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[quote=temeculaguy] I really think there is more to the story as far as the company goes, because of all the times I’ve been there, you have trouble finding a parking spot and even though it’s huge inside, sometimes getting a table is a problem.[/quote]

Probably, the DW and I were discussing the fact that Pat and Oscar’s (Temecula) was often crowded. And we were regulars.

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[quote=temeculaguy]My reasoning at the time was I needed my cash because my trashed repo needed me to put cash into it to make it livable and I was scared about the coming apocolypse due to the many wing nut posters here talking about spam and ammo.

Well despite all the prognostications of the wasteland and overbuilt Temecula that I was buying in, the opposite occurred. [/quote]

TG: I really want to be on-board with you and your Pollyanna view of Temecula – as you know I’m fairly heavily ‘invested’ in Temecula.

But what I see is continued financial devastation and dare I say falling demographics. Foreclosures galore, businesses struggling.

I was shocked to learn Pat and Oscar’s shut down Friday in Temecula.

I’m not suggesting it’s that much better in other areas, I’ll just be happy if Temecula holds steady at this point.

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Well, if nothing else I hope your not surprised. I mean, we are talking about a realtor. Every time I write the word ‘realtor’ I cringe thinking about that phony ad where they try to educate the public on the correct pronunciation of that word ‘realtor.’

Q: How do you know when a realtor is lieing?

A: Their lips are moving.

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That’s what the prop mgmt kept telling me – the price is fine.

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[quote=earlyretirement]I agree with the others (especially EconProf’s post) that you most likely need to lower your price until you get it rented out.

The market has a way of telling you what fair value is. Also, you have to really objectively and subjectively evaluate your property vs. others on the rental market.

Is there anything that is obviously negative on it vs. other properties in the area? Bad decor, ugly bathrooms, dirty, etc? I know some owners that don’t objectively do a comparison on their property vs. what else is on the market.

I compare it to parents and their kids. No parent wants to admit their kid is ugly. And even parents that have ugly kids, probably don’t think they are ugly. Many think they are very beautiful when they are scary (think Seinfelt episode on “stunning baby”). It can be the same with properties.

Also, what is the make up of the property management fee? Do you pay a monthly flat fee to pay the bills? And then a percentage of all rentals? If so, they aren’t really making too much unless they book it.. No? What kind of rates are you paying? How much is the property manager actually making not renting it out?

Also, what competition for property managers is there in the area? I agree sometimes the property manager is to blame but many times it’s just owners that either have properties that are substandard or trying to charge too much relative to the condition of the property. Basis supply and demand issue.

I’m not saying that is the case with yours because I don’t know your case. But it clearly does you NO good to have it sit empty.

Also, how does your property manager go about advertising and getting new clients? Have you talked to other owners that they manage?

A good tip sometimes is to do a bit of detective work and have a friend contact the property manager to set up viewings that they have and set up several including yours and other comparable properties that they manage on the same day and just see how what they say during your visit vs. other property visits. It could be worth the time to do something like that.[/quote]

I really took an objective look, and I studied the market closely and like has been mentioned I came in at market value.

I had others go through the house and tell me honestly what they thought. They all said the same thing – the house is immaculate. Newer kitchen, new carpet, paint, outlets, switches, toilets…the list goes on and on.

Very good location, quiet street – all the right ingredients.

Prop Mgmt fees are $395 for tenant placement, then about $110 per month including eviction insurance.

I interviewed over 10 prop mgmt companies before deciding on the one I chose.

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[quote=EconProf]30 showings and not one application? The market is telling you something here.
If you had lowered the rent after 10 showings, maybe one of the next 20 lookers would have applied.[/quote]

Around Labor Day I went to the prop mgmt company and said: let’s lower the rent, or do some kind of incentive.

They said: let’s hold off, were gonna get this rented.

I did get a call today from the prop mgmt company telling me it is rented. I’ll believe it when tenants are moving in and if it is true, it took much longer than I would have expected.

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The rent is $1595.

I was told $1650 was the upper limit.

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Ren: Those statements are contradictory, but I should mention I would consider the low rent houses outliers.

And I’m not even sure of their condition.

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On a few occasions I’ve had the opportunity to talk with prospective tenants and in each case they were in foreclosure.

One of the issues I’ve been facing (I suspect) is that many of these people are probably coming from a house they couldn’t afford and is likely larger than the house I’m renting.

A form of austerity I guess – and they ain’t happy about it.

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The house was available prior to school starting. One of the things we noticed is that people move in and out of houses all year long. Summer may be a peak season, but we see U-Haul trucks in our hood almost weekly year round.

Property Management is telling me to hold off. I have ZERO applications after probably 30+ shows. Yes, the house is small (approx. 1500 sq ft) by California fantasy land standards.

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Windshield tear offs:

http://www.clearviewvisionarmorllc.com/windshield.php

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I’ve looked into this before – not so much for bullets, but to protect the passenger compartment from foreign object intrusion.

The best reasonable approach I could come up with is mylar tear off’s. I think a few layers of the tear off’s might stop some bullets.

Also, I came across this as well:

http://www.pimall.com/nais/bulletprooffilm.html

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It’s not that hot really. Lot’s of ‘investor’ houses on the market.

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This thread is about nothing more than families being taken to the bank by gov’t public employee unions.

And then trying to justify being screwed.

Fools.

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Forgive as you have been forgiven.

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