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ALOC NEWS
March 3, 2003 Vol. 9, Issue 3
In a recent conversation with one of our members I went
over the methods I use for keeping my records straight. As the discussion
went on I showed him the folders I use for each property as well as the
computer program I use to keep track of my finances. We both agreed this
would be a good subject to cover at one of our meetings and with that in
mind we will give a little preview of the subject in this newsletter. I keep all records in file folders according to the
building. This would include copies of tenants leases and other pertinent
papers arranged by apartment #. Towards the back of the file I would have
the deed, copies of assessments, appraisals and etc. A separate folder for
rent receipts and expenses would also be included. As nearly everything we
do is by the building and or deed it seems natural to file everything this
way. If you have to go to court all of the documents for a given tenant
will all be grouped together. For each tenant I group all of their records in
chronological order with the oldest item on the bottom and the latest on
top. Inspection papers, letters, maintenance logs and etc are all kept with
the tenants file. I use a similar method to arrange my finances on the
computer using Quicken, which is available for well under $ 100 depending on the version desired.
As I write checks using Quicken’s check-writing ability I charge everything
to the appropriate building line item that coincides with the categories
shown on Schedule E of the IRS forms. Quicken will also set this up for you
so that you can generate a report at any time with all tax related charges
listed. Deposits are also handled in the same way with each tenants rent
payment treated separately. All account names are set up in plain English
and as such are easy to understand Please note that if you are a landlord with a large
group of properties, payroll for employees and other complications this
program may not be suitable for you. You may need to step up to QuickBooks,
which has other modules to help you with these items. Above all consult
with your CPA or professional tax preparer. More Later!! Our speaker for February cancelled due to scheduling
conflicts and we have asked Denny McCormick, Public Works Director for the
City of Cumberland to see if he can possibly make the March meeting. Our scheduled speaker for March is Chief Bobby Dick of
the Cumberland Police Department, who will again visit us to go over
procedures and policies used by his department when dealing in landlord
tenant matters and will answer any general questions regarding police
matters in Cumberland. Please note that confirmation of the speakers for March
were still in process as the newsletter was being printed. In April we will have local Real Estate appraiser,
Denny Perrin, as a speaker and in May we will have Tim Michaels, CPA, from
Huber Michaels. We are also looking for ideas regarding our fall
schedule for speakers. Let us know! Jeff Hutter, ALOC’s President was recently asked to join
the Allegany County Board on Homelessness. Jeff attended his first meeting
on February 13th and the meeting agenda concentrated on computer
tracking issues used by the various Housing agencies, Social Services,
Health Dept. and others to track homeless families and or individuals. It is hard to pin down what this group actually does and
we assume that after attending a few meetings it will become clearer. Carey Walker to Chair
March Meeting Our President, Jeff Hutter, will be out of town in early
March and our Vice President, Carey Walker will run the meeting in his
absence. Jeff attends a yearly convention in Las Vegas (Lost Wages) held
every spring and this year it occurs early in March. He will be back with
us in April when we talk about property appraisals. Rental Property
Inspections Dust Wipe Tests/Visual
Inspections 301-777-1369 MDE: Certified Lead
Paint Visual Inspector HUD: Certified Lead
Sampling Technician 9-30-03 Lead Inspections
for Rental Housing Visual Inspections and
Dust Wipes 201 Massachusetts Ave. Cumberland, MD 21502 301-722-8328 3-04
Maintaining
Proper Records
Speakers
Homeless Board
Richard Bonig
Carey Walker
Lead
Abatement - Lead Risk Reduction Rental
Property Maintenance Contractor Telephone
301-729-1086 FAX
301-729-4801 - Pager 301-546-0221 3-30
/ 9-30 VISUAL INSPECTOR MDE
Inspections Lead Dust Wipes LEAD PAINT SUPERVISOR Telephone/FAX: 301-729-2994 1-30
Highland Enterprises
LLC
Robert Saville
“Excellent Rates”
Annapolis, Hagerstown and
other points East!
