An interesting article straight from the California Association of Realtors shows what the median house prices in CA are (along with CA’s top 10 highest priced cities)…

“Statewide, the 10 cities with the highest median home prices in California during September 2009 were: Manhattan Beach, $1,502,000; Burlingame, $1,401,100; Saratoga, $1,297,500; Los Altos $1,275,000; Palos Verdes Estates, $1,163,500; Calabasas, $1,073,500; Newport Beach, $1,050,000; Los Gatos, $1,050,000; Santa Monica, $1,025,000; Cupertino, $950,000; and Rancho Palos Verdes, $912,500.” …per the Examiner article.

In Comparison – Rental Prices in CA
In comparison, the average rental prices in San Jose, CA still tend to be on the high-end for the U.S.

As the overall rental prices continually increase, Rental Househunter provides a quick look at its Top 10 List (each month) of the MOST AFFORDABLE San Jose Apts in the area.

The latest Top 10 List of Affordable Apartments in San Jose, CA is now available.

As you know, each month we scour the Internet for the best prices for apartments and homes for rent on the market. We compare these prices with our average rental price tool for that area and then apply a rating for them.

Check out San Jose’s Top 10 List of Most Affordable Apartments available.

A number of you have emailed us comments about how you’d like to see a “summary” of the top rentals in various areas around the U.S.  We’ve listened to you and started with San Jose, CA.

We have over 500+ listings in San Jose and wanted to pull together a new “Top 10 List” feature to help you find your next place to rent. We compare monthly rental prices for the area, amenities, and overall appeal.

San Jose – Top 10 List of the BEST Available Rentals:
Visit our Top 10 List of Best Apartments available in San Jose, CA.

Tenant is being sued for $50K because of mold claim on Twitter…

OK, now this is bizarre.  An apartment complex located in San Francisco is sueing a recent tenant of theirs for a post that she made on Twitter.  Of course you can only say but so much in a 140 character Twitter post, but this Apartment complex didn’t like the claims.

Apartment Absurdity?

The tenant claimed that the Apartment complex was okay with it’s tenants having to sleep in a moldy unit.  Here was her exact Twitter post…

“Who said sleeping in a moldy apartment was bad for you? Horizon realty thinks it’s okay.”

If you’re a Twitter user and are part of the 21% of account users who have never posted a “Tweet”, you have nothing ever to worry about (like us).  For this case in San Francisco, the Apartment Complex must’ve thought that their tenant is one of these RARE Top 5% Twitter users, who actually account for over 75% of Twitter’s overall activity.  It’s doubtful though.

I’d bet instead that this tenant is one of the 93% of Twitterers who have fewer than 100 followers, which really makes this a non-story.

What’s your thoughts?  Are you going to start watching out what you write about in Twitter? Or will you be like Cincinnati Bengal WR Chad Ocho-Cinco who submitted a Tweet after being pulled over by a cop?

In these “economic crisis” days, we hear the words “billions” and “trillions” (ie: as in bail-out dollars) thrown around A LOT.  We hear about those high amounts of dollars being given out so much, that it makes $100,000 or $1 million seem like chump-change.

"If you had $100k to spend on Rent, could you do better?"

Still, to the average American, $10K is a lot of money.  Let’s just say you did have $100K to spend as your monthly rent budget (like Michael Jackson did).

Here’s what you could start with on $100k / month…

$100 K / month in rent = $0 Equity

Does Gullible = Scam-able?

Go back and research the Internet since the year 2000 and you’ll find 1,000’s of ways people have unfortunately been scammed online. We all could have fallen for any number of these scams, but luckily most of us have had a ‘friend of a friend’ who these different scams have already happened to, so we’ve been able to learn from their stories.

“None of us is as dumb as all of us…”

I had “teachers” early on in life (meaning a sibling and uncles) who would tell me far-fetched stories, just to see how gullible I was.  First, there was my uncle who convinced me that he was dating Vanna White in her hay-days on Wheel of Fortune.  Then there was my brother who nearly convinced me that a Chow (breed of dog) was a cross-breed between a lion and a dog.

I learned early on that maybe it wasn’t the brightest idea to believe everything that people told me.  The same thing reigns true with AVOIDING SCAMS.

For renters, before you ever go and visit a possible apartment to rent / rental house AND before you hand over a security deposit :

1. BE SURE TO type the physical address into Maps.Google.com.  Then click the clever “Street View” link to see if the rental truly exists and that it’s not some grocery store or church in the middle of nowhere.
2. DON’T EVER fall for a Property Manager who tells you that they are vacationing out of the country and will send you the key to do a quick tour (after of course, you send your down payment money to them).
3. (LANDLORDS) – DON’T EVER fall for the gimmick where a renter sends you a “Security Deposit” where the amount is “accidentally” written out for well over the agreed amount, where they then ask you to deposit the money and reimburse them the remainder.
4. AVOID THE NIGERIAN “419 SCAM” – where so-called Property Managers out of the country want you to fill out Credit Applications before renting to you.

