A Clear And Unbroken Chain of Title

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The chain of title is a clear and unbroken chronological record of the ownership of a specific piece of property. Tracing the chain of title simply means tracing the successive conveyances of title, starting with the current deed and going back a suitable number of years. Each owner is linked to the previous owner and the subsequent owner through deeds, forming a chain of title as disclosed in the public records.

A gap in the chain of title creates uncertainty, which is referred to as a cloud on the title, also called color of title. A cloud on the title could be something simple. For example, Sue Jones buys a house; she gets married and is now Sue Smith. When she sells the house, the grantor name on the deed is Sue Smith. This creates a break in the chain of title.

A suit to quiet title, also called a quiet title action, may be required to close any missing links and remove the cloud on the title. This is a lawsuit filed to determine and resolve problems of instruments conveying a particular piece of land. The purpose of this suit is to clear a particular, know claim, title defect, or perceived defect. To close the gap and clear the cloud on the title, the court may issue a quitclaim deed or a judicial deed.

A deed that falls outside of the chain of title is said to be a wild deed. Buyers and lenders are not held to have constructive notice of wild deeds. For example, Ann buys a house and records her deed. Later she sells the house to Bob, who does not record his deed. Bob sells the land to Curt, and Curt records his deed promptly. Now there is a break in the chain of title. The record shows only Ann’s deed and Curt’s deed, but the link between them (Bob’s deed) is missing, so Curt’s deed is a wild deed.

Ann is aware that Bob never recorded his deed and decides to sell the same property a second time. This time she sells it to Dan. Dan does not know about Bob or Curt, so he has no reason to look up those names in the grantee/grantor index. He looks up Ann’s name in the index, and as far as he can tell from the record, she still owns the property. So, Dan buys the house. Dan does not have constructive notice of Curt’s interest in the property, because Curt’s deed was outside the chain of title. So, this is why it is very important to understand the chain of title prior to buying a home and why lenders require that clear title be insured by a reputable title company.



Source by Joe Jesuele

Why the Del Val Lease Is Pro-Owner Versus Pro-Tenant

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One of the questions I get asked a lot from owners and potential owners is about our lease. We have a lease we’ve been using for over 15 years and have been constantly improving and fine tuning it to protect our owners. We have used our lease for over 4,000 lease signings over this time period. I get asked about the difference between our lease and why it is so “pro owner” versus pro tenant. Here are a couple of reasons why our lease is “pro owner” and why it will benefit you to use our lease as opposed to another lease.

All Persons Over 18 Must Sign the Lease

We require all persons over the age of 18 to sign the lease. Seems simple right? But you would be surprised how many property management companies do not require it. The reason we require all persons over 18 to sign the lease is if we must evict the tenants and all parties over 18 have not signed that lease, we have a problem. We can evict the parties that have signed the lease, but it is hard to evict people that have not signed the lease if they are 18 or older.

Tenants will come to us and say my spouse or partner does not work so I don’t want them on the lease. This is not a good policy and do not allow this to happen. Or they may come to you and say my partner or spouse has a very poor credit score so I don’t want them on the lease. Again, we want all parties over 18 years old to sign the lease so we know exactly who’s living in the property and if we must do an eviction, we can get that done.

Automatic Rent Increase after the Initial Term Ends

Within our lease is a clause that when the initial term is over in one year or two years, the rent goes up automatically 10% if they want to go month-to-month. This incentivizes the tenants to either accept the 10% premium if they want the flexibility of month-to-month or negotiate a new one or two-year lease. This new lease will probably increase the rent by 3 to 5%, which is a much more reasonable increase than a 10% increase. And that way we’ve locked them in for another year, or maybe two years, and this benefits the owner. But again, the tenant does have the flexibility but the 10% is already pre-authorized.

Waive Their “Notice to Quit” Rights

In the State of Pennsylvania, and maybe other states, the tenant has what is called a 10-day “Notice to Quit” right. If we need to do an eviction, we must give the tenant 10 days’ notice to tell them we are about to evict them. In our lease, we make the tenants waive that right, so they have signed that right away, and we can begin eviction proceedings right away. We could evict a tenant on the first day of the month. I am not saying we do that, but we have the right to do that because we require our tenants to waive that 10-day Notice to Quit right.

