Rent-to-own home leases becoming more popular

Rent-to-own home leases becoming more popular

In South Florida’s depressed housing market, some people are taking a wait-and-see approach by renting with an option to buy later.

Leasing is still more common with cars, but the concept is spreading. Sellers are willing because they’re struggling to unload their properties, and a rent-to-own contract brings in cash. Prospective buyers also are game because credit is tight, and they can build equity while they take time to qualify for mortgages.

“With the economy, I think we’re going to see this all through ’09, unfortunately,” said Perry Diamond, a Boca Raton real estate agent with Lang Realty who sets up most of his residential listings as leases to own.

In a typical deal, the renter agrees to buy the property for a specific price at a later date. The renter makes a nonrefundable deposit, and the seller puts part of the rent money toward the down payment. Still, there are risks for both sides.

Cheaper homes in subdivision anger residents

Cheaper homes in subdivision anger residents

The for-sale signs at the entrance to Hays Farm offer the first clues that not all went as planned at the subdivision alongside Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park.

The older, more weathered sign reads, “new homes … high $500s.”

The newer, shinier sign reads, “distinctive homes … from the low $300s.”

Two price ranges. Two sets of home buyers.

Count your blessings you’re in Manteca and not Cleveland

Count your blessings you’re in Manteca and not Cleveland

Manteca may be at the epicenter of the foreclosure meltdown triggered by liar loans and fueled by greed, but we’re still enjoying the good life.

Consider the following if you believe otherwise:

• There are 18 homes for sale for under $3,000 in Flint, Mich.

• There are 22 homes for sale for under $3,000 in Indianapolis.

• There are 46 homes for sale for under $3,000 in Cleveland.

• There are 709 homes for sale for under $3,000 in Detroit.

Failure to fund board’s reserves could have future consequences

Failure to fund board’s reserves could have future consequences

Question: I live in a retirement condominium that is about 40 years old. Our county notified us that our condo must be inspected by an engineer to determine if it has construction deficiencies. The report indicated that our main problem was the roof.

We recently started a fund to replace the roof but we do not have enough, and our board is discussing borrowing the money.

Miami Answer: Maybe you are old enough to remember the advertisement that said pay me now or pay me later. Well, now is later.

As long as I can remember, condominium statutes have required that condominium boards must include reserves for roofing, paving and painting in the annual budget.

Loan renewals pose threat; one builder acts to force negotiation

Loan renewals pose threat; one builder acts to force negotiation

Unable to get bankers to renegotiate nearly $22 million in debt, Southwest Florida home builder Lee Wetherington has filed a legal action akin to a bankruptcy proceeding.

Wetherington said that the filing, known as an “assignment for the benefit of creditors,” affects only the development side of his business, and that he is using it as tactic to bring bankers to the negotiating table.

“This forces them to come back and look at the properties and also gives us more time to negotiate better terms,” Wetherington said.

As is the case with thousands of builders across the state and nation, Wetherington’s bankers want him to fork over millions of dollars in return for renewing loans on land that has lost value in the real estate meltdown.

Have a problem at your South Florida condo? Make sure you go about resolving it the right way

Have a problem at your South Florida condo? Make sure you go about resolving it the right way

A curious rooftop noise has kept Phyllis Howard from getting a good night’s sleep at her Tamarac condo for two months.

Howard, 81, describes it as a recurring and irritatingly constant “bam-bam” sound akin to a coin caught in a clothes dryer — only a bit softer. She says it comes from the roof of her Kings Point condo and starts after midnight, lasting until past 7 a.m.

“I haven’t had more than three hours of sleep since Nov. 12 to be exact,” Howard said. “Ask me how I know. You don’t forget the last time you had a good sleep.”

Howard, a retired social worker, contacted her association, maintenance company and handyman. But nobody has been able to hear the noise, quiet it or satisfy Howard.