Your Questions and Answers Revealed!
More Questions? Feel free to call me or email me and I will respond immediately! 281-842-7965 or email at kat.curtis@comcast.net Advantages of Renting
The freedom
When you own a home, moving can be difficult if not impossible. To go somewhere else, you have to either sell your place or rent it to someone else. Worst case scenario, you have to sell at a steep loss. When you rent, you can pack up and go at any time. Worst case scenario, you lose your deposit, although, it's never wise to move without written notice to your landlord or management office, 60 days prior to moving! That could adversely affect your future rental approval, and in most cases will cost you a lot more money, in the long run.
Less upfront expense
As any resident of any major metropolitan city can tell you, rent payments can easily cost more than a monthly mortgage in some parts of the country. However, it will typically cost a lot less to get into a rental than to buy a place, especially with deposit specials and move in specials that I can get for you as an agent with Texas Apartment Locators, Kathy Curtis Properties. Renters just have to come up with a security deposit and first month's rent, whereas homebuyers need to have enough cash for a down payment and closing costs and many other expenses such as home inspections, repairs and maintenance.
The cash that you save on a down payment can be invested, or used to buy a killer home theater system and pair of jet-skis. (Don't take that as financial advice from me!)
Lower maintenance costs and headaches
When you rent an apartment and something breaks, you call and complain to your landlord. When you own your place and something breaks, you complain about the size of the handyman's bill!
The best managed apartments even have on-site maintenance that can handle repairs while you're at work and be done before you come home. When you own your place you may have to miss work to coordinate with repairmen and their notorious four-hour scheduling windows. Privately owned condos, homes or private townhomes, require "you" to pay the first $100 of minor repairs, which can ad up quickly. If you rent an apartment through me, they always have an on site team that offers free maintenance, repairs, and apartment communities offer this service as an added amenity, again saving you lots of money.
Lower insurance costs
Renters insurance is very inexpensive, typically $10 to $15 per month!. Homeowners insurance, and flood insurance - incredibly high - especially in the areas near or on the water!
Easier tax preparation
Renters have less record keeping and shorter forms to fill out when it comes time to prepare their personal income taxes. That's because they don't have to claim a mortgage with interest and such. In today's market you have so many more opportunities with current move in specials, reduced rents, military, teacher discounts, even Nasa and major employer preferred discounts - Call me today for your best deal at
281-842-7965 or email me
here!
About Southeast Houston, Clear Lake Area and League City!
Southeast Houston Tx apartments are an exciting area to call home and many people are flocking to the area due to its proximity to Clear Lake. Boating, water skiing, and other activities that make this a great place to call home. The lake actually separates Harris County to the North from Galveston County to the South. This city is actually the second largest master-planned community in Houston, Texas. Clear Lake is in close proximity to NASA, Galveston, and Downtown Houston too. The city was developed by the Friendswood Development Co. and was a portion of the city until it was later annexed by Houston in 1977. League City, Texas is just South of Clear Lake and about 20 miles from the center of Downtown Houston. League City is situated on the South side of the lake and has a population of approximately 68,000 people which was a huge increase from the 2000 census estimate of 45,444 people; in an area of 55 total square miles. It is now the largest city in Galveston County as it has passed by the total population of Galveston, Texas. Both Clear Lake and League City have both seen a massive increase in new apartment construction in 2008. Several new apartment communities have opened their doors to absorb the massive increase in total population in the area. Some of the newer apartment communities include many incredible features such as granite countertops, dog parks, tanning beds, island kitchens and many other convenient amenities that may be very attractive as a renter in the apartment market today. These new Clear Lake Texas apartments contain many fine amenities including gourmet kitchens, oversized bathtubs, granite counters, high speed internet, and full size washer and dryer’s in each apartment home. Many of these League City Texas apartments also have piers that are located right on the water. If residents have boats or other water vehicles they may even load them right into the water from the property of the apartment community but most do not have the actual boat slips on site - some do, however and please call me for details on any of these.
Commonly Asked Apartment Rental Questions?
How Long of a Lease Will I Need to Sign?
Most Apartment Properties require at least a 6-month Lease, but there are some that will offer a 3 month or a corporate type lease with upcharges, I can help you. Most offer a 1 year, to 15 month lease term for the best price, discount or move-in special!