Tenants Must Initial Several Sections of the Lease

Tenants must initial certain sections of our lease. There are areas of the lease that are very important including the Notice -of Quit we spoke about in the last paragraph. Another important section is Renter’s Insurance, so we make the tenants initial these sections. This way the tenant cannot claim later that they were not aware because we make them initial each of these important sections in the lease.

Tenants Must Sign Several Addendums Designed to Protect the Owner

Tenants are required to sign several addendums including Lead Paint, Security Deposit Escrow, Rules and Regulations and several other addendums. These addendums are designed to protect the owner so it’s very clear what’s going to happen at the end of the lease or under other various scenarios. So we make sure that these addendums are signed to protect the owner.

Our Lease has been Reviewed by 100’s of Judges and Attorneys over the Last 10 Years

Del Val has probably signed 4000 to 5000 leases over the last 15 years. As part of this process our lease has been reviewed by hundreds of attorneys. We have also been in front of hundreds of Judges during eviction hearings. As result we have refined and improved our lease based upon this feedback. Our lease is well tested and any weaknesses have long since been removed.

We Include the “Extra” Paperwork that is Required in Philadelphia

The City of Philadelphia requires a lot of extra paperwork that is not required outside of Philadelphia. So, it is important that we get those documents signed at the time that the tenant moves in. If we do not get these documents signed and go to evict down the road we could potentially have a hard time doing an eviction. That’s not the position we want our owners to be in so we want to make sure all the paperwork is done properly.



Source by Mike Lautensack

REIT Executives Included in Harvard Business Review’s 2018 Top 100 CEOs List

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REIT Executives Included in Harvard Business Review’s 2018 Top 100 CEOs List reit executives included in harvard business reviews 2018 top 100 ceos list

The heads of four REITs have made the Harvard Business Review’s latest ranking of the 100 best-performing CEOs in the world.



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How to Probate a Will – 13 Tips on Selling Inherited Property

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Selling inherited property & how to probate a will can be a pain, if you are not familiar with the steps involved in the probate process can be a pain that you do not wish to keep can be a pain if you do not understand the probate process or how to probate a will.

What Is Probate

Probate is the practice of transferring legal title to estate from someone who has passed away to that individual’s heirs or beneficiaries. The steps are managed by the legal system and can consist of paying taxes or debts that are outstanding, confirming the assets, determining if the will is valid, and settling conflicts about who will be receiving and disputes over who’s inheriting and allocating the possessions.

The official term for this course of action is testate proceedings. Take the probate process as guidelines of the proper reassignment of a dwelling.

How To Probate A Will In 7 Easy Steps

1) You’ll have to locate the will. You may find this to be a simple task or extremely difficult. The will can be any where as in folder in the bureau, a desk drawer, security box at the bank, attorney’s file in his office, secret wall home safe, a close old friends house.

2) If you are not sure if there is property involved you must find out if the person who died owned real property which is anything that is part of the ground like a house or even the land. Anything else is that is not real property is just personal property.

3) Investigate where your state probates wills. This will differ from state to state but some states have probate courts while others don’t. If you find out there’s a probate court, pay them a visit for more info. A certain percentage of states use the Circuit Court.

4) Research thoroughly the assets by the deceased individual. Immediately make arrangement to get all mail forwarded to your home so you can find out about any mortgage loans outstanding, personal vehicle payments, retirement updates and other crucial paper work. Have the mail redirected to your house so you are alerted to mortgages, car payments, retirement updates, and other important documents.

5) If the deceased individual did not specify an executor to his attorney, request the appointment of administrator. The individual who has legal responsibility to the deceased assets is the executor or administrator.

6) Call the Probate Court or Circuit Court & make an appointment in the correct location. Make sure you get together everything you have to bring the court, take the assets list and estimated values, the will and deceased death.

