Hi Loni,
Thanks for the question.
In most cases your Realtor®
will be very happy to assist you and very appreciative that you
thought to seek their advice and assistance.
Leasing
of homes and apartments is handled different all over the United
States. Each market seems to have it;s own system in place. In
Austin, Texas your have either a leasing company or management firm,
apartment owner leasing, Listing agents (Brokers) that will list your
unit in MLS for all realtors to see.
Some
Realtors® prefer not to assist clients in leases. This is always an
individual decision by the agent. I have found that telling a client
they are no interested in assisting them but “hey don’t forget to
call me when you are ready to buy”, is not a very good business
policy!
If
I have a client in need of assistance on any type of transaction I
will do my best to handle the transaction or if not qualified find
someone with the experience needed to give them the best
representation.
For a Realtor® they earn a commission from the leasing transaction after the client has been approved for the lease and lease the terms are negotiated and the lease is signed and funded (security deposits and rent payments made). Typically the Realtor® will receive a % from the leasing company or listing broker between 30-50% of the 1st months rent.
There
is a lot of paperwork associated with the lease process , at least
here in Austin, and it is very chaotic as every company/broker has
their own sets of rules in order for an applicant to be accepted. I
personally think there is a better way to handle leasing process but
think until a more efficient process is introduced there is just no
way to get around the pain of the leasing process.
The
majority of agents will assist you in this transaction so please make
that call!
I
will point out that in some markets around the country the leasing
market is very tight with available inventory. There are usually
multiple lease applications on desirable properties and how you
present your application is essential in obtaining the lease. So work
with your agent and let him/her find out exactly what is required to
present a strong application. Do not assume that this is any easier
than buying a home! Sometimes it seems to be even more difficult to
get approved for an application than a mortgage.
The
main reason is that the owner of the unit is trying to get his
monthly cost of carrying the property covered by the rent. Any
disruption in the rent payments could be costly for them so they want
to make sure they are not having to re list the property every couple
of months and gamble that they might loose income for any period of
time.
So
emotions run high in these transactions. Don’t be put off bu being
rejected, a lot of lease negotiations fall off prior to the finale
leases being signed so it is good practice to keep in touch with
leasing agent for the next 5 days or so after they have decided to go
with another applicant. Don’t stop looking just keep it in play
until it becomes more finale.
What
to have prepared for a lease application:
1.You
will need to approve the leasing entity access to your credit and
criminal history. This is usually included in the “application
fee”. They will access an on line service that costs between
$30-$50 per applicant (You will need separate applications for each
adult that will be named on the lease) It is usually required that
this application fee be paid with application in certified funds
(money order or cashiers check) and made out to the leasing entity.
This fee varies but runs between 40-75 depending on the company.
Yes more than the costs of the reports!
They
will send you an Online approval from the credit checking service
asking for permission to access your records. Be prepared to check
spam box if you do not get anything w/in 24 hours
2. You are sometimes required to also submit security deposit (typically 1 months rent) by either cashiers check or money order. It is usually made out the owner of the property but some leasing companies have escrow accounts so from time to time you make these out the leasing company. You really need to know this info up front so make sure your agent asks!
I know – "WHAT! I have to give them security deposit before I
know that I am approved? " What happens if I am not approved? This
is one of the broken features of the leasing process in Austin
market. I cant tell you the number of times I have had to fight with
the listing entity to get these funds back. Some will just
hand you back the cashiers check/money order and your
client can return to where they purchased it to convert
it back into dollars. Some will actually cash the check and then wait
7-15 days for the funds to clear then issue you a refund
check, some very unscrupulous companies will tell you you lost
the funds and you need to get very argumentative to get funds
returned. If nothing else this is a great reason to have a
Realtor® involved.
3. Read the lease carefully (as with any legally binding document) and make sure you know the terms of the lease. Make a copy of it and keep it handy because after the term of the lease there are certain time deadlines you will be responsible for and you will want to have a quick reference
Hope
this answers your question Loni. Please feel free to contact me if
you have any firther questions or need a referral!
Regards,
Bob
kenney, Realtor®
VP
Turnquist Partners Realtors
Mobile/Text:
512-922-4922
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