John W David.com
Rent to Own

Rent to Own is, in my opinion, mostly a trap for too many people with a valid dream and seemingly too little apparent money. I congratulate those who stick to their dreams. When dreams become goals attached to a massive action plan and a tight timeline, life grows forward.

However, from my personal experience the vast majority of rent-to-own and don't-pay-a-cent (often both combined) will rip you off and further destroy your credit. 

In real estate, again in my opinion, there are three things you absolutely need:

1. A really good mortgage broker. These professionals have access to a vast array of lending resources who have deliberately placed themselves at the mortgage broker's disposal to help people like you.
   A good mortgage broker can help ensure that your monthly payments go strictly to principal and interest and not a b.s. slush fund that most of you will lose to these scam artists.. 
   
   
2. A good real estate lawyer. Because there are so many scams that rip you off during the payment period and are back ended to ensure you fail and they can keep both the ripped off funds during the lease to own and recapture the property when you can't come up with the buy out at the end of the lease, a good real estate lawyer and your mortgage broker will see through the scam and provide a better alternative for you.
   
   
3. A licensed realtor who's professional conduct is strictly regulated by his / her state and provincial real estate authority. Don't take this third item lightly. 
   
   In obtaining a licensed realtor for your rent-to-own, make sure that s/he specializes in rent-to-own. It is a highly specialized field. And, with buyers in uniquely tight circumstances, every bit of the paperwork has to be perfectly executed to ensure that you can keep the property and your equity in it to grow beyond the lease termination date. 

If you create a team like I have just mentioned above where each and every one of them contributes to you being able to make the payments now and after the lease and that there is no b.s. in the detail working against you once you sign, I believe you have the best chance of using this part of the ownership dream to grow into a good solid next step. 

Note: I do not specialize in rent-to-own as I believe there are too many other more viable options open to most buyers. But, a rent-to-own specialist should still be on your team. 

Two cautions: 

"For Sale by Owner" as a rent to own needs to have a title search before you do anything from that source. And, you had better run each and every piece of paperwork through your lawyer before you sign anything. Again, too, get your financing through a mortgage broker. 

"Builder's Rent to Own" with nothing down, no fees, no first and last. Hey! I hate to tell you this. But, through my experience, there are fees, there are lease-break penalties the like of which you won't believe, there are "built in" safeguards far beyond what is normally needed to recuperate the costs associated with default. And, when the lease is up, you may not be able to afford the new monthly payments.

My personal suggestion is check with your realtor where you live or with me in the Ottawa area to see first what better. safer alternatives there are for you. Don't assume that your credit will keep you out of the market. And, don't assume that there isn't a good starter home out there for you and within a comfortable payment range. A good realtor is trained and regulated away from placing you in the kind of harms way of the typical rent-to-own scam. 

So, today: start building your team. Start with a mortgage broker or, in Ottawa, call me.