Follow this link to hear what investors, home owners and those who didn't realize they needed a property manager have to say about REAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT.  

The Federal Housing Administration will raise mortgage insurance premiums this April in order to repair the health of its emergency fund.

The FHA upfront mortgage insurance premium will increase to 1.75% from 1% of the base home loan amount. This will apply regardless of the term or loan-to-value ratio beginning in April.

The annual mortgage insurance premium will increase by 10 basis points for loans under the $625,500 limit beginning April 1 and by 35 bps for home loans above that amount starting in June, the FHA said Monday. Authority for these raises come under the payroll tax cut extension agreed to last fall.

The FHA said the changes will boost the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund by $1 billion.

The UFMIP can still be financed into the mortgage. The increase to the upfront premium will cost new borrowers roughly $5 more per month.

When it comes to reaping maximum gains from your investment property, choosing the right property in the right area---and pricing the rent correctly---are only half the battle. Once you've purchased a rental property with excellent profit potential, you can help ensure you actually realize that profit by taking certain steps used by veteran landlords.

Give tenants what they want.  Prospective renters on the hunt for the right apartment look for a number of things in a rental home, including location, neighborhood character, crime rate and attractions nearby.  Once they've identified the general area where they'd like to live, amenities are often a key criteria when it comes to evaluating individual properties.

Choose and retain the right Tenants.  Once you've renovated your rental, you can expect to have a larger-than-average pool of interested applicants to choose from when it comes to selecting a tenant. Taking care to properly interview and screen each potential renter is the next step in maximizing your property's ROI.

When you add up the cost of rent lost during a vacancy, plus cleaning fees, advertising expenses, and the time it takes to show a rental and select a tenant, you quickly realize that minimizing turnover is key to maintaining your profits. Finding a tenant who you can envision renting to long-term is the best case scenario.

Beyond meeting your basic income and credit score criteria, look for a tenant history of stability, whether in the form of multiple years at the same job or long-term stays at former residences.

Be sure to keep up with maintenance. Keeping your property in good shape not only inspires renters to want to stay put, it ultimately saves you money in the form of preventing major maintenance disasters. Many landlords choose to use property management companies to handle routine upkeep, which can range from performing regular inspections of major household systems, to replacing furnace filters, to winterizing pipes and outside spigots, to responding to tenants' service requests.

At Real Property Management, we proudly stand behind our reputation as the nation's local property manager. Our unique capabilities enable us to manage your local properties with the same expertise and reliability that we employ on a national level. This mix of local market knowledge and nationwide reach are what set us apart in the property management industry.

Your local Real Property Management teams consists of highly-trained experts in every aspect of property management, including marketing, leasing, maintenance, collections, evictions, accounting, inspections, and legal compliance.

In addition to our local offices we have more than 200 offices nationwide.Contact us today to get a free quote and learn more about what Real Property Management can mean for your residential investments.

Moving to a new home can be stressful, to say the least. Make it easy on yourself by planning far in advance and making sure you've covered all the bases.

1. Plan ahead by organizing and budgeting. Develop a master "to do" list so you won't forget something critical on moving day, and create an estimate of moving costs. (A moving calculator is available at REALTOR.com)

2. Sort and get rid of things you no longer want or need. Have a garage sale, donate to a charity, or recycle.

3. But don't throw out everything. If your inclination is to just toss it, you're probably right. However, it's possible to go overboard in the heat of the moment. Ask yourself how frequently you use an item and how you'd feel if you no longer had it. That will eliminate regrets after the move.

4. Pack similar items together. Put toys with toys, kitchen utensils with kitchen utensils. It will make your life easier when it's time to unpack.

5. Decide what, if anything, you plan to move on your own. Precious items such as family photos, valuable breakables, or must-haves during the move should probably stay with you. Don't forget to keep a "necessities" bag with tissues, snacks, and other items you'll need that day.  6. Remember, most movers won't take plants. If you don't want to leave them behind, you should plan on moving them yourself.
7. Use the right box for the item. Loose items are prone to breakage. 8. Put heavy items in small boxes so they're easier to lift. Keep the weight of each box under 50 pounds, if possible.

9. Don't over-pack boxes. It increases the likelihood that items inside the box will break. 
10. Wrap every fragile item separately and pad bottom and sides of boxes. If necessary, purchase bubble-wrap or other packing materials from moving stores. 

11. Label every box on all sides. You never know how they'll be stacked and you don't want to have to move other boxes aside to find out what's there. 

12. Use color-coded labels to indicate which room each item should go in. Color-code a floor plan for your new house to help movers. 

