Posted by michaela-CA on June 20, 2010 at 10:39:57:
Edwin,
those were local rules that they started in early 2000’s in Atlanta - don’t know if every county or just intown/Fulton COunty. I personally was not a landlord then, but was part of the local oldtimer real estate subgroup and was privy to many discussions and presentations about those new arrangements. And many longtime ‘Housing Choice Voucher program’ landlords lost a lot due to this.
Michaela
Finding Section 8 Renters ? ? ? - Posted by John Siegal
Posted by John Siegal on June 16, 2010 at 11:06:48:
What is the best way to find Viable and Good Viable Section 8 Renters?
I got a house in a Lower-Middle Class neighborhood and can’t seem to find anyone with down payment money?
Any ideas?
Appreciate the input…!
-John
Re: Finding Section 8 Renters ? ? ? - Posted by DJ-nyc
Posted by DJ-nyc on June 17, 2010 at 21:13:25:
In nyc, Public assistance pays one month rent one month security and the brokers fee to the Realtor; Section 8 monthly payment kicks in afterwards.
With our Billionaire mayor cutting everything not sure how long it will last. They are cutting EVERYTHING (programs) except Taxes!
DJ-nyc
Re: Finding Section 8 Renters ? ? ? - Posted by Beachbum
Posted by Beachbum on June 16, 2010 at 22:19:44:
It is rare to find “good tenant” and “Section 8” in the same sentence. Let alone actually finding one.
Nonetheless, it is customary for most housing assistance offices to have a list of landlords and/or properties available for their clients. Just make sure they have the current, correct, info for you. Also, in my experience, Subsidized tenants generally do not have computers, or the education to effectively use them to find a home. This is one of the reasons many ARE subsidized in the first place. They largely use the old fashioned methods…local classified newspapers; “Free”, pennysaver type rags; bulletin board notices at the grocery store; and signs on poles or in front of the property.
To find the best prospects, as with any given tenant pool, offer a better looking product at the top of the range for your particular market. The Section 8 office will tell you what the max they pay for a given size of unit. If yours looks better than the one down the street, it will rent first.
As to the move in money, typically (for subsidized units) the tenant just pays the deposit, and it is not uncommon to allow the deposit to be made in two payments- one prior to move-in, the other 30 days later. LET ME STRESS- I said it is not uncommon, I did NOT say it was a Good Idea. Once they have possession of the unit, they are YOUR tenant until and unless you go through your locally required eviction process with it’s associated costs (assuming they don’t WANT to move)! With Section 8, you will get your first rent payment anywhere from 30 -90 days down the road, and then they will come regularly until there is a status change. If the tenant is paying a portion of the rent, of course that portion should be expected at move-in and normal due dates. DO NOT ALLOW this to be late! The eviction process cost is the same no matter what!
Good Luck…
Re: Finding Section 8 Renters ? ? ? - Posted by Dean
Posted by Dean on June 16, 2010 at 21:40:55:
socialserve dot com - list your property for free - the hud offices have this website on computers in their lobby in my area for people to search and also print lists for their people from this site
Re: Finding Section 8 Renters ? ? ? - Posted by Edwin
Posted by Edwin on June 16, 2010 at 16:53:28:
How much money are you wanting?
Re: Finding Section 8 Renters ? ? ? - Posted by Edwin
Posted by Edwin on June 16, 2010 at 16:49:44:
Your question is confusing.Do you want to find a renter, or a buyer? Down payment money usually refers to money paid upon buying. Renters usually put down first month’s rent and a security deposit.
Which are you after?
Beach… - Posted by John Siegal
Posted by John Siegal on June 17, 2010 at 18:48:18:
Thanks Beach,
Yeah…its Beginning to sink in…Section 8 tenants have NO MONEY (a few of them do but there far and few between).
But i want my first months rent…so i am holding out for someone who has some money.
~jds
Huh ? - Posted by John Seigal
Posted by John Seigal on June 16, 2010 at 20:02:33:
The title of the Thread is Section 8 Renters…so it stands to reason that i am looking for a Renter.
Also, i’m pretty sure that Section 8 does not assist people in providing down payment money to purchase homes.
Re: Beach… - Posted by Kristine-CA
Posted by Kristine-CA on June 17, 2010 at 20:23:36:
I’m curious about the potential tenants that are contacting you. Are you
saying that they call you and want to rent your place but don’t have…rent
money? What are they expecting? Do they want to pay you over time,
after they move in? Do they want you to rent for free? What am I missing?
Re: Beach… - Posted by michaela-CA
Posted by michaela-CA on June 17, 2010 at 18:58:09:
have you considered giving them 1st month free rent, but make them pay a full month deposit? If you have to wait a few weeks for a potential tenant, then that might get you one in sooner and you’ll have the deposit.
Michaela
Re: Huh ? - Posted by Edwin
Posted by Edwin on June 16, 2010 at 21:26:00:
Yes, Sec. 8=renters. Got that. But your post also mentioned down payment money. Maybe in your part of the country it’s common to refer to “tenant move-in money” as “down payment money,” but not where I come from. Whatever, it’s hard to answer your question because you were not specific as to how much money you’re trying to get. Example: Your asking rent is $800. I assume you would like at least $800 for first month’s rent (excluding the fact that Sec. 8 may be kicking in portion of that, say, $600, so the actual amount the tenant needs for first month’s rent is only $200). Are you asking a deposit? IF so, how much? $100, or $1000? $1500? Kind of hard to give you an answer as to why you’re having trouble attracting tenants with “sufficient” move-in money because you haven’t mentioned how much you’re trying to get. As a general rule of thumb, the better qualified the tenant is, the less security deposit you normally. The reverse applies for tenants with bad credit and spotty rental history. For those types of people, no amount of deposit is too much. The problem, of course, is that lower middle income rental properties will generally not attract tenants who have sterling credit, NOR do they usually have money for big deposits. Which puts the landlord in a WONDERFUL position of taking what you can get and taking your chances, or trying to get the tenant to pay a portion of a deposit when he moves in, and the rest in weekly or monthly installments until paid.
