Apartment/ Real Estate Rental Tips, Please?

[achaykiller]

random question.. is there a sneaky way for people to subdivide your lot without you knowing it? 

[Tea97]

Marami puedeng mag fake ng title and dupe other people to think they are the 'owners' selling the property. Kaya ang tip dun is mag-request ng copy from Registry of Deeds to check sino talaga owners, and kung naka-sanla, etc bago magsign ng absolute sale. This is part of the due diligence a buyer will want to carry out before purchase.

Yun pag-subdivide ng lupa - whoever has the original title will need to go to the Registry of Deeds - puedeng iinitiate yun process ng subdivision kapag yun nag-ask to subdivide is an heir to the owner (who passed away). But how they can complete this activity, sorry di ko pa na pag aralan completely, so dont think this helps a lot.

[shyla_c]

Question po, ilan years po ba allowed before magtaas ng rental fee ang owner and is there a basis on how much they should increase?
Also, I believe owners should maintain like re-paint their apartment and other maintenance, am I correct? Or those should be shouldered by the tenant?

Thanks po sa sasagot.

[Tea97]

ang last na naalala ko regarding rental increase - may pinasa na batas on rent control for properties rented out at P10000 or less per month sa NCR on how much puedeng itaas ng rent. http://www.congress.gov.ph/press/details.php?pressid=9170

Walang batas regarding kung kelan puede mag taas ng renta - pero kung may contract of lease ka, dun naka specify kung kelan and how often puede mag taas ng renta. So if you are a tenant, you need to make sure na nabasa mo at agreeable ka dun sa terms ng pagtaas ng renta when you sign an agreement. Reasonable naman to say na mag increase base sa inflation rate, so say 5% increase (sakin ganon ang increase ko sa tenant ko).

Yun repainting, maintenance ng apartment - normally kapag move in ng tenant the apartment should already be 'habitable' - meaning maayos and hindi magkakasakit (ie no molds) yun tenant sa condition ng apartment. Nakalagay din yan 'habitable' sa lease contract.

Subject to normal wear and tear, yun landlord ang nag hahandle ng repainting ng unit. Pero kapag abusive naman yun tenant (like trashing the place or obvious negligence - mentality ng Pinoy minsan porke hindi kanya, okay lang mabasa yun parquet flooring, etc), puedeng ideduct ng landlord yun expenses sa security deposit, assuming papaalisin na yun tenant due to anti-social behavior ng tenant.

When we were renting, yun mga change ng light bulbs ako na naglalabas dun, unless malaki yun amount na kelangan ko ilabas. Cabinet repairs/repainting can be done every 4 years (from experience) to keep the wood/walls durable, and mawala yun 'bubbles' due to damp. If meron problema sa electricals, sa landlord yan. Are you (@shyla_c) renting?

[shyla_c]

Hi sis thanks sa reply mo. Yes we are renting. We have been here for 6 years na. We started at 23k then naging 25, then now 28k na. Fair kaya yun? Ok lang sana magbayad ng mahal kaso until now not once was the apartment repainted. May tulo na sa ceiling ilang months na kami nag cocomplain hindi daw kasi dumadating ang carpentero. Dati yung mga ginawa sa ceiling na may tulo then pinalitan yung portion ng ceiling hindi man lang pininturahan so may mga rectangular pieces sa ceiling na kulay raw plywood eh ang ceiling nila is white. I can really say na hindi kami abusive gumamit ng bahay una sa lahat malinis ako sa bahay and we kept it at a very very minimum na mag pako or magbutas except for the areas where we installed the AC units which alam naman ni owner.

[Tea97]

Did you try to negotiate the fee increase? Tanong mo sa landlord mo kung puede ibase sa inflation yun increases (cap to inflation rate so around 5-8% or you can also use a figure say max of 2000), and dapat bigyan ka ng 45 days prior notice - para kung di kayo magkasundo, makakapaglipat ka pa. Lagay mo sa paperwork nyo yan.

Tapos yun ceiling, maghanap ka ng sarili mong carpenter, get a quote, and bigay mo sa landlord - pa-approve mo na lang sa kanya, and then puwedeng ikaw maglabas muna, and bawas na lang sa next na renta mo (in case di ka nag issue ng cheke). Kung may cheke ka nang naissue, ipahold mo yun payment - and pabayad mo yun fee sa paghold ng cheke sa kanya (though that means inaaway mo na talaga sya).

Normally, landlords are open to negotiate with a good paying tenant na responsable sa property nya. Kasi at least hindi nababakante yun property, and hindi naluluma. The amount you are paying is already a good amount, and can get you a nice decent place in metro, depende na lang siguro sa location (ie close to schools) kaya in such cases, landlord's market di makapalag mga tenants. Pero that's not how it should be, kasi dapat habitable ang pinapaupahan - may mga landlords din talaga na pabaya - so kulitin mo na lang, kung di ka makalipat sa ibang property. San ba neighborhood nyo, at dun ako maghahanap ng next rental property!

[LilaFowler]

Following kasi we will soon rent out our studio unit in QC.

