Joe's Blog

Tri Cities Washington New Listings

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 14:39:19 -0400

New Tri Cities Washington Listings listed today. For more information, or specific listings, please contact me. ~ Colleen Lane, 509.438.9344 lanerealestate@gmail.com

This Is A Great Location For A Commercial Or Industrial...

$395,000

Finley, WA

, 1,259 ft² Commercial

Price: $395,000 City: Finley Beds: Baths: 0 Type: Commercial MLS® #: 170120 Provider: New Century Realty This Is A Great Location For A Commercial Or Industrial Business. Great Exposure From Sr-397 And Haney...

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Beautiful Luxury Home Built As A 2005 Parade Of Homes...

$345,000

Kennewick, WA

3 br, 2½ ba, 2,506 ft² Residential

Price: $345,000 City: Kennewick Beds: 3 Baths: 2½ Type: Residential MLS® #: 170112 Provider: Windermere R/e Tri Cities (kenn) Beautiful Luxury Home Built As A 2005 Parade Of Homes Showcase, The Home Has Incredible Luxury Features...

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Beautiful 4 Bed, 3 Car Garage Custom Stucco Home. Gorgeous...

$329,900

Pasco, WA

4 br, 2 ba, 2,486 ft² Residential

Price: $329,900 City: Pasco Beds: 4 Baths: 2 Type: Residential MLS® #: 170108 Provider: American Family Real Estate Beautiful 4 Bed, 3 Car Garage Custom Stucco Home. Gorgeous Entry With Lots Of Tile Inside. Cuffed Ceilings,...

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Location! Location! Location1 15 Minutes From Almost...

$240,000

Richland, WA

4 br, 2½ ba, 1,904 ft² Residential

Price: $240,000 City: Richland Beds: 4 Baths: 2½ Type: Residential MLS® #: 170109 Provider: Distinctive Properties (kenn) Location! Location! Location1 15 Minutes From Almost Anywhere In The Tri Cities. Elegant 2 Stry W/ A...

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Beautiful Energy Star Certified Home Located In Peaceful...

$234,149

Pasco, WA

4 br, 2½ ba, 2,189 ft² Residential

Price: $234,149 City: Pasco Beds: 4 Baths: 2½ Type: Residential MLS® #: 169367 Provider: Desert Hills Realty Beautiful Energy Star Certified Home Located In Peaceful West Pasco Neighborhood. To Be Built With 3...

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Come To Creekstone And Feel The Comfort Of A Hammerstrom...

$219,900

Kennewick, WA

3 br, 2 ba, 1,683 ft² Residential

Price: $219,900 City: Kennewick Beds: 3 Baths: 2 Type: Residential MLS® #: 170111 Provider: Windermere R/e Tri-cities (rich) Come To Creekstone And Feel The Comfort Of A Hammerstrom Home. Pick Out Your Lot And Choose From One...

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Come To Creekstone And Feel The Comfort Of A Hammerstrom...

$217,900

Kennewick, WA

3 br, 2 ba, 1,638 ft² Residential

Price: $217,900 City: Kennewick Beds: 3 Baths: 2 Type: Residential MLS® #: 170115 Provider: Windermere R/e Tri-cities (rich) Come To Creekstone And Feel The Comfort Of A Hammerstrom Home. Pick Out Your Lot And Choose From One...

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Come To Creekstone And Feel The Comfort Of A Hammerstrom...

$214,900

Kennewick, WA

3 br, 2 ba, 1,638 ft² Residential

Price: $214,900 City: Kennewick Beds: 3 Baths: 2 Type: Residential MLS® #: 170110 Provider: Windermere R/e Tri-cities (rich) Come To Creekstone And Feel The Comfort Of A Hammerstrom Home. Pick Out Your Lot And Choose From One...

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This Well Kept 3 B. Rms+ Den Rambler Should Not Stay...

$206,900

Richland, WA

3 br, 2 ba, 1,904 ft² Residential

Price: $206,900 City: Richland Beds: 3 Baths: 2 Type: Residential MLS® #: 170117 Provider: Progressive Sales, Inc. This Well Kept 3 B. Rms+ Den Rambler Should Not Stay To Long In The Market. If You See Inside You Will...