How Long Does It Take To Get Approved For A Lease, and What Information is Needed?
From 5 minutes to 5 days! - ask me for more details.
What type of criteria or qualifications do I need to be approved for a rental?
Properties generally look for 5 items when evaluating your application.
1. Previous Credit History/not always
2. Verifiable Employment/proof of ability to pay rent
3. Acceptable Credit Rating/not always
4. Criminal History Check/always
5. Evictions or broken leases/always - Read here for more information regarding this issue from other apartment properties I know who will work with credit issues, select background issues, foreclosures or a past bankruptcy - so don't waste your time and money - just call me, let me help you find your new apartment home without the worry and stress of losing application fees and administrative fees or worse - deposits!
What will I need to take with me when I visit the apartment or rental communities?
You will need a valid picture ID, driver's license to view a model or vacant unit, and it's best to have your paycheck stubs, or offer letter of employment if you have it, prior employment verification, landlord contacts and or copies of prior lease, rental history, if you are a 1st time renter, some may require an additional deposit, or approved credit history. Every property has different qualifications, I can definitely help you with this.
What are the differences in Townhouses, Lofts, Condos, High-Rise or Apartments?
The typical apartment community in the Houston and surrounding area is considered a garden style apartment, most are 1 to 3 floors and all will have a pool, common maintained areas to share with your neighbors, nice landscaping and best of all as a resident you enjoy free maintenance, 24 hour emergency as well as concierge type services from the on site management staff! This is what is most popular, both in town and in the suburbs.
Read here for more information. A townhome is generally located within a garden style apartment community but has 2 floors, with bedrooms upstairs, older style construction, sometimes upgraded, often not, utility bills can sometimes be higher since you are heating and cooling two floors, as a rule, always hotter upstairs since heat rises and no new townhomes are being built in the new developments as it requires a higher price to rent them and most are not willing to pay the higher rental amounts for that type of unit. Call me for detailed information 281-842-7965
A condo is an apartment, however sometimes privately owned and without the 24 hour emergency maintenance that garden style apartment living has to offer, and generally you are responsible for paying the first $50/$100 of small repairs, often not as advantageous as apartment living without all the perks!
High Rise communities are popular and growing more attractive every day - as the shift from suburban living to city living is the latest trend! Communities are located and being built that will offer a good "walk score" as you are finally able to walk or ride the lite rail or even metro to some restaurants and activities, gasoline prices soaring, and the city views are quite amazing, however the land is usually more expensive in the inner city areas, so along with all those luxury amenities, comes a higher price for rental - but well worth it for convenience alone! You can enjoy lavish, luxury amenities, most anything that you can imagine along with the inner loop apartments, lofts and high rise communities, and a lot of them are brand new, and are being built with the green initiative in mind which is a smart choice to protect the environment of the world we live in for us and our loved ones. There are many other new developments that are just breaking ground in Midtown, Galleria, Inner Loop, Museum District, Hermann Park, Memorial Heights and many other areas of Houston -the total is 38 new properties to meet the high demand of renters, with waiting lists on most properties right now for many months and prices generally start at $1200+ for a 1 bedroom. It's the latest trend of development and a very attractive option for the young professional in the Houston area. Call me today for pricing and in any area that you want, I can help! I will check availability, specials, or preferred employer discounts, and I will send you the best possible rental choices for whatever your lifestyle and area of choice is! Let me help you to find your "new place to call home" absolutely free - I have the knowledge, expertise and I care where you live. 281-842-7965
What about apartment ratings and reviews?
Read here for more details on this hot controversial topic! Multi Family Insiders - An Excerpt taken from Multi Family Insiders from January 12, 2012
How do you use ApartmentRatings.com?
ApartmentRatings.com immediately puts a bad taste in most people's mouths in this industry. Although there are positive signs coming out of new ownership, their history hasn't been the friendliest to apartment communities. So we want to get a feel for how YOU handle ApartmentRatings.com. How do you respond? Or do you even respond at all?
