John Ziemba

OK, your going to rent now. How do you pick an apartment or rental property. Lets look at the physical property and what you need to know. The best potential property that is the best is the one that fits your needs the best.

Let's start with the two most basic features of any properties.

Bedrooms- Depending on your needs this will influence your situation. Many people would like an extra bedroom. You need to understand what the purpose of the bedrooms are, in many cases a loft or den can serve the same purpose. A den or loft can allow you to set up an office type area, have extra storage and sometimes even provide the sleeping area sometimes needed. Most of the time this feature will cost less then a full bedroom, this is an easy way to save money.

Bathrooms- If you would like a second bath room consider looking a property with a half bath. If you do not have guests that spend the night a half bath may allow you to have the privacy you desire and the half bath for the guests to use while they are visiting.

Take a look at some other things that may affect your decision

Pets- Do you have pets? Make sure that the rentals you are looking at will allow pets. If they don't no need to waste your time.

Furniture Layout- Will your furniture fit in the property your looking at? This is very important if you already have furniture, you may need to measure it and take those measurements with you.

Kitchen- Does the kitchen layout work for your needs? Do you cook a lot? Then you may need a larger kitchen with ample storage space.

Eating Area- Do you need a formal area to setup a table? If you do then this will be an important. Some rentals have a formal area to set up a table others do not and you would have to eat in the living room.

Other things you might miss

Water Heater- This may not seem like a big deal, but depending on the size and type of the water heater this could be a big problem. If you have an electric water heater you need to realize that your electric bill will be significantly higher. If you have a smaller water heater and there are two people living in the home, the second person may not have hot water.

Washer and Dryer- Would you like to have an in unit washer and dryer, then this will be a must have. In the smaller units this can be difficult to find and you may have to use a common area coin operated one.

Air Conditioning & Heating- Most apartment and smaller condo rentals have window or sleeve units. If the noise of a window unit is bothersome or if you desire central AC then it is important to eliminate properties that don't fit your needs. It is important to notice how many ac units that are in the unit, typically a separate window unit is needed in each room. Some associations will not allow you to place supplemental ac units in the windows. This may lead to warm summer nights. Also the type of heating is important to notice. Most single family homes have central gas forced air heating. In condos and apartments there are several different types of heating including hot water baseboard, electric baseboard (not that common) or central hot water forced air.

I hope these items will help you make a better decision.

I am always here to help.

John Ziemba
Realtor
Keller Williams Team Realty
847-217-0480
Realtor@JohnZiemba.com
www.JohnZiemba.com

So you have followed my the steps in my previous post Selling? Thinking a short sale is an option, here's what you need to know and now your COMPLETE package has been submitted to the bank. Now what?

Typically after the first meeting of a client I have them sign an authorization allowing me to communicate with the bank on their behalf. This is a requirement as the banks will not talk to an agent about someone's account without a signed authorization. Most likely I have been in communication with the bank making sure that I have all the correct phone numbers and that the package and authorization has been sent to the correct departments.

Banks are just as dysfunctional as our government. If a home is in the foreclosure process (3 missed payments and legal proceedings have started), I communicate with both the bank's attorney to let them know we are processing the short sale and I give them my contact information along with the seller's attorney. The different departments of the bank do not always communicate with each other so I make sure to let everyone know whats going on.

DISCLAIMER: In IL properties typically take 1 year to go through the whole foreclosure process, we also have round table closings in which lawyers represent both the buyer and seller. This is different in every state.

I typically call the bank twice a week to check on the file. Often they will loose documents in the process and most of the time some documents need to be updated. Depending on the bank the actual order of steps may very but the process is typically the same. After all the documents are received the file is typically assigned to a negotiator. This is a milestone as the process takes from 30-60 days for this to happen. Once this happens there is an actual person to talk with that is able to let me know exactly whats going on. In addition a broker pricing opinion (BPO) is order by the bank. A BPO is a mini appraisal completed by a real estate agent. The BPO is one of the most important parts of the process that can often create big problems. I will write more about this in another post.

During this time the negotiator is making sure the file is complete (all the paperwork is update) and that the BPO valuation is inline with the sales price. The negotiator is looking through all the selling fees required to close the transaction and finding out the final amount the bank needs to net. The negotiator will then contact all the parties and let them know if the short sale has been approved or declined. If the file is declined then typically the bank is asking for more money or is refusing to pay for some fees. We can

Assuming that the negotiator approves the short sale they will issue a packet letting everyone know what the amount the bank must receive and when the property must close by. If this closing does not take place by the approved date the buyer may have to pay a penalty for every day the closing is delayed.

The process of a short sale is not very difficult but it does require precession and patience to complete. If you have any other questions about a short sale, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thanks,

John Ziemba
Realtor
Keller Williams Team Realty
847-217-0480
Realtor@JohnZiemba.com
www.JohnZiemba.com

Did you serve outside the country for a period of 90 days between December 31st 2008 and May 1st, 2010?