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3 Bedroom Residential Property in Finley, WA

$159,900

Finley, WA

3 br, 2 ba, 1,804 ft² Residential

Price: $159,900 City: Finley Beds: 3 Baths: 2 Type: Residential MLS® #: 170122 Provider: Help-u-sell Of Kennewick

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Central Location With Easy Access To Everything! Home...

$114,900

Kennewick, WA

3 br, 1 ba, 1,368 ft² Residential

Price: $114,900 City: Kennewick Beds: 3 Baths: 1 Type: Residential MLS® #: 170107 Provider: Zion Properties, Llc. Central Location With Easy Access To Everything! Home Has Had Newer Cabinets Installed. Home Could Use...

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Squeaky Clean, Super Cute And Quiet As Can Be. Three...

$84,900

Prosser, WA

3 br, 1¾ ba, 1,404 ft² Residential

Price: $84,900 City: Prosser Beds: 3 Baths: 1¾ Type: Residential MLS® #: 170121 Provider: Windermere R/e Tri Cities (kenn) Squeaky Clean, Super Cute And Quiet As Can Be. Three Bedroom Home In A Terrific Adult Community With...

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Flat 1.34 Acre For Home Or Mobile Home. 40'x48' Pole...

$79,900

Finley, WA

1.34 acres Land

Price: $79,900 City: Finley Beds: Baths: 0 Type: Land MLS® #: 170119 Provider: New Century Realty Flat 1.34 Acre For Home Or Mobile Home. 40'x48' Pole Building Barn With Sliding Doors And Loafing Shed...

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Panoramic Views! Only A Few Blocks From Services, Schools...

$54,900

West Richland, WA

1.71 acres Land

Price: $54,900 City: West Richland Beds: Baths: 0 Type: Land MLS® #: 170116 Provider: Windermere R/e Tri Cities (kenn) Panoramic Views! Only A Few Blocks From Services, Schools And Yoke's Market. Bombing Range Road To S...

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Flat 1.37 Acre Lot For Home Or Mobile Home. Irrigated...

$49,900

Finley, WA

1.37 acres Land

Price: $49,900 City: Finley Beds: Baths: 0 Type: Land MLS® #: 170118 Provider: New Century Realty Flat 1.37 Acre Lot For Home Or Mobile Home. Irrigated From A Well Now. However, Irrigation From Cid Is...

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The data relating to real estate for sale on this website comes in part from the Tri Cities Association of REALTORS®. The information being provided is for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing. Listing information updated daily

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What Not To Do In Social Media

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 20:38:52 -0400

Sadly, Colleen and I see too much of this, real estate agents abusing social media. This is an email sent to everyone on the real estate agent's email list, and, without hiding the recipients of the list:

I am trying to get at least 25 fans on my [name of real estate business] fanpage so I can add the URL. Who would like to help? If you have a facebook page I would appreciate so much your becoming my fan! I will then add it to my "coming-soon-website" and my new business cards along with my new picture. Its an all new me:) Just go to my facebook page and you should be able to get to it from there. I'm still learning this facebook thing so I hope you can find it, but I am excited about it for my business! Thanks so much!

Perhaps this agent is new and simply does not understand how things work, but common sense should prevail. No wonder the world out there thinks they are being farmed by us real estate agents. For what it is worth, Colleen and I rarely discuss real estate on Facebook and other social media websites. Sure, we have a business page, but we treat our business page like a brick and mortar store. If they walk in we'll offer our help to them, and if they do not walk in we will not go to their home and bother them to stop by the store.

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Kennewick Wa Homes For Sale

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:22:43 -0400

Thinking of owning your own home? Well do consider Kennewick Washington homes for sale real estate options. The peace and serenity of the place and the proximity of all Kennewick homes near public and private utilities make the real estate options worth the time and money invested in the hunt.

At The Lane Real Estate Team, we handle Kennewick Wa properties and are very well networked in the community offering buyers, first and seasoned, homes for sale real estate options that are lucrative and designed to fit into any predetermined budget. There are a number of online as well as offline resources that list Kennewick homes and even make virtual tours available on request, however, The Lane Real Estate Team can walk you through the process.

Kennewick Washington is a destination location for folks looking to purchase into a thriving community. Consider using The Lane Team of Colleen and Joe Lane for assistance. Colleen Lane is the broker, while Joe manages marketing, online ventures, and personnel. See Kennewick Wa homes for sale.