A few questions:
- What will give better rental returns - Furnished or unfurnished?
- Can you claim interest as a deductible for tax?

Our plan is to buy a new property every 2 years so we can build property portfolio. What other areas ba maganda? Our first one is in QC in the North EDSA area.

[rasee16]

Furnished or unfurnished, this depends on your target market. If expats, they lean towards furnished units. If employees lang baka di nila kayanin ang rates if furnished na unless ipapa-airbnb mo.

For your new condos, go for major cbd areas like makati, bgc and ortigas.

[rasee16]

Napansin ko yung fully furnished unit na pinarent ko sa ortigas, mabilis marent, laging long term and puro foreigner ang nagsstay.

Yung sa azure naman na fully furnished, ang hirap hirap iparent for long term kasi ang market dun, mga locals lang na nagsstaycation eh. Yung tipong weekend staycation lang. So far puro ganun lang ang nakukuha kong inquiries.

[LilaFowler]

We bought sa Vertis North, 2 studio units next to each other. This will be rental for now pero if we decide to move back to the Philippines, we plan to combine the two units into one unit and live there.

We didn't want to over invest at the beginning. If this "experiment" is successful, we will buy more siguro Makati area. We really like Ayala developments.

RE:Furnished vs Unfurnished, siguro we can negotiate na lang with the tenant. Do you have to install cabinetry and appliances ba? Like fridge, washing machine and dryer or do tenants normally buy this?

Thanks.

[rasee16]

RE:Furnished vs Unfurnished, siguro we can negotiate na lang with the tenant. Do you have to install cabinetry and appliances ba? Like fridge, washing machine and dryer or do tenants normally buy this?

Thanks.

Again, this will depend on your target market. I don't have unfurnished units because I am targeting expats working nearby (in ortigas) and vacation-goers (in azure). Everything is provided-- furniture and appliances. Personal things nalang ang dadalhin nila.

If your target market are employees and starting families, possible siguro kahit na bare unit lang

[twinbee]

Tip to all unit owners, in case, paparent kayo, always check yung utility bills esp if under developer like water, electricity..
may case, na ilang months di nagbabayad si tenant without action from admin to disconnect use of water.

[mameejhy]

May gumagamit sa inyo ng keyless keypad?

[mameejhy]

How much ba ang difference ng apartment and real estate rental?

Depends on location and if furnished/ unfurnished.

[mameejhy]

We bought sa Vertis North, 2 studio units next to each other. This will be rental for now pero if we decide to move back to the Philippines, we plan to combine the two units into one unit and live there.

We didn't want to over invest at the beginning. If this "experiment" is successful, we will buy more siguro Makati area. We really like Ayala developments.

Kailan ang turn over ng Vertis North? Balak ko kumuha dun before end of year 2018. Kumuha ako sa South Arca this year. Balak ko din bibili ng property evey 2 years, not necessarily sa Ayala Land pero kung sakali pangatlo na namin yun Vertis North (1st namin ay Nuvali lot)

[LilaFowler]

^ Avida Vita Tower 3 completion is March 2018 I think. There's an Alveo development there din but I did not want to spend 8M (1Br) on our first investment.

There's a new SMDC development coming up in the same area. Pero ang panget kasi ng developments ng SMDC. It reminds me of public housing and I hate how they always put the kitchen in the hallway. Pag pasok mo you are welcomed by the stove.

Other than location, what do tenants look for?

How important ang:
- amenities (pool, gym etc)
- balcony

Mahirap ba maghanap ng tenant if there's no parking space included with the apartment?

[girlush]

Furnished or unfurnished, this depends on your target market. If expats, they lean towards furnished units. If employees lang baka di nila kayanin ang rates if furnished na unless ipapa-airbnb mo.

For your new condos, go for major cbd areas like makati, bgc and ortigas.

Sis, this was the first time na merong magrent sa unit namin na for long term. Thru bank deposit ba payment sayo? Do you issue a receipt?

 Usually kase short term and sa airbnb yung booking.

tIa

[D4thAngel]

Sis @girlish, I suggest magpa-issue ka ng post dated check to avoid the hassle of reminding them the due date. minsan kasi pwedeng magka-amnesia. I have long-term tenants, lagging pdc hanap ko, at pag renew, I ask agad. yun na din yung proof of payment nila since I tell them from the start that I cannot issue OR. I get 2 months deposit, 1 month advance, and reiterate na deposit could not be used as advance payment.

[whoops]

Personally, I find leasing out furnished units in the metro more advantageous.

Lease rentals are higher when the units are fully furnished, and you can already recover the cost of the furnishings and appliances in about a year's time.  Then, if you renew the lease, they would be using the same items so no extra expense but you still get the same higher rent than bare.

For furnished units, you can also offer short-term leases in between long term contracts, while you're finding new lessees.  I help some friends in handling their rental units, and this is what I usually tell them.

[LilaFowler]

When you say furnished what are the appliances/furniture that you need to provide?

- bed
- washing machine
- fridge
- microwave
-dining set

Do you need to provide pots and pans etc? Or does the tenant provide that?