7) Research where to get free legal advice like from clerk at the courthouse, or a probate attorney for fee

Alerting creditors and the public

In some states, they require the personal representative to place a death notice in the newspapers. This announcement notifies the public of the decreased probated property. It gives the opportunity for others such as creditors who are interested in your estate to submit a claim. As a result, the nature of this real estate transaction becomes public record for anyone to research.

Taking Inventorying of the property

There must be a real and personal inventory taken of the property so the value can be estimated. This is required for the following reasons:

* To cover debts and distributions to beneficiaries: the residence didn’t meet the monetary obligation of the creditors and the property goes to the beneficiaries, an abatement statute occur. This means that one or more beneficiaries can get limited financial gain or none at all

* To guarantee that all property is accounted for. The personal representative is responsible for gathering and inventory the property’s assets to ensure that it’s available for dispensing at the final stages of the probate process. If the property is misplaced or not in the ownership status of the deceased at the time of their death, a redemption statute can occur. This statute can decide if assets or cash can substitute missing property belonging to the beneficiary.

How To Probate A Will

Depending in what state you live in, the process is similar, however call the probate court and start there to get familiar with your own state rules and steps to follow to be sure you are following their rules. Before this process begins, the death certificate for the deceased must be obtained. There are time restrictions on procedures which is a challenge for those with demanding lives.

If the paperwork is submitted late, there are penalties causing delays. There’s a particular order of precedence when giving the letters of administration which is as follows: the surviving spouse, children, grandchildren, father or mother of the deceased, brother or sisters and the rest who qualify.

The petitions have to be updated particularly on who’s allowed to make them in order to obtain appointment for administration. Anyone who’s attracted in the property of an individual without a valid will (intestate) or of a person claiming to be departed may petition to the court. To begin the probate proceedings, the required documentation is a must.

A misplaced or damaged will is allowed to probate if it’s proven that same will was not cancelled, the implementation of it is verified by the court, and its’ requirements are confirmed by two trustworthy witnesses.

13 Steps To Selling Inherited Property

1. The initial step is to have the property in your name.

2. If the home is in the trust, the trustee must be contacted to transfer the title.

3. If the property isn’t in the trust, a visit to probate court is required to have this done.

4. Depending on the state, land must be sent through probate.

5. Probate Letters or Letters of Administration are needed in order for the property to be in someone’s name.

6. If a home is going through probate, it takes a few months unless someone challenges it.

7. The court’s approval is required to transfer the title from the deceased to the heir.

8. The home must be appraised and inspected professionals to assess its’ value before being sold. You have to think of selling a home as if you’re going to a job interview, appearance is key.

9. The interior and exterior of the home has to be modified such as painting, upgrading the kitchen and bath which are the two focal points of the sale.

10. Hire a real estate representative to promote your home in newspapers, websites, and other outlets.

11. Buyers are visual so by taking photos highlighting the inside and outside of your home is ideal. Once a buyer is located and the offer is presented, review it with your realtor before making any final decisions.

12. When the final offer is accepted, the buyer will conduct their own inspection and appraisal. The buyer may request to have other things fixed.

13. The last step is to sign the titles, escrow documents, and wait for the closing date.

Insider Secret Owner Financing Strategies That Will Sell Your House Fast

If you do not know anything about seller financing, you are missing out on a very powerful tool that can help sell your fast super fast.

4 Ways You Benefit With Owner Financing

You and the buyer are in control and can set your own terms for the sale

You cut out the banks and realtors and save money on the fees

You can sell the house very fast if you decide to use this strategy

You’re the bank – sell it to buyers whom have the money and great work history but banks rejected them for a home loan

Warning:

If you do not research these insider secret owner financing strategies – and you’re interested in selling your inherited property, these insider strategies can definitely help you sell fast if you run into a problem and can t sell your house!!!

“If you wish to avoid a costly mistake, not get caught without a backup plan in case you can t sell your house, educate your self about these owner financing insider secrets… the experts don’t want you to know about!”

Taxes On Inherited Property

There may be a deduction of federal, state and/or local taxes from the estate depending on the state. In addition there’s the inheritance tax and estate tax which have different definitions. Inheritance taxes placed when there’s a transfer of possessions received before it’s given out.