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Video: 10 Tips for Profitable Property Management

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:53:30 -0400

This property manager is right on!
Invest With Passion - Property Management Tips 1-5

Invest With Passion - Property Management Tips 6-10

I be Joe Lane, the co-owner of The Lane Real Estate Team. The other owner, my beloved wife Colleen, wants nothing to do with the property management side of the real estate business. With five children still at home, I don't blame her. You can call me most anytime at 509.308.5513 | Don't mess with a bald dude!

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Cute Prosser Home Close To Farrand Park

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 08:56:50 -0500

A very cute home in Prosser ready to move in and call home. Close to everything,- parks, shopping, freeway, and the Yakima River. This immaculately maintained home features a large double sized lot, plenty of storage, and comfortable living. Check it out...

For more details, please visit Prosser Homes For Sale

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Green West Richland Homes For Sale in Hanford High School District

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 08:15:41 -0500

Featured Property Specifics: 5700 Kilawea Drive, West Richland Wa
This 2007 home looks and feels brand new, ready to move into and call home. Plenty of windows letting in ample home lighting. Room above the garage ready to finish off to the new owner's liking. Possibilities are endless. Workout room, play room, craft center, sewing room, just to name a few, and more...

2,450 sq feet
3 Bedroom 2.5 Bath
3 car garage
2 story
Fireplace
Garden area
Large corner lot
Close to schools, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Target
Neighborhood parks
Beautiful view of mountains

A featured listing at West Richland Homes For Sale!

About Hanford High School
Hanford High School is in the city of Richland, in the state of Washington. Richland’s superior climate makes it conducive to outdoor activities. Parks in front of the Columbia River and Yakima River make it a favorite place for boating, fishing, water skiing, and other water activities. Hanford High School is categorized as a High School, run by the Richland School District education agency, offering Ninth to Twelfth Grade. The population of an approximate of 1300 is composed of mixed races of Caucasian, Asian, Hispanic, African American, and Indian. With a total of 94 teachers, a ratio of 14 students for every teacher is made. [more Hanford High School]

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18 Reasons To Legally Reject A Tenant's Application

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:36:34 -0400

Many landlords believe that they cannot reject any applicant for any reason, that they have to accept the first one to come along with the money or risk the grief of a lawsuit. Not so. There are numerous legitimate, businesslike reasons to reject a prospective tenant.

1. Unsatisfactory references from landlords, employers and/or personal references. These could include reports of repeated disturbance of their neighbors' peaceful enjoyment of their homes; reports of gambling, prostitution, drug dealing or drug manufacturing; damage to the property beyond normal wear and tear; reports of violence or threats to landlords or neighbors; allowing people not listed on the lease or rental agreement to live in the property; failure to give proper notice when vacating the property; or a landlord who would not rent to them again.

2. Evictions.

3. Frequent moves. You have to decide what constitutes frequent moves and apply the same criteria to every applicant.

4. Bad credit report. If a report shows they are not current with any bill, have been turned over to a collection agency, have been sued for a debt, or have a judgment for a debt, that is grounds to reject. These do not have to be debts connected in any way with housing.

5. Too short a time on the job. As with frequent moves, you have to decide what too short a time is and apply the same criteria to every applicant.

6. Too new to the area. There is nothing to say you have to rent to people who have just moved to town. Be careful, though, many times these would be excellent tenants and the time and long distance call expense of checking them out could pay big dividends.

7. Smokers.Some newspapers mistakenly believe that smokers are a protected "handicapped" class. They will never be. The tobacco companies would not allow it. Do do so would be to admit that tobacco and nicotine are addicting. Industry lobbyists would be sure to fight that idea tooth and nail. So you can safely discriminate against people who smoke. Newspapers will not accept ads that say "no smokers," but they will accept ads that say "no smoking."

8. No verifiable source of income.

9. Too many vehicles. Lots of cars can be a real source of irritation to neighbors and make the entire neighborhood or apartment complex look bad. Chances are, if they have more than one vehicle for every adult they spend a lot of time broken and being fixed. That means they could be in pieces in the front yard or parking lot.