My Response to most Reviews and Ratings found on line -
“Just another confirmation that you can’t believe everything that you read on reviews and ratings regarding area apartment properties! There is so much competition in Houston, and it is possible that some of the ratings stem from that, since it’s hard to understand how anyone can take that much time and energy and go to such lengths to say such negative things about some properties, that being said, it’s either a truly distressed resident, angry about something in particular, OR, it’s from a unethical, unprofessional competitor, that has never been a resident of that property! When using apartment ratings and reviews, it has to be done on a somewhat objective stance, you have to take some of it with a grain of salt, bearing in mind that only “some” of it is truth and some is in fact fiction! If everything written is bad- then there probably is a problem with the management, maintenance, and the resident profile of the property. In whole, the situation must be weighed and all things taken into consideration. Another reason to use my service – I know the properties, inside and out and I can give you an “honest” objective opinion based on facts (my experience from my customers that have leased and lived there, and they do inform me about their experiences- both good and bad which I really appreciate), rather than from one person’s perspective or a group of troubled! Call Kathy Curtis – your FREE apartment expert and save all the time and trouble! http://www.AptExpert.com, licensed real estate agent serving the entire Clear Lake Area and all of Houston.
Common Questions & Answers Regarding My Service
Q.Do you also have townhomes and condos?
A. Our town homes and condos are located within apartment, townhome, condo communities. There are many advantages of this – largely, that established management companies/owners manage these communities. Your deposit is usually much lower ($100 +) than a privately owned rental. Generally, town homes or condos "not" located within an apartment community will require a deposit equal to one month's rent in addition to the 1st month's rent, so a huge upfront expense to get into! They may even require first and last month's rent, up front. In apartment community settings, repairs and routine maintenance are generally completed in a much timelier manner because of the full-time, on-site staff and emergency staff. In most privately owned townhomes or condos, you will be required to pay the first $100 of what is considered small repairs! With the convenience of an on-site management company which is all that I work with - you are not required to pay those fees, nor are you required to wait for a private owner to get multiple bids to repair due to a tight budget, when you are without air conditioning, as an example -in what could easily be 100+ degree temperatures’ - or if a plumbing problem occurs and flooding follows!
You want that emergency maintenance team there to assist you immediately, not the case with privately owned homes, private owned condos or townhomes, or duplex!
Q.How much does your apartment search service cost?
A.Our service is 100% FREE to you. The property owners pay us a commission, in much the same way a travel agent is paid. This in no way affects your rent other than we can generally find you the best reduced rent specials, move in deals and deposit or application fee/admin fee discounts or free! The apartment communities pay us from their marketing and advertising budgets. Serving Houston for over 16 years has given me the skills and knowledge to find you the perfect place, hassle free in the most timely and efficient way possible!
Q.Why should I use your service to find my new apartment as opposed to looking for apartments on my own?
A. I will save you time & money. Over 16 years of satisfied customers and numerous thank you notes speak for themselves! MY knowledge and experience will save you time, effort and money! What we can do here in 15 minutes will save you 3 hours of time driving around!
Searching for an apartment in Houston, Clear Lake, Galveston, League City, Webster, and all surrounding areas of Southeast Texas can be very time consuming and a lot of hard work. Many times it requires taking time off from work and/or spending your weekends searching. I can save you valuable time by using my extensive database of all the apartments in and around the city. Simply tell me exactly what you would like in your new apartment home, in which area of town you wish to live; and with those criteria, I will find the apartment that meets your specific requirements. I go a step further; I know vital information that can’t be qualified or found by a computer or phone search. I can advise you about unique apartment floor plans, extra closet space, select amenities, whether the apartments offer gas or electric cooking, garages, short-term leases & ASAP move-ins. I also know what apartment properties are pre-leasing, offering waiting lists; near bus lines and metro light rail, shuttles to schools and major employers, as well as which apartment communities accept pets including large or restrictive dog breeds.
In addition, many Houston, Texas apartments and properties are offering some GREAT specials. I stay in contact with the apartment communities on a daily basis to learn about latest rates and move-in specials. Most FREE rent specials will be in the form of a month or more free, pro-rated over your lease term to bring the monthly price way down, or in some cases 1 to 2 months FREE rent upfront! Many options are offered daily to me, to be offered to you. Whatever specials they offer, I will always explain your options to you!! Let's SAVE you some money NOW!
