Magazine Articles

Have you ever wondered why some property owners/managers require personal information such as credit reports and a personal background check on ALL people over the age of 18 and some don’t require much at all? Why do some landlords require references, personal and past landlord information and even request income verification while others are more…

Later this year, the drought grippingCaliforniamay finally be somewhat alleviated— according to multiple news outlets.  El Niño, the mass of warmer-than-usual water which develops in the Tropical Pacific Ocean, has a 65% chance of

Q:  I have several applicants applying for my rental.  Do I have to screen everyone the same or can I screen only for credit on some and require a criminal background check on others?

The IRS has just given apartment owners several reasons to contact their accountants. On September 19, 2013, the Internal Revenue Service issued new final Tangible Property Regulations which went into effect for tax years beginning

If you own rental property in California, you need to comply with special rules and procedures for vacating tenants. California landlords must provide their tenants with written notice that they’re entitled to request and be present for an initial pre-move inspection. A vacating tenant can decline, but if he accepts that the rental property owner…

The jobs report for March was initially hailed as good news because the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 192,000 new non-farm jobs were added last month. That was better than expected by many forecasters and was well above the

A homestead is the family residence, which in most states is exempt to a certain extent from forced sale for collection of debt. In California, there are at least three kinds of homestead exemption: (1) Declared homestead (2) Automatic homestead exemption and (3) Property tax homestead exemption Declared Homestead The first way in which California…

Although the proper tenant screening and selection techniques greatly improve your success in picking good tenants, they aren’t a guarantee, which mean that at some point in your rental property management tenure, you’re sure to

Question 1: I rented a two bedroom Berkeley unit to three students and collected $3,000.00 for first month’s rent.  The rent receipt, which we both signed, states the basics of the lease: monthly rent, occupants, term of lease and start date.  It also