MCP Help Blog

The San Jose Mercury-News throws light on a problem in many housing markets. The surge in foreclosures not only hurts those trying to sell homes, it affects renters looking for homes too. Tenants may find themselves in a double bind–the landlords continue to collect their rents but do not make the mortgage payments on the properties. The landlords have the tenant’s security deposits as well. And while legally the deposits belong to the tenants, in foreclosure or bankruptcy proceedings the money may not be returned for a long time, if at all.

So the poor tenants find themselves evicted by the new owners, with no security deposits to give a new landlord. In addition, the explosion of foreclosed properties being rehabbed for sale has left a dearth of homes available for rent. So rents are higher and harder to get, adding insult to injury. In other words, it’s a great time to be a landlord and a lousy time to be a tenant.

How can you prevent this? First, check a property’s status before signing a rental agreement. The landlord checks your background, you should check his. Notices of Default are public filings and the county should make records pertaining to the property and the owner available to you. For example, in Washoe County in Nevada you could go to the County Assessor’s Web site, type in an address, and find out who owns the property. Then, you check the County Clerk’s Web site, type in the name of the owner, and any filings involving the company or individual will show up. Even if the property in question isn’t in default, a slew of filings on other properties should alert you that maybe this person isn’t a good risk. Finally, many court systems allow you to check for legal filings too. In Washoe County you can check District Court cases–enter the person’s name and up come any lawsuits in the system.

 Remember: Your landlords will check you out–you owe it to yourself to return the favor.