13. Keep your moving documents together in a file. Include important phone numbers, driver's name, and moving van number. Also keep your address book handy.  14. Print out a map and directions for movers. Make several copies, and highlight the route. Include your cell phone number on the map. You don't want movers to get lost! Also make copies for friends or family who are lending a hand on moving day.

15. Back up your computer files before moving your computer. Keep the backup in a safe place, preferably at an off-site location.

16. Inspect each box and all furniture for damage as soon as it arrives.

17. Make arrangements for small children and pets. Moving can be stressful and emotional. Kids can help organize their things and pack boxes ahead of time, but, if possible, it might be best to spare them from the moving-day madness.

Salt Lake City Real Property Management has cleaned house, winning several major national awards and earning high marks on a number of key industry lists.

"We are honored to be recognized for our experience, growth and innovation"

Real Property Management provides full-service residential property management for investors and homeowners across North America. The company's custom technology platform provides efficient, centralized management of thousands of homes and multi-family dwellings through highly trained local teams. Awards and recognitions were given for company growth, innovation, technology and services provided in the rental management industry.

Accolades include:

• Entrepreneur Magazine's Franchise 500®. Rank: 159^th
• Entrepreneur Magazine's Fastest-Growing. Rank: 57^th
• Entrepreneur Magazine's Low-Cost. Rank: 24^th
• Entrepreneur Magazine's America's Top Global. Rank: 128^th
• Inc. Magazine's 500 Fastest Growing Companies
• National Minority Franchising Initiative's Top 50 Franchises for Minorities
• Personal Real Estate Investor Magazine's Opinion Makers and Market Leaders

"We are honored to be recognized for our experience, growth and innovation," said Kirk McGary, founder and CEO of Real Property Management. "With several recent studies showing a decrease in home ownership, we've seen steady growth in demand for a more professional, reliable property management system reflecting that change in the housing market."

A recent study by industry expert Michael Levy confirms this, stating that a major trend in property management for the foreseeable future is the increased need for the management of foreclosed properties that are being rented. Real Property Management's technology makes it easy for investment groups and landlords to do this more efficiently and professionally.

"In addition to reduced vacancies and costs, we offer a more professional, reliable option in what has been a difficult industry rife with unlicensed and unqualified property mangers," said McGary. "Last year, more than $1 billion in tenant security deposits were illegally kept by disreputable landlords. Our rigorous staff training and online reporting platform offers transparency, compliance and a higher standard of service."

About Real Property Management

Real Property Management is a privately held, Utah-based corporation with over 25 years of experience providing full-service residential property management for investors and homeowners throughout the United States and Canada.

Federal law offers renters more protection from eviction if their landlord loses the property through foreclosure. The law has some fuzzy requirements, but should be a boon to renters who otherwise might have been evicted with little or no notice.The law allows tenants who have a lease to remain in their home until the end of the lease period.

The fundamental purpose of the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act is to ensure that tenants facing eviction from a foreclosed property have adequate time to find alternative housing, if the renter signed the lease before the owner obtained the foreclosed loan. In that case, the lease will still "survive" the foreclosure.  The law protects only a bona fide lease or tenancy, which is defined as a situation that meets three criteria:

• The renter may not be the former owner of the home, or the former owner's spouse, child or parent.
• The terms of the rental must be at arm's length between the landlord and renter.
• The rent cannot be substantially less than the fair-market rent, unless the rent is subject to a government reduction or subsidy.        

The bottom line is that landlords and renters have new rights and responsibilities in foreclosure situations. While renters may face challenges in their attempts to exercise those rights, knowledge and action can prevail.

"Mom and pop investors" are trying to capitalize on a depressed real estate market in the hopes of one day being able to cash in. An article in USA Today highlights this new breed of small-scale investors who like to buy and hold properties, opposed to the high-dollar large investment firms that once dominated the real estate market who preferred to buy and flip their property investments. 

For "mom and pop investors," the strategy is to buy homes at rock-bottom prices, rent the properties out to cover all of the costs of home ownership for several years, and then one day sell the homes when prices recover. 

"An unprecedented number of investors are looking into this," John Burns, CEO OF John Burns Real Estate Consulting, told USA Today. 

Investors purchased more than 26 percent of single-family and condos in 167 U.S. markets in the first nine months of last year, according to data supplied by Burns to USA Today. 

For investors in the rental market, an 8 percent annual return is fairly normal, according to Burns. "That means that someone who buys a $100,000 property -- and pays cash for it -- makes $8,000 a year after expenses, including maintenance and taxes," the USA Today article notes. 

Of course, the threats of tenant and maintenance issues always has the potential to derail that potential profit, so investors need to be careful before jumping in, some experts warn.

Source: "Mom and Pop Investors Propping Up Home-Buying Market," USA Today (Feb. 14, 2012)