Landlord Newsletter January 7, 2014

Dear Fellow Landlord,

We're very proud of John Reno, Landlord Eviction Attorney for his victory in an important case affecting non-payment cases for all landlords in Suffolk County, NY with month to month tenants. Read more Below!

By the way, is it COLD enough for you??? Below are a few tips to protect your property in freezing weather!

Don't forget,
"It is better to have NO tenant than it is to have a bad tenant."

In this newsletter:

• Big Win For Landlords
  
• Free Form: Pre-Screening Telephone Worksheet
  
• Landlord Winter Tip Submitted by Jack Klein
  
• Ask the Eviction Attorney
  
• Quotes for Success
  

Please e-mail us if you have any questions or would like to add or share any material / information. Have a great month and an even more successful year ahead.
John Nuzzolese
John@theLPA.com

Victory for Landlords on Long Island!
Thank You Eviction Attorney, John Reno

I've been asked many times to create a form to help landlords ask the right questions on the telephone to help determine if the caller is someone you'd like to set an appointment to show your rental to. The LPA's Tenant-Finder™ Pre-Screening Telephone Worksheet has developed from a simple prospect card into a handy and more complete screening tool for telephone interviews.

Free Download! The LPA's Tenant-Finder™ Pre-Screening Telephone Worksheet Have you ever met prospective tenants at your rental property, shown it to them, had them fill out a rental application only to find that they were nowhere near qualified? A simple pre-screening telephone interview can be a major time saver. Why not focus your attention on the most qualified prospects? Before giving out the address of your rental property and committing your time to a doomed appointment with an unqualified renter, you have a chance to more carefully evaluate which prospects are worth meeting with. I feel very strongly about strict tenant screening, which begins at First Contact with the tenant. First Contact is when you speak with the potential tenant for the first time, usually when they respond to one of your rental ads. At that point, you have the opportunity to learn what you can about this person's current situation. Are they employed? Can they afford your rental? Do their moving dates correspond with your rental's availability? Is their credit rating acceptable? And so on. After completing your Tenant-Finder™ Pre-Screening Telephone Worksheet, you can use the scoring area to evaluate your new prospect. Print up a pile of them to screen your next tenant! Eliminate bad tenant risks before spending your valuable time on them. "Eliminating a bad tenant before I even have to meet him is what I consider the cheapest eviction I can have!" - John@theLPA

Winterization Tips

Each year we have to remember to takes steps to protect our rental properties from the forces of winter. Below are a few plumbing tips I got from The American Red Cross.

Why pipe freezing is a problem
Water has a unique property in that it expands as it freezes. This expansion puts tremendous pressure on whatever is containing it, including metal or plastic pipes. No matter the "strength" of a container, expanding water can cause pipes to break. Pipes that freeze most frequently are those that are exposed to severe cold, like outdoor hose bibs, swimming pool supply lines, water sprinkler lines, and water supply pipes in unheated interior areas like basements and crawl spaces, attics, garages, or kitchen cabinets. Also, pipes that run against exterior walls that have little or no insulation are also subject to freezing.

Pipe freezing is a particular problem in warmer climates where pipes often run through uninsulated or under-insulated attics or crawl spaces...

click for the full article...

1. A lease can continue to be enforceable even after it expires.
   True or False
   
   
2. It is illegal for an owner to discriminate against bad credit.
   True or False
   
   
3. A tenant who assigns a lease to another remains liable for the rent.
   True or False
   
   
4. The maximum number of people in a house is 12.
   True or False
   
   
5. Failure to pay rent does not automatically constitute termination of the tenant's lease.
   True or False
   
   For answers and more test questions, click here... ***********************************************
   Ask the Attorney
   (Ask the Attorney with John Reno is a Free Feature for LPA members!)

   Real Estate Attorney John Reno, an expert in landlord tenant legal matters, has specialized in landlord tenant law for many years. Mr. Reno answers questions asked by LPA members to help solve all kinds of landlord tenant problems.

   Dear Mr. Reno:
   Question: I own my home and had a boyfriend live with me for about 4 months. I asked him to leave and he said he would but it may take a while due to money issues. I told him no hurry but he did leave about a week later. However I let him leave some things at my home for storage. I let him keep my house key for a month after he moved and his belongings stayed in storage at my house for two months. No lease but he did give me 400 a month for staying there. We also continued to see each other some after that and even took a trip together. The problem is that now 2 months later he is saying he didn't get 30 days notice and is going to take me to court. Does he have a case?
   Harper Billings in Indiana

   A: Let not your heart be troubled Harper. He left voluntarily. Change the locks today, before you find him in the kitchen making a sandwich.

   If you have a landlord tenant problem you'd like to ask a question about, please feel free to e-mail me your question.
   Submit a landlord / tenant question for Mr. Reno
   Please try to keep your questions as short and to the point as possible.
   
   

   Read more from John Reno, Eviction Attorney

   
   
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   If you haven't already, please take the opportunity to sign up for The LPA's Quick Check Credit Reports! Quick Check is a simple, fast way to access online credit reports while saving you money!
   
   

6. NO sign-up or set-up fees,
   
7. NO membership fees,
   
8. NO compliance fees
   
9. Just lower prices!
   
   Special Tenant Screening Discounts for LPA members. See our price list!
   
   
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