RRP- the EPA, Renovation, Repair, and Painting Certificate.

If you own a home built before 1978 you MUST learn about RRP before you do any Renovating, Repair, or Painting.

This is especially true of landlords.   All contractors, subcontractors, painters, AND property managers are required to follow the new EPA guildelines.

The EPA, Environmental Protection Agency has been levying huge fines for non-compliance.

Home owners who do their own work are excluded from RRP requirements.  But if you hire a contractor and the work will disturb any painted surface make sure the contractor is RRP certified.  Also note if you do the work yourself keep a record.   If you eventually want to sell your home  it will be helpful to have this information.  Homeowners who sell a home built before 1978 need to comply with lead paint disclosure requirements when they sell.

For a landlord or property manager, if a tenant paints your pre-1978 property and deducts some of the cost from rents YOU HAVE HIRED THEM!   You must follow the RRP certification guidelines if your tenant is compensated!

I found these two videos on YouTube that explain some of the risks in involved.

EPA Lead Safety & Property Management

Contractors upset Regarding RRP

Trulia Summer 2011 Rent vs. Buy.

Here’s a link to Trulia’s rent vs Buy survey from this summer.  In case the link doesn’t work Here is a copy of the Transcript.

A very cool looking Thermostat that’s designed to be attractive, easy to use and save energy.  The inventor, Tony Fadell, had big part in developing the iPhone.

Nest | The Learning Thermostat | Living With Nest.

One of the most frequently asked questions from homeowners  is why is my tax value so high when I can’t sell my house for that much.   This article will take you through he steps to help you dosomething about that high tax bill.

BestAssets Announcement – New Sales Contract Package.

The fact is homes are more affordable than ever!

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Here’s what you will learn at our seminars:

• The Media is WRONG!  Home loans are not hard to qualify for!
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• Little known ways to find,  buy and fix up those bank owned bargains you hear about.
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Rob  Bonahoom, “The Investment Mortgage Guy”, wrote a nice article on his blog about the great programs available to finance both the purchase and rehab of Fixer Upper homes.

Cornerstone Mortgage Offers the Best Rehab Loans in the Twin Cities! | Investment Mortgage Guy.

Rehab Loans are a great way to make a run down foreclosures and other distresses fixer upper bargains and turn them into great home to live in.

Here’s a quote From Rob’s article, “Where most buyers and investors think they need cash, Cornerstone Mortgage offers great rehab financing for both owner occupied buyers and real estate investors. For the owner occupied buyer, Cornerstone likes to utilize the FHA 203k loan. This loan requires only 3.5% down payment and allows a buyer to finance renovations with a total project cost up to $365,000. Projects as low as $5000 on up will be considered. Rates for this 30 year fixed product are currently around 4.5%. There are a few lenders in the market that offer this program but I believe Cornerstone is one of the best at it.  We close most of these loans in 60 days or less. We also underwrite and fund the loans and draws in-house so the delays are minimized.”

Technorati Tags: 203K, fixer upper, Foreclosures, Rehab

Low Ball Offers on Bank Owned Foreclosure Properties | Investment Property Expert

Fellow Minnesota Real Estate Team member, Scott Ficek’s blog is always a great source of information for investors.  In this article Scott answer’s one of the most commonly asked questions,

“How low of an offer can we make on this foreclosed house”?

Wisdom & Title Insurance | StAugustine.com.

Title insurance is a nominal expenditure at closing that can prevent you from spending wads in a lawsuit later on.  “

So what’s a QR code you ask.

Just Google QR scan codes and see what the buzz is all about.

You will need code scan application to use the symbol I posted.