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mkat321, Did you say you were in Indiana? I am in Indianapolis and am just about to start the process. We did the pre-approval and will submit our application tomorrow. We already have a house that we are interested in and hope to see it over the weekend. It is already listed on the HPA website so we are hoping that means they have already done some preliminary work as far as approving the house etc. I appreciate the info everyone has posted and will come back to read updates and post my own.
mkat123--Yes they only paint in white so yeah, not a good combo with the teenagers! I guess you were going to have to pay for it either way so might as well have something you can enjoy while you're in it and if you buy it you wouldn't have to worry about it anyway.
As long as there are no further issues with the inspection/repairs during the due diligence period, the next email you'll get from HP will be informing you they've closed on the house. Then very soon after that you'll get an email from Pathlight telling you how to set up your account, purchase renters' insurance etc. I just got mine yesterday and am about to do that today.
fergusma--The homes on the HP website are just taken from MLS so they haven't actually reviewed them or anything. But as long as the house is in a good school district and isn't a short sale or something like that, then the house should be approved. Good luck this weekend and I'll look forward to your updates!!
OMG I just checked out the Tenant's handbook Pathlight sent and I am very overwhelmed by all of the cleaning requirements. Good grief!! They do inspections too. I guess this is a good time to invest in a cleaning service.
mkat321, Did you say you were in Indiana? I am in Indianapolis and am just about to start the process. We did the pre-approval and will submit our application tomorrow. We already have a house that we are interested in and hope to see it over the weekend. It is already listed on the HPA website so we are hoping that means they have already done some preliminary work as far as approving the house etc. I appreciate the info everyone has posted and will come back to read updates and post my own.
Yes. we are. The house we are getting through HP is in Greenwood near Fry road. Which realtor are you using?
Quote:
Originally Posted by CaliDreaming01
mkat123--Yes they only paint in white so yeah, not a good combo with the teenagers! I guess you were going to have to pay for it either way so might as well have something you can enjoy while you're in it and if you buy it you wouldn't have to worry about it anyway.
As long as there are no further issues with the inspection/repairs during the due diligence period, the next email you'll get from HP will be informing you they've closed on the house. Then very soon after that you'll get an email from Pathlight telling you how to set up your account, purchase renters' insurance etc. I just got mine yesterday and am about to do that today.
fergusma--The homes on the HP website are just taken from MLS so they haven't actually reviewed them or anything. But as long as the house is in a good school district and isn't a short sale or something like that, then the house should be approved. Good luck this weekend and I'll look forward to your updates!!
Hope your move is going well Harbin!!
Exactly, we are way happier with paying for it in the end than dealing with lime green or white.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CaliDreaming01
OMG I just checked out the Tenant's handbook Pathlight sent and I am very overwhelmed by all of the cleaning requirements. Good grief!! They do inspections too. I guess this is a good time to invest in a cleaning service.
Fill me in? How often do they do inspections? Our realtor said it was only every six months or so? And what cleaning requirements? I clean one room per day each day of the week, but three kids and pets there's always fur on the carpet, books/toys strewn about, and occasionally a bike sideways in the driveway.
We already have renters, and it's at the $300k required by HP because a prior landlord required the same, so all we should have to do is add them as an additional insured.
mkat, the handbook didn't say how often they would do the inspections but only that they would be conducted "periodically". They do give you advance notice but they didn't specify how much.
I read back over the requirements and now that I have calmed down, they are just normal things you have to do to get your house thoroughly clean. Since you have a good system down it probably won't be too hard for you. I've just never seen a leasing handbook that had it broken down into such detail. Like they specify that you are to dust ceilings once a month, clean interior windows once a month, wipe down all interior doors once a month--stuff like that. That kind of cleaning is tough for me with a preschooler and toddler and I often fall behind in my cleaning. My method is to have whole areas of the house that are mainly for show and try to contain the mess to a few areas.
Reading over it again, it seems these are more "suggestions" rather than requirements. I imagine the inspections are more to look for serious things like unauthorized pets, aquariums, and other hazards, but I don't want to take any chances since I've read they are sticklers when it comes to getting your deposit back.
Ah. That makes sense. Windows are a big thing for me because I crave sunlight. We are putting the privacy film on the front windows because I don't like people looking into my house from the street. So that will help with those.
Our lease stuff says 24-48 hours notice. Which is ample time for me. Its amazing how fast teenagers become willing to clean when their tablets are remote locked...
We submitted our application at 10:30am on Friday and got an email at 1:30pm saying we were approved. I asked several quick questions by email and got answers very quickly. Good first impression. We looked at a house on Saturday and our agent is submitting it to HPA today. It fits our needs very nicely. Now we're just waiting for the process as it continues.
mkat321: We are using Carpenter Realtors. We are very fortunate. Our agent is a friend that I went to high school with and she is awesome. The house we want is over by Eagle Creek Park on the west side of Indy. You mentioned renters insurance and an amount of $300k. I have not dealt with renters insurance for 15 years, does that figure cover the actual house or just your personal belongings?
