When you are looking to buy or rent a home, you have certain requirements. Whether you list of must-haves include cathedral ceilings or a finished basement, something it should always include is security. The last thing you want to come back to is a burglarized home. Take a look at these types of houses and the risk factors that make them more likely to be burglarized.

• Townhouses.
Townhouses are designed to provide privacy to the occupants, also providing a discreet way for a burglar to enter.

• Middle Houses.
Corner houses tend to be more visible than houses in the middle of the block, making it harder for a burglar to enter the house undetected. Burglars will target houses where they can make a clean getaway.

• Tree-lined Houses.
Trees can provide easy access and more coverage for burglars. A house with climbable trees near its windows gives burglars a less obvious point of entry.

• Unlocked Houses.
An obvious entry point, unlocked doors will allow a burglar to enter the home casually without looking suspicious or give the burglar a convenient window to climb through.

• Cul-de-sac Houses.
Often cul-de-sacs are located near wooded areas, allowing for an easier escape. They are also situated away from crossroads, making for fewer neighbors to notice suspicious activity.

• Attached Garage Houses.
Attached garages usually have a door leading outside that is more often than not neglected. Burglars are aware of this and the coverage that garages provide around an entrance to the house.

• One-story Houses.
Burglars generally avoid situations where they could become trapped if someone were to come into the house. A one-story house or a house with a downstairs bedroom (a hot burglar spot) is less likely to put the burglar in a compromising situation.

• Lower Apartments.
It is a lot harder for a burglar to find a way into an apartment on an upper level of a building without being detected, but lower apartments offer windows and doors at an accessible height.

• Poorly-lit Houses.
It is hard to sneak in or out of a house that is lit up or has motion-activated lights without being given away. Burglars tend to target homes that keep them in the dark.

• Overgrown Houses.
A house with poorly maintained vegetation suggests to burglars that it is not paid close attention and that the occupant may not be very detail oriented. This is also a possible indicator of vacancy.

Living in one of these types of houses does not guarantee you will be burglarized – there are many other factors that come into play as well. However safe you believe you house is (or isn’t), things like keeping in contact with your local Neighborhood Watch group, locking your doors, and taking extra precautions when you are out of town will help to decrease your chances of being burglarized.

Source: Burglary Prevention Council. www.burglaryprevention.org.
Photo by: House Of Sims // CC BY 2.0

As if looking for a rental or renting your place isn’t hard enough, there are plenty of scammers out there waiting for you to be their next victim. With the growing popularity of free classified websites, scams have become much more prevalent. A good rule of thumb when you are looking to rent is: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Knowing the warning signs can tip you off to a possible scammer before he or she can get to your money.

Here are a few common signs of a scam:

• The email begins with ‘Sir’ or ‘Madam’

• There are excessive misspellings

• Spaces are missing between some words (I look forwardto hearing fromyou)

• Excessive capitalization (I Need The CHEck soon)

• References to God, UK, Doctor, Nigeria, Reverend

• The email is sent from a free email provider

• They request that you send money to their decorator, agent, or friend

• They are living in another country and moving for business or vacation

• There’s a sense of urgency (needed today or this week)

• The post is on a large free classified website

• The price is unusually low

• References WHO (World Health Organization)

While not all of these signs indicate a definite scammer, a combination of a few of them should be enough to alert you.

Many scammers will use the same alias over different websites. You can check this list of Known Rental Scammers for emails and aliases of scammers. If you are not sure whether an ad you found is for real or a scam, you can take a Rental Scam Quiz to help determine if you should be suspicious.

You should always use caution when corresponding with sellers or buyers online. Never give out your financial information, bank account numbers, Social Security Number, or other personal information to someone online unless you are absolutely certain that the person you are completing the transaction with is legitimate and the transaction is secure. There are many clever tactics that scammers will use to try and get to your wallet, and once they do, you will have an extremely difficult time ever getting your money back.

What to do if you are scammed or come in contact with a scammer:

• Report it to the FTC via their online form or by calling 877-FTC-HELP.

• File a complaint at the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

Have you ever run into a scammer? What happened?

Myth #1: You need great credit to buy a home.

Contrary to popular belief, you do not have to have perfect credit to buy a home in today’s market. What most mortgage companies are looking for these days is proof that you can afford the payment. As long as you don’t have major delinquencies on your report, such as a bankruptcy or foreclosure, there is usually a way. If you are currently paying rent, this is the best way to show a mortgage company that you can afford to pay your housing expenses. The closer in value your rent is to your proposed housing payment, the better your odds are of qualifying. Always pay your rent by check! This way you can show proof of those payments, if needed.