The amount depends on the affiliation between the deceased and the offspring. Estate taxis applicable on how much the property is worth when the individual passes. Some states may have one, one of the other or both.

In the case of the sold inherited home, there’s a possibility of paying a capital gains tax on the differentiation between the remaining from the sale and the basis. The basis is the purchase price plus upgrades minus depreciation. Presently, the federal capital-gains tax is 15%.

The handling of the estate is a complex state of affairs. It’s important to have a lawyer manage this matter to ensure the property is distributed without any hindrance. Understanding all the rules and regulations independently can be overwhelming to someone who’s inheriting property from a loved one who passed away.

How to probate a will & selling inherited property does not have to be difficult, the information you have just read should help you get through the probate process easier and less confusion. Just make sure you look into what the probate procedures and rules are for your given state.



Source by Edwin Rosario

Benefits of MLS Listing When Offering Real Estate for Sale

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Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, basically involves the sharing of property listings among all registered brokers and realtors in a specific area. For information and listing in the MLS, a realtor registered in the system has to be contacted. MLS carries a lot of significance in the industry and has proved to be quite beneficial for both buyers and sellers of real estate. It has made the process of buying and selling a property, less stressful and less time-consuming. The benefits of MLS for those offering real estate for sale are mentioned below.

Firstly, MLS listing provides more exposure to the seller. This is because all the local realtors registered on the system have access to the property. This was not the case earlier as realtors did not allow other brokers and realtors to access their listings. Thus, with MLS listing, the seller can have various realtors in the area selling his or her property instead of just one or two. This will definitely increase the chances of successful sale at the desired price.

Secondly, listing in the database can help the seller save lots of money. This is especially true for flat-fee MLS listings. Money is saved on realtor’s commission when the property is sold. The traditional way of selling a property through a realtor or broker resulted in commission amounting to about half the sale price. However, flat-fee MLS listing involves a onetime charge and a commission to the buyer’s agent if the property was found through the MLS. If the seller found the buyer on his or her own, then even this commission will not have to be paid. However, even the sum of the flat-fee and buyer’s agent’s commission is only a fraction of the commission, which was payable earlier.

Thirdly, with MLS the process of finding a suitable buyer for one’s home is no longer time-consuming and stressful. The seller just has to find an estate agent, who is registered on the system, and request for a listing. Once listed, the property’s information will be accessible to many realtors and brokers. This is a far cry from the situation in the earlier days when the seller had to place advertisements for his or her property in various places and just wait for someone to come across it. The seller can find a suitable buyer for the property through the MLS within a few days.

Thus, MLS offers a cheap and efficient way of finding buyers for real estate. Due to the advantages of the system, many property sellers are opting for MLS listings.



Source by Asma A Mohiuddin

Chennai Real Estate

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Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. Catering to a large population, Chennai enjoys a status of the fourth largest metropolitan city in India. It is becoming more famous because of large penetration of IT companies which have given a new meaning to Chennai commercial properties.

The booming IT / ITes and the BPO industry of Chennai have also played a significant role in altering the residential set-up. It has helped the city to cater to demanding needs of the business market. The upcoming trend in Chennai is of apartments offering an array of facilities such as swimming pool, gymnasium, club houses etc

Keeping the pace with the fast development of commercial properties in Chennai, the city's retail market is also set to render as strong boost to its property market. Mall culture in Chennai is ready to exert its full charm, with several glitzy shopping malls to come up over the next three years. Some upcoming retail projects in the city are to be bought by prominent builders such as DLF, Shriram Properties, and Prestige Group. This clearly underlines an explosive growth of real estate Chennai sector.

Retail projects in Chennai are fast overtaking other development plans especially the feverish activity of building housing units. It is pushing the demand for retail space in areas including Besant Nagar, Aminjikaral, Velachery, Mogappair, Sirusseri, Semmenchery, and Perambur.

With Chennai properties witnessing sharp appreciations at a rapid rate, real estate investments in the city is unduly worth the idea. Chennai is fast changing into one of the most preferred destinations for cross-border investors looking forward to carve out a substantial niche in Indian property market.



