How Ontario landlords can avoid bad tenants

Avoiding tenant from hell includes checking references, Facebook, credit agencies, inducements, treating tenants with respect, can pay off for landlords.

For the most part, the majority of long term tenants are respectful and pay rent on time. IT is possible to filter out the "good" from the "bad" tenants. The trick is to do the proper research ahead of time so that you do not end up with an irresponsible tenant.

It is expected in today's society that landlords will conduct background and credit checks. Writing this in an ad looking for tenants will help you in recruiting more qualified renters, as the tenants who know they have bad credit will avoid your ad entirely.

Equifax or TransUnion are great tools which you can use to check on potential tenants' credit history. The cost is approximately $20. For such a small cost, this could save you many headaches and money in the long run.

Here are a few other tips to help you find a responsible tenant:

• Check a potential tenant's social media for signs
• Conduct a face-to-face interview
• Interview the tenant where they currently live
• Call their previous landlord

Click here to read the full article at The Star. 

Growth of mortgage debt slowed in Q1

Rising home prices and a well performing stock market have resulted in helping Canadians become richer & helped slightly reduce household debt.

Statistics Canada said that the level of household debt has lowered from 163.9% (in Q4 2013) to 163.2% (Q1 2014). In simpler terms, this means Canadians now owe approximately $1.623 for every $1 in disposable income they earn.

More good news was that mortgage debt at the end of the first quarter was up slightly by 0.6%. This was the slowest pace of growth since early 2009. Consumer credit debt has also been slowed down by 0.3%.

The Canadian Real Estate Association reported this week that sales were up by as much as 5.9% compared to April, which was the largest month-to-month increase in sales in nearly four years.

It was also reported that the population is becoming more sensitive to mortgage rates than they have been previously due to the large debts the population has been carrying.

Click here to read the full article on Metro News.

How to protect yourself against rising energy prices

A recent report by the Bank of Nova Scotia suggests that household energy and utility prices have risen by 5 per cent in 2014. According to the report, more than double what the rate of inflation is. There is a strong economic incentive for Canadians to start reducing their energy consumption in multiple ways, which will help slow the rise of energy prices.

The common risks to your household budget has largely been focused on obtaining a lower interest rate. While the pressure to keep rates low continue, the cost of oil, gasoline and natural gas has continued to rise. This has prompted Ontario gas utilities to sharply increase their monthly charges to customers.

Energy costs should figure into your household budget in a few ways:

• What the monthly heating bills are
• How new the furnace is
• Whether to buy a home in the city of suburbs and how close public transportation is
• What level of insulation there is in the attic

Another factor you should consider is high-rise apartments or condos, as well as town homes and semi detached homes use less energy than detached homes. 

Click here to read the full article from the Globe and Mail.