Seattle

First Time Homeowner Seattle

I recently read an article by the Seattle Times about first time home ownership. It was written by Katherine Reynolds Lewis (Washington Post).  In short, it’s an article about the things you should have in order before buying your first home. If you’ve been on the Emerald City Journal awhile you know my view on the subject and that’s it’s a horrible liability.  You can read the article here.  The article by the Times covered the basics like looking at your credit report, consider talking to a tax advisor, stick to your budget, finding a good real estate agent, and research a good lender.  It’s pretty obvious stuff when considering buying a home.

The things it doesn’t cover is that homes are a liability – not an investment.  They are also rarely opportunities (unless you’re paying it all off completely without a lender).  You need to remember that when you purchase your first home that you’re not going to get your money back.  Here is the simple most basic formula.  Take your purchase price and multiply it by (2.5 – your interest fees) + yearly property tax X 30 years.   This number is what you’ll need to sell it at to get your money back.  Honestly,  do you really think you’re home is going to appreciate that much?  The truth is…. never.  This doesn’t even include the repairs down the road, updating the property, and the higher costs of just living in a larger space (heating, water, sewer) compared to renting.

Of course not everyone will agree with that statement above.  Most critiques say “well at least you’ll have something at the end” compared to renting which is just “burning money”.  My argument is that you’d be more wealthy renting.  You’re paying about 33% less renting so if you put the rest into a savings account (compared to giving the bank interest payments) at the end of 30 years you’ll have way more money saved.  You could actually pay cash for a home at that time if wanted.

 

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Seattle Micro Housing

Seattle Micro-Housing

The Seattle Council is considering allowing micro-housing in the city. If you’re not in the loop of what micro-housing is

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