Myth #2: Lenders share your personal information.

Your personal information is protected by federal and state privacy laws. Generally, lenders must get your permission to share personal financial information with non-affiliates, so you should have no concerns there.

Myth #3: You need to put 20% down to buy a home.

A lot has changed in the mortgage market and the days of ZERO down are long gone, but we’re definitely not back up to 20% down. There are still plenty of options that will allow you to get into a home with a low down payment. The FHA loan is a great example of that. FHA will allow buyers to get into a new home with as little as 3.5% down, so if your buying a home for $100,000 you will only need $3,500 down. Start saving today, and ask for FHA!

Myth #4: Owning a home is more expensive than renting.

This is false in many respects. There has not been a better time to become a homeowner. Home values have declined in all 50 states across our nation, with most values going back to the early 90′s prices. As a buyer this is the ideal time to pick up a home for a fraction of what it was three to four years ago.

Furthermore, if you’re not afraid of a little bit of elbow grease, there are some great deals in the foreclosure market that will allow you to pick up a home for pennies on the dollar, that just require a little TLC. These are great investment opportunities that will allow you to build some quick equity and put yourself in a great financial position. Moreover, rates are lower than they have been in years. This, coupled with the lower home prices, means that you can buy a home and pay the same price, if not less, than you would renting. This is a great opportunity for those still paying their landlord’s mortgage payments.

Myth #5: I’ll get the best deal if I call the agent that has the home for sale.

As a buyer, a Realtor works for you for FREE. Whenever a home is sold, there is a contract set forth between the seller and the seller’s agent. Standard contracts have a 6% commission built into them, with 3% going to the listing agent and 3% going to the buyer’s agent. If the listing agent also brings the buyer, they get the full 6%. Remember, if a home is listed, the agent has already established a relationship with the seller, before you as the buyer even come in to play. They are going to do what they can to make sure both you and the seller are happy, but their original obligation was to the seller (not to mention their commission is based on the sales price).

As a buyer’s agent, they are going to work to get you the best possible deal on the home, as they work for you and you only. They are paid by the seller, through the sale of the home, and are not paid until they find you a home. Working with a buyer’s agent gets you in front of the right listings, and puts someone to work for you to get the best possible deal. When you’re ready to move, call your local real estate office and ask for a buyer’s agent!

You haven’t been able to sell your house because the market is bad. Have you considered renting it out? This will offer you an extra source of income, and more money is always nice. Though renting also brings up many concerns as well, such as, pricing, screening your tenant, and maintenance.

Pricing
Take a look around in your area, what is the average rent for a place similar to yours? If you can’t find any, try looking at craigslist or your local newspaper. Are you able to offer a similar pricing? Does the price allow you to pay overhead fees and maintenance costs for the house while still making a profit? You’re essentially starting a business, so treat it as one. If the business venture doesn’t seem sound, try to look for an alternative. Otherwise, you should go with it!

Screening your tenant
This is one of the most important parts of renting. You will be choosing the people that will be living in your home for the next couple months, or even years. You want to know that you can trust these people, and will have an easy time dealing with them. You and your tenant will be in regular contact with each other for the term of the lease, so get to know them and their rental history. By contacting past landlords, you can find out whether they are responsible with their payments and are good tenants. Also be sure to review landlord rights as well as tenant rights.

Maintenance
Maintaining a rental house is more work than owning the home yourself, as you will need to work with your tenant also. One main, and important, rule for you, as the landlord, is that you are required to supply a healthy and safe living area for the tenant. Any repairs that are required must be done in a timely manner with notification. Make sure you have enough time to take care of these repairs at reasonable hours.

Also be sure you’re familiar with normal wear and tear. To safeguard yourself and your house, take pictures of everything to document the house before it is rented out. This will help to identify what is normal wear and tear and what has been actively destroyed when the tenant moves out.

Security Deposit
A security deposit is one of the best safeguards for you. When your tenant moves out, their security deposit is returned after you have inspected the rental property. If there are messes to clean up or any damages to the property, you can use the security deposit to take care of that. But be sure to document it, so your tenant knows why there is a deduction.

Writing The Lease
These are the terms that you will be leasing out your house. Be sure to outline everything you need to, there are some good guides online to help you out. Be sure to keep it easy to read and know what is within your legal limits.