10. Too many people for the property. Be extremely careful with this. Before the familial status protection clause of the Fair Housing Act, you could discriminate on this basis without fear of any problems. Not any more. Now the same criteria must be applied without regard to the age of the inhabitant. Be sure it is applied equally to all applicants. Check your state's Landlord-Tenant Law.

11. Drug users. They must be current drug users. If they are in a drug treatment program and no longer use drugs, the Federal Government considers them handicapped and protected by the Fair Housing Act.

12. Pets.

13. Any evidence of illegal activity. You must be able to come up with some kind of satisfactory evidence. I don't know what that would be, every case would be different. Certainly a letter from the police department warning a previous landlord of their illegal activity and threatening to close the property is considered sufficient evidence.

14. History of late rental payments.

15. Insufficient income. You must set up objective criteria applied equally to each applicant. Insufficient income could reasonably be if the scheduled rent exceeded 35% of their gross monthly income.

For example, if the rent is $600, their gross monthly income must be at least $1714.29. The formula is:

Acceptable income= scheduled rent                                     income ratio

You can require proof of all income. Be careful, though, if you are willing to accept only one member of a married couple to supply the total dollar income, you must be willing to accept the same of unmarried, co-tenants that share the housing. Under Fair Housing law you cannot require that unmarried people meet different income requirements than married people.

16. Too many debts. Even if their gross income is sufficient, they may have so many other debts that they would be hard pressed to make all the payments. A rule of thumb might be that all contracted debts, including rent, cannot exceed 50% of their gross income. Contracted debts would be such things as credit card payments, car payments, loans, etc. Those would not be cable TV, water and garbage, telephone, or other utilities.

17. Conviction of a crime which was a threat to property in the past five years. Included in this could be drunk driving convictions, burglary convictions, robbery convictions, and other such misbehaviors.

18. Conviction for the manufacture or distribution of a controlled substance in the past five years.

The best way to proceed is to post a list of the acceptable rental criteria and hand it to each applicant. You can use the list above, but under no circumstances is it intended to be legal advice. Check with an attorney who is familiar with the Landlord-Tenant Law before posting or handing out anything like a list of acceptable criteria for applicants.

Laws change constantly, and what you don't know can and will hurt you.

Copyright Cain Publications, Inc., used by permission. Robert Cain is a nationally-recognized speaker and writer on property management and real estate issues. For a free sample copy of the Rental Property Reporter call 800-654-5456 or visit their web site at www.rentalprop.com

I be Joe Lane, the co-owner of The Lane Real Estate Team.
The other owner, my beloved wife Colleen, wants nothing to do with the property management side of the real estate business. With five children still at home, I don't blame her. You can call me most anytime at 509.308.5513
Don't mess with a bald dude!

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Property Management, A Beginning

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 01:00:54 -0400

This is the first of hopefully many property management blog entries. I intend to narrowly focus in on property management, investment properties, and the maintenance requirements of both.

I'm excited about this blog, as this blog is the first step in Colleen (the beautiful wife) and my goal of owning a property management company. Ever since we've been married we've owned and managed rental properties, and when relocated to the Tri Cities Washington area five years ago, we maintained 22 rental units. Right now we manage and maintain 8 rental units and 2 commercial parcels, however, these are our properties. Colleen is half-way through her coursework to obtain her Washington state real estate brokers license. We are looking at completion date of November 30th, 2008, at which time we will reevaluate our position and consider the move into managing client's investment and rental properties.

Looking forward to contributing more information and resources in and for the property management industry here on ActiveRain.

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What to do when a tenant is not paying rent...

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 03:39:19 -0400

Video Source

I be Joe Lane, the co-owner of The Lane Real Estate Team.
The other owner, my beloved wife Colleen, wants nothing to do with the property management side of the real estate business. With five children still at home, I don't blame her. You can call me most anytime at 509.308.5513
Don't mess with a bald dude!

Kennewick Homes For Sale | Kennewick Real Estate Blog | Contact Us

Chart: Where Does Your Presidential Candidate Stand...

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:28:32 -0400

Where does your candidate stand on positions important to you.
Download a .pdf file that includes and cites candidate resources here.

Your Vote Counts...

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Yikes! No Grace Period Here!

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 20:28:20 -0400

I was speaking with my handyman today and he gave me a great idea for a blog entry. Let's call him Tom. Tom is a great handyman, however, a terrible businessman. He has several rental properties and makes all the mistakes in the books, then if that weren't enough, he repeats the same mistakes!