Source by Amitabh Kumar

Building Wealth Rehabing Properties – A Great Investment Option

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Rehabing properties is an attractive proposition to build long-term wealth with limited time and less money. The money you will be able to make depend upon the amount of money and the time you are willing to invest and your exit strategy. For example, if you are interested in building wealth rehabbing properties by buying a property, rehab it and sell it immediately, you might have a tax hit.

How Much Can You Earn
As mentioned earlier, time and money are the major factors deciding your income potential. If you buy a property rehab it and hold it for some time, your profit potential will depend upon your refinance options and the appreciation potential of the property in your area.

The price at which you buy the property is a major factor in determining your profits. It is often said that you make money while you are buying the property. If you want to hold the property you will make at least $ 10000 for $ 100,000 worth of repaired property, since you retain ownership of the property you will enjoy tax benefits.

How Much Time You Have To Invest
Building wealth rehabbing properties is a scalable business proposition. You can either do the business yourself or hire a team. You can buy and sell one property in a year or you can sell 50 properties in a year if you have a team. Approximately you can sell around 5-10 properties in a year if you are involved full time.

How Much Money To Invest
You may need not to make huge investment upfront for building wealth rehabing properties. Again it depends upon how you are funding the purchase. You may gain more profit when you fund the purchase yourself since borrowing money for a rehabber is an expensive proposition. However, you can make decent profit even if you fund the deal. Although your poor credit history, if you may have any, can make your borrowings costlier, you can use this situation to repair your credit. Yes, you can fix your credit and make money too.

How To Find The Property
The most useful source is a local real estate expert. As you are a first time rehabber, your local Realtor can offer you great projects. The Realtor who helps you finding the property would not charge you a dime since he normally gets his commission from the seller of the property.

Crunch The Numbers
Once you have inspected the property, it is time to work out the numbers. Work out the estimated costs very quickly because good rehab projects often sell quickly. You will not afford to wait for days. When you estimate the costs, you should pay close attention to big ticket expenses like a foundation repair or a roof tear. These sorts of expenses can really put you in a tight spot. You should have the real estimate of costs involved in the rehab work you are supposed to take. Once you have these numbers, you will know the profit you are going to make through rehabing properties. You can make an offer once you feel it is a sound investment option and determined to go with it.

Finally …
Sure, building wealth rehabbing properties is a great option. However, you must learn to enter into the trade. You can begin with the basic through lots of information available online. Once you learn the basics of rehabing properties, you can jump in to the profession and continue to learn. That is learning through experience for you.



Source by Jearl Yates

Do I Qualify For A Mortgage Refinance?

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In today's uncertain lending environment, it is often unclear to potential mortgage applicants if they qualify for a refinance. Ever since the recent financial crisis, there has been a great deal of media exposure regarding how banks are not lending. Many people believe that only the very rich or most qualified borrowers are successful when applying for a mortgage. The truth is, the mortgage crisis did more good then harm when it comes to correcting underwriting guidelines that for many years were too lenient and extremely led our country to a disaster real estate bubble. Today, guidelines are more stringent but at the same time they are better in determining if a borrower can comfortably cover their monthly payments.

The first step in determining whether or not an applicant will qualify for a mortgage is to calculate their debt to income ratio. The definition of a "DTI" ratio is the total gross income for the borrower (s) divided by the total monthly obligations. When considering income, borrowers should always take their gross pay, or the amount paid to them prior to any deductions for taxes, IRA, etc. Monthly obligations would typically be any payment that shows up on the borrowers' credit report. These payments are usually credit cards, student loans, car payments, 2nd mortgages, home equity lines of credit, and store charge cards. The total monthly payments for these items are then added to the monthly tax and homeowner's insurance payments and the principal and interest payment of the proposed mortgage. The following is an example of how to calculate a debt to income ratio.

Mr. and Mrs. Jones both make a combined annual salary of $ 96,000. They have minimum monthly payments on credit cards of $ 350, student loan payments of $ 250, two car payment of $ 250 each, annual taxes of $ 5,000 and an annual homeowner's insurance premium of $ 700.