Because laws vary from state to state, be sure to review any landlord and tenant laws in your state.

These are the most important things to consider when renting out your house, and once you plan them out, you will have a good foundation for being a landlord.

Would you be ready to be a landlord?

You like to go with the flow. Renting will allow you the freedom to move where life takes you. It is very flexible, and even when you do have to move, you will only have to worry about a cost to end the contract if there is one. When you do settle down, you’ll want to make sure your family has a house it can grow into instead of growing out of it.

The only time for you is ME-o’clock. As a renter, you will have more time to do the things you want, and you won’t need to worry about mowing the lawn while you’re on vacation.

When someone says credit, you say ‘Yeah, I got those from my classes’. Most places won’t check your credit score to rent to you. This is a good thing for you if you are a recent graduate without the credit necessary to qualify for a mortgage. If you are looking to build your credit, making monthly payments will help you achieve your goal.

Your job may not be secure, but your deposit is. With so many people losing their jobs nowadays, a mortgage can become a big headache. If you aren’t sure about your job security, renting is a better option for you since you will will only have to worry about a monthly rent and not larger mortgage payments.

The only bill you want to see is on a duck’s face. You hate paying bills. Why add an extra mortgage bill to your pile? A rental payment can be relatively lower than the cost of owning and maintaining a house. Renting a place will spare you from paying property taxes and maintenance costs. Some places will even have utilities includes, which will mean less money coming out of your pocket.

The only screwdriver you like is at a bar. Whether or not you know how to fix a leaky faucet, when renting, the landlord is able to take care of these things for you. Maintenance costs for a home generally costs anywhere from 1% to 4% of the total value of the home per year. It could cost more or less depending on what you need to fix that year. A huge benefit to renting is that you will not have to buy or replace any of the appliances, which can be quite costly.

You don’t want to hold hands with a mortgage company for 30 years. You aren’t tempted by the zero down mortgage or tax breaks because you know that taking on a mortgage will mean that you could be paying it off for a long time. Renting will allow you changes in scenery and living arrangements whenever you wish.

Is renting the right thing to do for you? Crunch The Numbers Here!

It’s not easy having a grown son or daughter move back home. As a parent, opening your home to your adult child might feel right, but what if it is actually detrimental to him or her? Should you allow your adult son or daughter to live rent-free in your home? Or do you charge? Here’s some advice to help you develop a sensible plan that will work for you both.

It is reasonable to charge rent if your son or daughter:

• Could otherwise afford to pay rent comfortably.
• Is living irresponsibly, and allowing him or her back into your home will be a burden to you.
• Is in a slump and cannot get motivated.
• Has been staying with you for a unnecessarily prolonged period.

By allowing your son or daughter to return home you are making a great sacrifice, and it makes sense for you to feel the need for some compensation. Make sure that he or she understands this decision and knows that this living arrangement will not be free of charge before he or she moves back. If possible, you may even want to make this an expectation prior to the first time he or she leaves the nest. You should set an exact point when this policy will take effect, using a certain age or status (going from student to professional) to mark a definite transition.

If your purpose for charging rent is exclusively to enforce budgeting and accountability, you may want to consider the idea of depositing each rent check into a savings fund and then returning all of the money when your child moves out. This will still give your son or daughter a good lesson on how to realistically budget, while leaving you with clear conscience from feeling like you have taken money from your child.

It is NOT reasonable to charge rent if your son or daughter:

• Has moved home due to an illness.
• Is headed in the right direction, but is just not making enough money to live on their own right now.
• Saves the extra money for a greater cause, such as a higher education.
• Is still a student.
• Makes up for rent by helping you in another way, such as doing ample chores.

Allowing your son or daughter to move back home without expecting rent is a very admirable gesture as a parent. Though, it might be in the best interest of both of you to agree on another form of compensation. One idea is to assign certain duties or chores that must be completed regularly. This could be done to help alleviate burdens, like extra laundry or having to cook for an extra person. Another option to consider is making your adult child accountable for one of the utility bills. In addition to teaching financial responsibility, this will also allow your son or daughter to build credit.

You should also think about setting a deadline or age limit of when your adult child must find a place of their own. This ensures that he or she knows that living at home is not a permanent option and will motivate him or her to make other arrangements.

No matter your opinion on this issue, it is important to remember that every situation will be different and you should do what feels right under your specific circumstances.

Photo by M. Thompson / CC BY 2.0
Source: CNN Money. http://money.cnn.com