One of the mistakes Tom continues repeating is allowing his tenants to pay rent late, or close to the grace period deadline. Here's my tip. Require rent on or before the first day the rent is due, as opposed to allowing the tenant to pay rent on the last day of the grace period. Our rental agreement's rent due date is the 1st of every month with the drop dead date (grace period) the 5th of every month. What we've done is let our tenants know the rent is due by the 1st of every month, and the rent is late on the 2nd. If the rent is not received by that 5th day, the 6th day begins our 3 day pay or quite notice. We go as far as calling the tenant on the 2nd day of the month and letting them know the rent is late. If you allow your tenants to consistently pay rent on the last day of the grace period, you as a landlord are asking for trouble.

Many bills are due by the 1st of the month. If your tenant only has $2,000 toward the month's bills of $3,000 don't you want to be the first bill paid? We certainly do!

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Property Inspection Nightmares

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 12:32:05 -0400

You're getting inspections on your investment properties, right? Of course you are. Imagine your surprise when your inspector produces a picture like the one below of a bat in your future rental's heating furnace. Click on the image to see more inspection nightmare photos. Also, you can see more photos here.

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5 Hot Real Estate Markets For Investment Properties...

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 12:20:45 -0400

Looking for a location for investment properties? Not all cities are experiencing real estate woes. Watch TODAY’s Meredith Vieira talk with real estate agent Barbara Corcoran about the five hot real estate markets where you can actually make money...

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Ah... Screening Tenants with the Help of the Internet

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 12:30:43 -0400

Niiiiice work Jeff! Yes, screening is a must these days. I thought this blog entry and Jeff's story worthy of a re-blog... ~ Joe Lane :o)

Via Jeff Lund:

When it comes to tenant screening, the 'net is a great thing... I just had a prospective tenant call me, and when asked 'why is he moving', his answers were not consistent. BTW, I like to ask 3 times when the first response to that question is anything with the word 'landlord' in it. He went on to tell me that he 'told' the landlord that he was moving, and he wasn't getting evicted... well, he got half of it right. While on the phone, I asked his name and current address, logged onto our local District Court website and did a search on him. Yep, you guessed it... his 10 day eviction notice to move was expiring today (no wonder he needed a place asap). He acted surprised that I found this out so fast, and argued about the fact that I found his prior eviction from June on there also, even though 'he didn't really get evicted'.

Now, normally I don't do this, but I kindly told him that 'you gotta love the internet', and that he needs to find some other sucker landlord out there to let you rent from him and then kick you out', and then hung up. Sorry, it must have been a bad day today, but I hate getting lied to. Had I not checked him out, I would have taken my time to show him the place across town, just to find that he's a 'professional tenant' later.

Also, be weary of the ones who state 'I can pay you cash today'... flags shoud pop up all around. Cash now means even more court costs tomorrow.

Hope this helps,

Jeff Lund

Investment Property Specialist

Five Star Real Estate

jefflund@grar.com

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Rental Property Modernization

Joe Lane (Lane Property Management) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 21:56:31 -0400

Upgrading, where possible and financially feasible, is a great idea, especially in a market where the scales are tipped towards the renter (as opposed to a landlord's market). Read this relevant blog entry...

~ Joe Lane :o)

Via Caroline Tsou:

When travel, do you prefer a hotel with 80's decor or a renovated hotel with modernized theme?
Undoubtedly, most travelers prefer a newly renovated one. This is why we often see hotels spend multi-million dollars on renovation to entice visitors to stay at their properties.
Rental properties are like long term hotels. Giving a choice, renters prefer properties with modernized upgrades such as kitchen with stone countertops, stainless appliances, hardwood floor, travertine floor, earth-tone paint, neutral-color carpet, 2" wood blinds, plantation shutters, modernized faucets and light fixtures.

It is very difficult to rent a property that still has the original 50's to 80's decor. Houses with older decor will normally fetch 10% to 30% less rent comparing to the upgraded ones. Even with a deep discount, it may take an extra few months to secure a suitable renter.
Therefore, adding the lost of rental discount and vacancy rate, it may be more cost effective for landlords to modernize their rental properties if budget allows.

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