In this example, Mr. and Mrs. Jones would there before have a gross monthly income of $ 8,000 and gross monthly obligations of $ 1,575. If they were applying for a $ 200,000 mortgage at 5%, and a 30 year amortization, the principal and interest payment would be $ 1,073.64. Therefore, total monthly obligations jump to $ 2,648.64 and their debt to income ratio would be 33 percent ($ 2,648.64 total debt / $ 8,000 gross income).

Today, Fannie Mae guidelines dictate that borrowers do not have over a 45 percent DTI ratio. Therefore, in the above example, the borrower would have satisfied this requirement. Of course, there are many guidelines that a borrower must satisfy in order to qualify for a refinance, but calculating one's debt to income ratio should be one of the first. It can be very helpful to determine if it makes sense to move forward with a mortgage application and the probability of a successful loan commitment.



Source by Joe Jesuele

Philadelphia's Plan to Suspend Foreclosure Auctions

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Recently, the local government in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has made the decision to suspend sheriff sales of foreclosed properties. No more foreclosure auctions will be connected for homeowners who have adjustable rate, subprime mortgages, and the suspension will last all through the month of April. This remarkable measure may provide relief to thousands of homeowners, and is one of the very small victories for individuals in the foreclosure crisis.

From Ohio judges throwing foreclosure lawssuits out of court to this latest suspension of sheriff sales, local Governments have been able to act much more forcefully to combat the rising foreclosures than the federal government. Anyway, no one can really tell which companies, hedge funds, investors, or banks own the paperwork and have the legal right to collect on the loan. The marketing of subprime loans was just a scheme to generate as much money as possible in loan origination fees and sell toxic loans to investors. This has been completed and now the fallout must be deal with.

But banks are getting their bailout courtesy of the American public, through generous loans and packages provided by the Federal Reserve. It seems that it is only just for people, through their community leaders, to come up with their own solutions. In fact, perhaps the entire foreclosure crisis will reach some sort of perverse equilibrium with the Fed stealing money from the public to bail out the banks, creating massive inflation and taking the banking industry completely away from all government regulation, while homeowners find ways to void out their mortgage contracts complete and suspend the auctioning of their properties and the financial destruction of their communities.

Another question that should be raised is if the banks are suffering any actual damages from the foreclosing mortgages. They are receiving hundreds of billions of dollars from the Federal Reserve, which essentially pays off many of these mortgages. So where is their standing to sue? The people who pay taxes have already paid off the default mortgages through the Fed's granting of US Treasury securities to the banks. If the banks no longer own the mortgages, and have had paid off nonetheless, it would seem that they have little reason to keep going after homeowners to steal properties.

Ending the incessant whining about subprime mortgages going bad and the danger of the survival of the banking industry, though, would mean the banks would not be able to ask for more bailouts. The banks already made a killing on the way up by packaging what they knew were bad loans and selling them to unsuspecting investors, who were fooled by the bond-rating agencies into purchasing what they believed were prime-rated securities. Now that the loans are going bad, the banks' reserves are drying up (on paper), so they need generous loans and free money from the Fed to ensure that they can make more money on the resulting crash of the market.

The people of Philadelphia, by suspending foreclosure auctions, may be on to something important. Hopefully, the suspension will last longer than just one month and the banks will have no choice but to deal with homeowners as negotiating partners, rather than as hosts for their parasitic lending practices. The banks have put themselves into a situation where the only logical reaction for local Governments is to realize the invalidity of the mortgage loans. With the decrease in property taxes to local governments, the banks' ability to manipulate local communities into preventing invalid foreclosure lawsuits to go forward may also be evaporating.



Source by Nick Heeringa

Congress Progressing Toward Cybersecurity Enhancements

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Congress Progressing Toward Cybersecurity Enhancements congress progressing toward cybersecurity enhancements

As businesses search for ways to better protect their information from online threats, the House of Representatives has passed two cybersecurity bills aimed at bolstering the sharing of information between the public and private sector.

On April 22, the House passed a bill that would encourage businesses and the federal government to share information on known cyber threats, the Protecting Cyber Networks Act (H.R. 1560), by a 307-116 margin.



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