The Landlords in Hagerstown continue their fight with
the City and they are apparently headed to court over the registration
issue and the validity of some of the signatures on their petition to have
this item decided by a referendum. Obviously this matter is far from
settled and it will probably take a lot of interesting turns during the
coming months. Frederick has a Rental Task Force in place to study the
rental registration and inspection issues has voted to reject the $ 100 per
year licensing fee and the annual inspection of each unit. They have also
recommended that the complaint driven system be kept in place. The saga
continues! For those of you interested in the Mold issue, the
Baltimore POA will be hosting a seminar in Baltimore on March 18th.
The fee is $ 40 and you can
contact them at 410-727-1324 for more details. The MDE has formally adopted some of the regulation
changes we have previously discussed including the change in dust clearance
levels. A detailed list of this information will be available at the March
meeting for review by any member. A number of important bills regarding rentals will be
heard in committee in Annapolis on March 5th and 6th.
The Senate hearings will be held on the 5th and the House will
conduct similar hearings on the companion bills on the 6th. ALOC
President Jeff Hutter will attend and speak at the House hearings on the 6th.
One of the big issues is a bill to replace the current Security Deposit
systems with a Surety Bond. We are not sure what this involves but we
believe it would require us to accept a bond from an Insurance company and
upon default by the tenant we would have to request a forfeiture of the
bond. This is the way the bonds work for business and it can get to be a
lengthy process that is really not suitable for the rental industry! We
will have more details as they become available.
t
ALOC DUES for 2003 It is that time of year again when membership dues in
the amount of $ 40.00 will be
due. Your prompt payment will be
appreciated. A dues bill will be enclosed with member’s newsletter if their
payment is required. The dues cover the costs of our mailing and
correspondence, membership in the Maryland Property Owners Network,
telephone costs, costs associated with attending meetings in Annapolis,
development and reproduction of our leases and etc. J. Jeff J. Jeffrey Hutter President Carey Walker
Vice President Stephanie Wharton
Secretary J. Jeffrey Hutter
Treasurer Board of
Directors Clarence Anderson Steve Jenkins Bob Saville Bob Miles ALOC has available leases, rental applications and
tenant checklists for sale, at cost, to members. The cost for each item is
as follows: Lease @ $ 0.50
Rental Application @ $ 0.50
Move in Checklist @ $ 0.50 Lead Paint Brochures, both EPA and Maryland and
document receipt@ $2.50 for the set. Document Receipt for MDE and EPA brochures (disclosure)
@ $ 0.25 These forms are kept at Jeff Hutter's office, TWR Comm.
at 549 N. Centre Street. Any paid member can stop by and pick up whatever
they need. If you need mare than 5 of each item please call at least 24
hours in advance so that we can make sure we have plenty on hand. Call
777-2692 ext 113 Monday through Friday and you can talk to Pam, Gary or Sean.
Please note: We do not keep MDE or City Housing registration forms on hand. March 10,2003 April 14, 2003 May 12, 2003 June No Meeting July No Meeting August No Meeting September 8, 2003 Meetings are held at
the South Cumberland Library on Race and Seymour St. at 7 PM Pride is
tasteless, colorless and sizeless. Yet is the hardest thing to swallow. August B. Black Of all the things
you wear, your expression is the most important. Unknown TWR
Communications 301-777-2692 9-30-03 The leading supplier of quality
high speed Internet Access in Allegany-Garrett-Washington Counties and
surrounding areas of West Virginia using K56 Flex modems. TWR provides
other computer services including training, computer repairs, networking,
website hosting and Internet advertising. TWR is an agent for Cellular
One, operates a wide area network with wide area paging and mobile 2-way
radio. Check us out at twr@hereintown.net Marsh
Neilson & Sons General Contractors Replacement windows, doors,
painting, trained in Lead Abatement, Also roofing, porches and decks, plumbing and electrical
work. Lets us take care of your lead
problems! For more information call Rick 301-268-7712 Craig 301-689-6736 3-04 A-1 Inspections, Inc. PRE-PURCHASE/PRE-SETTLEMENT INSPECTIONS RESIDENTIAL
AND COMMERCIAL LEAD INSPECTIONS 301-724-5323 9-30 9-30 Credit Bureau, Inc. We have been in the
business of building databases for over 50 years. Let us build one for you!
For those of you contributing rental history, thank you. For those who
haven’t called me, it’s easy. Mike Wright
301-729-5202 5-03
ALOC Officers
Leases and other Documents
Meeting Schedule
Thought for
the Month
PHONE 301-724-LEAD