1. Can I Lease-Purchase a house if I've had a recent bankruptcy?
M & J Management will discretely check your credit. We do not check with the credit bureaus or hire investigators. A bankruptcy is NOT necessarily a negative factor in our view even though it may disqualify you from a bank loan automatically. For us it can actually be a positive indicator. After all, a bankruptcy is one of life's most difficult learning experiences. We are interested in your credit experience from a different standpoint than a bank.
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2. Can I Lease-Purchase a house if my credit rating poor or my credit score is low?
Of course. The a main purpose of Lease-Purchase is to provide an opportunity for honest people who need extra consideration. This can take many forms, but the opportunity to repair credit is definitely part of the plan.
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3. What percent (%) do I need for a down payment?
There is no down payment when you Lease-Purchase. A Lease-Purchase is based on a standard lease combined with an 'option' to purchase the property at a later time. A time of your choosing. To move in you will only need enough cash to cover the first month's rent and the cost of the option. The price of the option is generally between $1,500 and $3,000 depending on the value of the home.
For instance: You might want to Lease-Purchase your own $70,000 home in the Tipp Hill area of Syracuse. Normal rent for this home would be around $775 per month. If you make an agreement with the owner to execute a purchase option that will end 48 months after you move in for $2,500 and $100 per month. When you exercise your option to purchase, you will get back the full $2,500 plus your monthly option payments. In 4 years you'll accrue $7,300 (more than the 10% down payment) to apply toward your purchase of the house.
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4. Who pays the real estate taxes? (school, county and village etc.)
The lease portion of a Lease-Purchase is just a standard lease. As with any property you rent, the owner pays all the taxes - NOT you. Of course, once you exercise the purchase option and become the owner of the property, you will become responsible for the taxes.
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5. Who pays for the home insurance?
This is just like taxes. The owner pays all the homeowner's insurance - NOT you. However, we suggest that any tenant acquire a rentor's policy that will cover their personal property in case of fire or theft. A policy of this sort generally costs less than $20 a month. The owner's insurance would not cover these items.
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6. Can I have pets?
Generally the answer is yes. Since your intention should be to eventually purchase the home you can have the same pets you might want to have if you were the owner. Unfortunately, there is an exception for certain breeds of dogs which would require you to obtain a separate liability insurance policy to have them in the home. Those breeds include: Pit Bulls, Akitas, Chows, Doberman Pinschers, wolf hybrids , American Staffordshire Terriers and Rottweillers.
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7. How long does it take before I can purchase the home?
This is pretty much your choice. You could acquire an option to purchase good for 48 months, but you can exercise that option any time you choose during that 4 year period. In other words, the home is reserved for you for 4 years but you can buy it any time you want. Depending on the property, you might decide to purchase an option for three years or two years, but once again, you can purchase the house any time you want during the 3 year time period. Usually it is best to wait until the house has reached it's full appreciated value at the end of the option period, but not always.
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8. Can I sell the home at any time?
Actually you can. You will always know what your purchase price is so any time during the option period you can sell the property. Your profit will be the difference between what the buyer pays and the purchase price agreed to in your option.
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9. What happens if I move away from Syracuse?
If you need to move for any reason simply exercise your option and sell the house. As with question 8, your profit will be the difference between what the buyer pays and the purchase price agreed to in your option.
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10. Will a Lease-Purchase affect my score with the credit bureaus?
A successful Lease-Purchase cycle will definitely raise a credit score - substantially!
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11. Who pays the utilities?
The tenant is responsible for all utilities. BUT with your Lease-Purchase home if you see changes or improvements you want to make it's worthwhile to go ahead. You might want to put in a new window to save on your heat bill, but you will also be improving the property you will own someday - without increasing its purchase price. Pretty good deal.
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12. Who mows the lawn and shovels the snow?
With a Lease-Purchase the tenant is responsible for maintenance. Once again, however, well groomed property has a higher value. Since your purchase price is fixed, property improvements and good maintenance are like putting money in the bank.
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13. Why does Lease-Purchase cost more than just renting?
It doesn't. The rent for a Lease-Purchase property is fixed for the length of the option. The rent amount should be the same as the home would cost to rent without the purchase option. You will pay a monthly fee to maintain the option, but when you excersize your option, that fee will be returned to you.
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14. What happens if I want to make improvements to the home?
Your purchase price is preset. When you make improvements the value of the property increases but your costs remain the same. You make a profit!
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15. Does M&J Management have apartments and homes that are just regular rental properties?
You bet! We have lots of rental properties available. Fill out the Contact and tell us what you want.
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Fill out and send the guick contact form and we'll get in tough with you about your property.
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