Now don’t get us wrong, anyone can be scammed on a given day.  Why not take steps in being more cautious before believing or falling for what a potential renter or Property Manager tells you.  The Internet is making it easier to be scammed, so protect yourself.

We like the idea of taking advantage of Identity Protection services as a precaution for renters during the application and moving process.

Here are the Identity Theft Protection services that we like and why…

1. Protect My ID – (service is provided by Free Credit Report.com / ConsumerInfo.com)
   WHY WE LIKE IT – First of all, they give you a 30-day FREE trial, which may be all you need during your move. Second, the service is run by ConsumerInfo, who has been a mainstay in the Credit Reporting and Credit Protection business for years.
2. LifeLock - (you’ve heard their TV and Radio commercials, along with their $1,000,000 protection promise)
   WHY WE LIKE IT – At only $9 / month, it’s a bargain.  All you need is a few months of coverage during your Move and Rental Application time period.

Identity Theft Protection plans are the closest thing out there for being full-proof.

Are there any other scams out there that you’ve fallen for (or heard from a friend of a friend that they fell for)?
We’d love to hear your stories.  Good luck and play it safe!

Here’s a Different Spin…  What happens to a Renter when their Landlord’s rental property forecloses?

What happens to the Renter when a Landlord Forecloses?

Home values have spiraled down to their lowest levels since Sept. 2007.  Since then, there’s been a much “to-do” around homeowner’s foreclosing on their properties. 

What happens in the case where a Landlord recently foreclosed on one of their rental properties that is currently being occupied by a renter? How could this happen? As long as a renter pays their monthly rent, shouldn’t the Landlord be putting that money towards the monthly mortgage?

Congress has passed a “National Housing Law Project” study which kicked-off new laws on May 20, 2009.  As a brief summary, the new law pretty much states that Renters who pay their rent on time each month can remain in their rental until the end of the lease UNLESS the bank (who now owns the foreclosed home) sells the property to a buyer who plans to use the property as their primary residence.

For additional answers to questions that you may have about foreclosed rental properties and the new rights that Renters have, check out the “Renters in Foreclosure Toolkit“.

Narrowing down your Apartment Selection? Follow this 5 step plan.

Don’t let the fear of getting your first place distract you from your main priority – - which is Finding an Apartment for Rent.  As with anyone, it’s human nature to procrastinate, but why should you when Renting an Appt can be fun, especially when you start taking tours.

Here’s a few things to remember when Selecting an Apartment Rental:

1. Set your budget and stick to it! There’s nothing worse than living from paycheck-to-paycheck, especially when in the end you don’t own the Apartment that you’re renting.
2. Search for a rental wisely.  Narrow down your search using Rental websites such as RentalHousehunter.com, Rent.com, and Apartments.com (which all have 50,000+ apartments and rental houses to choose from).
3. Narrow your rental search down to 3 Choices and Send an Email Inquiry to each one. With millions of online visitors, it’s hard for Property Managers to return calls to everyone.  Contact them via the website’s online Contact Us tool for best results.
4. Read the Lease Contract. Once you sign it and submit your down-payment money, this contract is legally binding.  Be sure to check out policies towards roommates, sub-lets, and pets.
5. Sign up for Renter’s Insurance. If your new place gets broken in to, you want to get re-imbursed for your belongings. You’ll also need fire, flood, and other disaster coverages.

In the end, you’re going to be living at your next place for as little as 3 months and as long as many years.  Be happy and choose wisely.

Start searcing for Cheap Apartments for rent now.

Renters or Homeowners – -  Who’s More Overweight?

Seen Wall-E yet? Then you know this character...

Tune in to your 10 PM Local News tonight, where you’ll find out Who’s more Overweight – - Renters or Homeowners? Just to give you a sneakpeak, it’s not those of us who are mortgage-less.

According to a recent study, female renters on average weighed less than their homeowner counterparts.  Makes you want to start renting huh? While you’re here, check out these rentals in your area…

Check out more details from the study.

Rent or Buy?  With $6.5 Million – What would you do?

TO's New place in Buffalo...

In NFL offseason news, T.O (ie: Terrell Owens) signed a $6.5 million salary with the Buffalo Bills. With that kind of money, do you think he decided to Rent or Buy?

With VH-1 following and after touring 2 waterfront condos, TO decided to (rent or buy)…

Do you think he looked at any of these rentals?