Members of the uniformed services, members of the Foreign Service and employees of the intelligence community are eligible for this. The tax credit gives a first time home buyer $8000 and move up buyer $6500. There are limitations and restrictions on this and you can visit the official IRS Information Page. This is a great opportunity for those who have helped our country take advantage of this tax credit.

If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

I look forward to helping you,

John Ziemba
Realtor
Keller Williams Team Realty
847-217-0480
Realtor@JohnZiemba.com
www.JohnZiemba.com

With the decline of real estate prices in the greater Chicagoland area many people are considering performing a short sale in order to sell their home. Here is what you need to know.

What is a Short Sale?

A short sale is when a bank will accept less then the amount owed for the property and allow a new buyer to purchase the property.

What do you need to complete a short sale?

1. Hardship- The seller must be able to document some type of hardship. This may include a loss of a job, job transfer, divorce, death, reduction in employment, birth of a child. This is not an exhaustive list but an example of some different hardships that may exist.

2. Documentation- The seller must be able to document the hardship. The lender will require that you submit documentation proving that you do infact have a hardship. The lender will typically ask for the following documents, 2 years past tax returns, 2 years W2 forms, last 2 bank statements from all bank accounts, paycheck stubs or unemployment compensation, financial statement showing current financial situation of the seller and a hardship letter describing the situation of the seller.

3. A Good Real Estate Agent- A good real estate agent will help you gather all the information and prepare the correct documentation to submit to the bank. In addition to the documents the seller provides, the listing agent will need to provide a copy of the listing agreement, a copy of a contract signed by all parties, an information release form, proof of the buyers financing, any and all addendums to the contract or listing agreement and the mls sheet. This will all be sent to the bank via fax to their processing department.

4. A Valid Offer- A bank will typically not do anything with the file until a buyer executes a signed contract and provides proof of buyer financing.

After all the documentation is gathered it will then be presented to the bank for their review. I will explain the process the lender takes in my next post. Have any other questions about a short sale feel free to contact me.

Here is my next post, Submit the Short Sale to the Bank, Now What?

John Ziemba
Keller Williams Team Realty
847-217-0480
Realtor@JohnZiemba.com
www.JohnZiemba.com

As a real estate agent I often help people who are not yet ready to purchase a home, find a place to rent. From those experiences I wanted to share with you frequently asked questions and other things I believe that are important related to renting.

Typically when first contacted I ask the person to fill out a 4 page application and I suggest they get a credit report and criminal background history report. Our office performs this for a fee of $50 and then the client knows any issues that maybe on their credit report. A separate credit report and background check is usually required for all people over the age of 18 who will be living in the apartment.

As a landlord myself, having this presented to me for a client is very important. Here is how I analyze the worthiness of a client.

1. Income

2. Credit History

3. Truthfulness on application

4. Prior Criminal Record

5. Current Financial Situation

1. Income for me personally, I like to see a gross income of 3 times the monthly rent. For example if the monthly rent is $1000 then I usually want to see someone with a $3000 month gross income. Gross income is the amount before taxes and net income is usually about 2/3rds of the gross income or for this example $2000.

2. Credit History, it is often said past performance does not indicate future results but credit history can show a landlord how well you manage your money. The single biggest issue that lowers credit scores is not paying your bills on time. You can have a tremendous amount of debt on your credit cards and have a very high credit score just by paying your bills on time. If you have collections or other financial issues on your report, you better be able to give a good explanation about it.

3. Truthfulness, to me is the #1 reason I will decline an application. If I find that a potential tenant has lied on an application it is an automatic disqualification for me. I feel if they are lying to me about something, then they have something to hide that may be an issue down the road. BE HONEST on your application, most landlords are used to working with clients who may have issues on their credit report.

4. Prior Criminal Record, since I require a criminal background check for my tenants, anything that a person might have done in their past will come up. If I see a pattern of repeated criminal activity, I do not believe that this potential tenant will be a good fit. If a person does have issues in their past I will require an explanation. I have found that by requiring a criminal background check that people with issues in their past simply move on and do not consider the property.

5. Current Financial Situation, when filling out an application there are usually financial questions involved. In addition credit reports will also show you the debts incurred by the potential tenant. For credit card debt the minimum monthly payment is shown on the report. If I add all this up combined with the rent and other values I will use for expenses I need to see that the person can afford to pay the rent. Also, it is very important that the potential tenant have the FULL security deposit at lease signing and first months rent when the keys are given to the property. When a potential tenant contacts me as says they do not have enough money for the security deposit, a red flag, goes off. This typically tells me the person has little or no savings and they may be a high risk tenant. Even though most people may live paycheck to paycheck, not having enough money to cover a security deposit shows the inability of the person to manage their finances.

I hope this all helps in your search for a rental.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.

John Ziemba
Realtor
Keller Williams Team Realty
847-217-0480
Realtor@JohnZiemba.com
www.JohnZiemba.com