Re: Huh ? - Posted by John Seigal
Posted by John Seigal on June 16, 2010 at 20:03:48:
BTW…the down payment i am referring to is the first months rent.
Re: Beach… - Posted by acw
Posted by acw on June 18, 2010 at 11:49:16:
Section 8 tenants usually don’t have any money. They live hand to mouth…even with the government paying all their rent expenses (or a large portion of it)…they are still broke at the end of the month…and most of them are working.
Google section 8 tenants to learn more about the social makeup of this tenant.
Re: Beach… - Posted by Edwin
Posted by Edwin on June 19, 2010 at 12:42:44:
That’s a good idea, but if I had to resort to that…if I was trying to attract a Sec. 8 tenant who only had to pay a portion of their rent but couldn’t even come up with that, I’d seriously consider whether that property was even worth owning!
Michaela… - Posted by John Siegal
Posted by John Siegal on June 17, 2010 at 19:06:18:
That’s an idea…i guess lots of landlords do that in soft markets.
Thanks!
Edwin… - Posted by John Siegal
Posted by John Siegal on June 17, 2010 at 18:42:56:
Edwin…thanks for your comments.
Yes…down payment in a rental is used intermittently with 1rst months rent. Sorry for the confusion.
Having a hard time finding someone with 1rst months rent on the Section 8 program…so that is what i am looking for.
Any Suggestions are greatly appreciated.
~JDS
Section 8 - Posted by Kristine-CA
Posted by Kristine-CA on June 18, 2010 at 20:09:08:
Something is not quite right here…I’m thinking it’s regional
differences in rental prices and cost of living. My question was about
why the OP was getting calls from people with no money for first
month’s rent, which I can’t imagine. Believe me, I’ve gotten all kinds of
calls from buyers with no money, and they have all kinds of ideas about
how the deal’s gonna work…for them. But no one has ever called me
without first month’s rent, including those with Section-8 vouchers.
My home county has a S8 payment standard of $1300 for a 2BDR. My
daughter lives in Berkeley, which has a $1500 payment standard for a
2 BDR. The counties have closed waiting lists and accept no
applications. Berkeley had a five day application period in March 2010
where they received 37000 applications for…1500 spots on the
waiting list. Many counties in CA haven’t accepted S8 apps in years.
Tenants’ contributions are 30-40% of their income, not the rent.
Landlords here can select all day long as there are way more vouchers
than available rentals. Some tenants’ contributions are
miniscule…based on 30% of income. LLs screen for the tenant that can
pay their contribution. If they are non-paying, Section-8 tenants are
evicted (not easily in rent controlled places like LA or Bay Area, but less
of a problem everywhere else).
All that being said, I’ve owned rentals in a rural desert town where
$600 was hard to get. That tenant pool lives way closer to the bone,
jobs in the area are scarce. More importantly, entitlement issues
prevail. An old, hold-over company store mentality rules. It really was
a company town. Many home owners continue to rent the land under
their houses from the oil company.
Section-8 vouchers are coveted by many landlords I know in my area. I
would love a S8 tenant for a 3 BDR I have. Even advertised as S8
friendly and free first month, etc., I get no takers.
Re: Edwin… - Posted by Edwin
Posted by Edwin on June 17, 2010 at 23:20:53:
John, if I understand you correctly, you’re having difficulty finding a tenant who has “his portion” of the first month’s rent? That is remarkable–and pathetic–because Sec. 8 is paying a portion–probably at least 30%–and the tenant cannot come up with the remaining 70??
Finding tenants has always been difficult for me, so I’m afraid I won’t be much help. I assume you’re advertising with the local Sec. 8 office. The other two methods that might work are yard signs, and classified ads in the cheap weekly newspapers like Pennysaver, etc. In my area Pennysaver costs about $75 per week, but I always get calls when I run ads in it trying to fill a vacancy.
Depending on who you talk to, the economy can either help or hurt you. Lots of people think that with so many homes being foreclosed, those former owners are going to need places to rent. Of course, most of those will probably not be Sec. 8 tenants, but they may rent places that makes it harder for Sec. 8 tenants to rent due to a diminshing supply. Yet you’re apparently not seeing any increased demand due to a diminished supply of Sec. 8 housing.
Others will tell you that although there should be more people trying to rent because of having lost their homes, many others are moving in with family and friends because they cannot afford to live on their own right now. Maybe they lost their job, or had their income cut through decreased hours, etc.
It’s tough to figure out exactly what the solution would be. It could be that the neighborhood is just not “good enough” to attract a decent number of applicants. You might call some property management companies and offer them a referral fee if they send you a tenant. They get calls and can’t help everybody, so they just mind send you their excess applicants.
Good luck!!
…Kristine - Posted by John Siegal
Posted by John Siegal on June 19, 2010 at 05:52:54:
Let me see if i can clear up any confusion.
First months Rent has been used interchangeably with 1 mths deposit. Section 8 tenants have trouble coming up with the 1 mths security deposit.
In my area, section 8 renters are being treated like gold (for some reason). Must be the supply of rental houses on the market.
Section 8 pays for first months rent (tenant has to come to the table with their portion).
HAVE you considered doing a Lease with a Option? I hearing good things about this technique.
~jds