Did you know that before you even step foot onto American soil one or many estate agents may have already had their hands in your pockets? It’s called a builder’s registration and it works like this:

• When a potential home buyer, we’ll call them Buyer A, is interested in a new construction community Buyer A generally contacts the person, we’ll call them Broker B, that was advertising the information.
  
• Broker B then gets your information and knows which community you are interested in.
  
• Broker B calls the builder and fills out what’s called a “broker registration” and that basically says that Buyer A is a client of Broker B and if Buyer A purchases a property in that community Broker B gets paid the commission even if Buyer A doesn’t know about it.
  
• Broker B doesn’t even have to be there for this to happen Broker B just needs Buyer A’s information registered via fax or e-mail before Buyer A arrives at the property.

Now this is not a bad thing in the event that it’s YOUR chosen estate agent that is registering you however, it’s usually not. Because builders are allowed to pay a commission to brokerages all over the world it’s usually an estate agent in your own country that you spoke with, or even your travel agency that knows your coming to the states, that obtained your information and registered you with virtually every builder within a 50 mile radius of where you are staying. This affects you because if you end up working with a great estate agent here in the states and they take you around and show you all the new communities and guide you through the whole process, when they try to register you they find out somebody else that you don’t even know or trust has already done so. It complicates the whole process for you and the agent and also affects you if that agent has offered you a rebate or incentive, you may not be eligible for that anymore. It happens everyday and we see it all the time. Buyers beware of who is taking your information, not just here in the states but in your country as well. The last thing you want to do is become somebody’s paycheck!

Originally Posted at www.ThePinkFlamingo.info a Florida Vacation Home Online Community

Before You hire just any management company to take care of one of your mostsizable assets there are some serious factors you should consider. Make sure you get the facts and interview at least three companies before hiring one. These are some questions you should always ask to help you navigate through the potential pitfalls that could arise form hiring the wrong company.

1.How long have you been in business?

This is an extremely important question to ask because if the company is new or has not been around for at least 3 years you may run into financial problems within the company which means if they go out of business and your 3000 miles away, what happens to your home? Try to find a company with a track record to avoid this major pitfall.

2.How many properties do you manage?

Whether a company manages 10 properties or 100 properties the important thing to know is that they are equipped to handle the properties that they have taken on. What often happens with management companies is they take on more properties than they can handle and in return you and your home get neglected. Too many houses, not enough staff. That’s a problem.

3. Can you provide at least three references?

This is so important! So many people don’t ask management companies for references. You are hiring this company to handle probably one of your biggest assets, wouldn’t you like to know how their current clients feel about them first? If the company is unable to provide you with at least three solid references than I would strongly urge you to stay away from that company. If they are making their customers happy then their customers will surely want to brag about it to you.

4. Can you provide at least three booking reports for a home comparable to mine?

A booking report is a print out that shows all of the weeks a home was booked up for over the past year. You can ask for specific ones comparable to the home you are purchasing or ask for a broad range of them. Salespeople can lie about how many weeks your property will book but paper evidence will always show you the truth. Be sure you get these before signing up with them. It’s better for the company to quote you less booked weeks and book more than to quote you more and book less.

5. What are your fees and are you willing to match other quotes?

Everything is negotiable. Don’t let them take advantage of you because they think you have to make a decision before you go home. Let them know you are shopping around and you are going to take the best offer. Get all of your offers in writing otherwise, there is no way to prove that you have received better offers. Don’t make the mistake of thinking a lower price means better service. Be sure to take in consideration the track record of the company before going with a cheaper less reputable company. You do get what you pay for.

6. How many of your bookings come from tour suppliers vs. retail?

It’s very important you know about this. Management companies get their bookings two different ways. The first way is from a tour supplier; this is a fancy word for a travel agency. 80% of most of their bookings will come from a travel agency and you will not get the high rates that were quoted to you by the company. Tour suppler bookings are always discounted because of the volume of bookings they send. The other way they get bookings is through their direct efforts and marketing. This is where you will get the higher rates that are usually quoted to you on paper. So keep in mind if the majority of your bookings are coming from tour suppliers the majority of your rates are going to be much less than the retail rates.

7. Do you have a 24-hour emergency line?

In the event of an emergency (power outage, locked out, broken air unit, etc) it is absolutely essential to your guests that someone can be reached 24 hours a day. Make sure to ask if this number rings to a real person or a pager. It’s best to have a real person on the other end of the phone. Your guests will appreciate it much more and will be more likely to come back again if the service was good.

8. Are you located within 15 minutes of my home?

This goes with the question above. If something were to happen and it required immediate assistance how long will it take someone to get out to the home? It’s best to stick with a company who is no further than 10-15 minutes away. It also makes it much easier for your guests when picking up keys.

9. Do you charge a cancellation fee?

Beware of these sneaky fees hidden in the sales contract. There is usually a fee that is assessed to you if you choose to leave before your designated contract period. A company that wants to lock you in and make you pay to leave is not a company I would recommend going with. If you are not happy with the service and they are not delivering you should be able to cancel with reasonable notice and be released free of charge. Obviously if the company is doing their job properly and you are satisfied you will not want to leave. Be sure to find out their cancellation policy before signing that dotted line.

10. Do you have a quality assurance department?

This is a dedicated team of people that the management company has hired to go out and inspect your home before and after every guest arrives to make sure nothing has been stolen, broken or vandalized. If a company does not have a quality assurance person going out to the property before and after arrivals I recommend not going with that company. Too many problems could arise that you may not find out about until it’s too late.

So you want to purchase a holiday villa here in the states and your plan is to buy it and rent it out to short term renters while your not using it. You have it all figured out, your estate agent has got you all excited about how you’re going to receive a cash flow on the property and it will pay for itself.

I hate to be the one to tell you this but they lied to you. It’s one of the biggest myths you are going to hear when you come to Florida to buy a vacation home. Realtors and management companies often tell you this because they want to make the sale and they think it’s what you want to hear. It may be what you want to hear but it’s simply not usually true.

When you turn your property over to a management company to be rented out you can expect that rental income to only offset your expenses and reduce your payment but certainly not bring you in an income. With all the related expenses to management and owning a home it’s just simply not possible unless you pay all cash for the property and do not hold a mortgage. The reason being is that the average booking on a villa is about 20 weeks per year. After you pay out taxes, management fees and cleaning fees there just simply isn’t much money left. With bookings being down due to the economy it’s just not enough cash to cover all the expenses.

You should strongly consider your financial situation before you buy based on the full load of home expenses just in case. Beware of any agents or management companies that tell you any different, they are just trying to get you to buy.

originally posted at www.thepinkflamingo.info

Loma Vista, one of the popular short term rental vacation home communities in Davenport, FL; recently made its way into the news yesterday. According to the ABC news story two twenty something Davenport, FL teachers were charged with possession of marijuana and hauled off to jail. . . the worst part is that the pot was first discovered on one of the students that attended that school.

Who does that? I'm certainly not the type to judge other people but I'm a Mom and this is just ridiculous, if you want to smoke pot in your free time (and I'm certainly not saying you should!) then I think teaching is just not the profession for you! Teachers are expected to be role models to our children and at this point I don't know who would make a worse role model, these gals or Brittany Spears? All I know is that some animals appear to be smarter than some people. I'm putting in a request for the camel. . .