Q. My credit is poor...can you still help me?
A. YES! Houston, Texas apartment communities would like good credit and rental history, but many are very flexible with credit issues, so do not let that STOP YOU! There are always exceptions to the rules. I know which apartments are flexible with certain situations, no matter what the situation may be. During your initial consultation, I'll ask you a few questions regarding your current credit status, previous rental history, background, etc. Remember that I am here to help YOU...the more I know about your credit and rental background, the better I can assist you!
Q.What if I am a FIRST time renter or have no rental history?
A.No problem! Some Houston area apartments work with first time renters and require nothing extra. Some may simply ask for an additional security deposit or that you have someone "co-sign" for you, the person could also be called a "Guarantor". In this case, the lease would still be in your name so that you are building your own rental history, with the co-signer signing an addendum to "guarantee" the lease. This addendum may be faxed, so your co-signer does not need to live right here in Houston, it may be overnighted with a notarized seal, or simply emailed depending on the property requirements. Co signers or guarantors are typically not allowed for a broken lease or background issue. He or she will need to qualify under rental qualification guidelines for co-signers; this varies from community to community. "Co-Signers MUST have excellent to satisfactory credit, excellent rental or mortgage history, and a gross monthly income equal to 4-6 times the amount of your monthly rent, but that too can vary. Please ask me for specific details
Q.Can I buy a home through you in the future?
A. Most of my customers are interested in eventually getting out of an apartment and into their very own NEW home. I would like to help you do just that.
I deal specifically with NEW Home builders. WHY? They offer the BEST incentives and you can sometimes walk away with little or NO closing costs. The advantage of a NEW home is that you can customize it to your tastes and not have to live with someone else's choices. Ask me how to get things started to purchase your brand new custom built home.
Q.Is it BEST to make an appointment to visit your office, or can I get a listing of properties to visit via email or fax?
A. Whatever is most comfortable and convenient for you. You can make an appointment so to meet me in my office; or I can tell you which properties fit your needs by phone; I usually email you a complete package with all the property details, which will include Specials, Move In Specials or preferred employer discounts, and will also include multiple pictures of each property and the amenities offered, specific floor plans, all specific school information for that particular property, additional community amenities, square footage of each individual floorplan you are interested in (1, 2 or 3 bedrooms), and interactive maps that show both directions as well as where each property is located. I pride myself on providing you the best service in the industry. All communities qualify differently on a different basis. I will insure you are not wasting money, time and effort. There are some apartment communities that may take your $35 to $50 Application Fee and say they can work with you, and then turn around and deny you, without my professional expertise in making sure that you are qualified prior to filling out that application! I will do everything possible to make sure that does not happen to you. Call now to schedule your appointment or get your professionally, customized and designed package of properties emailed, faxed or mailed to you asap! Call me as soon as possible to enable that you have enough time before your current lease expires, most properties require a written 60 day move out notice, so be sure you have satisfied the terms of your current lease in that respect, as that can deter you from getting qualified on your future apartment rental or approval process! 281-842-7965 or email me at kat.curtis@comcast.net or kat@aptexpert.com – for details on exactly how I can save you money, make your next move so much easier and offer you a rebate for using my service!
Q.I'm ready, let’s get started!?
A. Simply click the link Start Search. Please tell me exactly what type of apartment you are looking for, and please be specific as to what size, price, and location or area that you are looking for. At this point, please also mention any rental, credit or background issues that may be of concern to you so that I am able to assist you without the possibility of you loosing any unnecessary application fees! I look forward to hearing from you and assisting you with your new place to call home! Have a wonderful day!!
To speed up the process, you may also call me directly at 281-842-7965 or on my Verizon Cell at 281-414-5258 – phones always answered or messages responded to quickly!
PRIVACY NOTICE
I promise to respect the privacy of my on-line visitors. The information collected from my web-site's submission page will not be sold, distributed or shared in any form. The information provided will be used exclusively by me as a licensed agent to assist you in your apartment search. I am highly trained, experienced, and licensed by the Texas Real Estate Commission.
We do business in accordance with Federal Fair Housing law. (Fair Housing Amendments Act 1998). We are also members of the Houston Apartment/Texas Apartment Associations, Better Business Bureau and Chamber of Commerce.