It depends on the policy & company from what I understand. When we had it before it had to be a 'home owner's policy' for State Farm to write it for that amount and for it to cover structure {apartment was in a historic home}
Eagle Creek is a beautiful area. So many nice homes out that way. I originally wanted Brownsburg or Clermont but it just wasn't to be. Had a serious issue with the 4H leadership in Hendricks county so we had to mark Bburg off and Clermont home prices are climbing fast for anything that doesn't need massive reno so it had to come off as well. Greenwood will be a nice change really, and we already do a ton of stuff down there.
All, Below is a long post outlining my (our) experience with HPA. I have been following this thread for the last month and a half and got good info from it. I detailed the experience and thought I'd post it even though it is really long in the hopes it helps someone since there is not a ton of info out there about HPA (this thread seems to be the most comprehensive). We had a sticky situation. We had a short sale in Oct. 2011. We were approved for a mortgage in the Spring, being told that the wait was 3 years after short sale. We went under contract, gave notice to landlord, and submitted all our stuff for mortgage. They came back, one after another, saying the wait is 4 years, not 3. Either the mortgage folks lied, or the guidelines changed. Nevertheless, we found ourselves approaching homelessness (landlord quickly rented our house and there was nothing in the area to rent) when we learned about HPA. The bottom line is that the process worked for us and we are scheduled to move in Aug 22 (although, we are trying to get that moved up). We had to pack everything into pods for a couple weeks and stay with friends. But in the end, it will be a very good deal for us. Sit back, grab a drink, and read about our experience. Comment if you have questions. FWIW, we're in the northern suburbs of Atlanta.
HPA Experience Timeline Thursday, July 2, 11:00am- Submitted application and all documentation Thursday, July 2, 5:22pm- Preapproval at $4500/mo. Signed confirmation online. July 3 – 5: Holiday weekend Monday, July 6- Agent returns from vacation. Tuesday, July 7- Added agent by calling HPA. Wednesday, July 8- Looked at houses, selected one, agent inputs all information online by COB. Thursday, July 9- some back and forth getting HOA Covenants to confirm rental caps, etc. Submitted sample HPA lease for review and approval of HOA—told it would be 1-2 business days. Friday, July 10- waiting Saturday- Sunday, July 11-12- some miscommunications. First, a different guy at HPA said that their guidelines do not allow for homes in HOAs with caps, no matter how close to the cap they are. Agent clarified with other HPA person that the information is incorrect. But then, HPA said they needed to get the lease approved. I had thought this was already done. Agent is trying to get HOA, HPA all on the phone to work through this as it is taking a long time. Very, very stressful weekend. Monday, July 13- Evidently lots of back and forth between and among HPA and the HOA trying to clarify all the rental issues. From speaking with our agent, it seems that HPA does not want or like to just pick up the phone. Also, HPA gave different information with regards qualifications, etc. All was submitted to underwriting at 1:30pm and word was that it would not take long. FINALLY! At 7pm EST got email from HPA asking to sign off on schedule. Max offer on house is $425K (asking price is $446K). Seems pretty fair. No surprises in schedule. Agent submitted offer to listing agent at 9:20pm. Tuesday, July 14- Offers and counteroffers going back and forth all day. Very stressful as we do not know the numbers or how close or far apart they are. Wednesday, July 15- have spent all day awaiting some sort of word. Nothing. Late in evening I found out that there had been some offer/counteroffers and that HPA made a “best and final offer.” Waiting to hear from seller. Thursday, July 16- Seller rejected final offer. Evidently they were not far apart. Now we have to look at other houses. One we like in our neighborhood, but for some reason they have not completed the seller’s disclosure, which HPA (understandably) requires for underwriting. We have decided to move on another one in the neighborhood where deal fell through as presumably we would not have to wait as long since all HOA/Rental issues have already been dealt with. Friday, July 17- agent input info on another home in same neighborhood in the morning. All completed by noon. Since already went through the HOA and rental cap issues this one flew through. Asking price is $449k and top offer is $420k. This house is vacant as the owner bought a much bigger house in a neighborhood close by. By 6pm offers and counter offers have gone back and forth. Saturday, July 18- HPA came back with counteroffer around noon. Seller said he wanted a few hours to think about it. By 5:30 no word. Seller’s agent is trying to contact seller. In meantime I had agent begin inputting a third house into system. Sunday, July 19- Mid-afternoon, seller accepts the price, but asks to keep the refrigerator (which he said in the disclosures would be remaining). At 6:35pm, HPA emails me asking if that is OK. I agree. I also ask for an earlier move in date as the expected date is Aug 22, and we have to be out of our house by Aug 9, also I have a business trip for a week beginning Aug 24. Monday, July 20- Under Contract sign on house at 8am. Received HPA email at 11:24am confirming under contract. Final lease docs received at 2:47pm, with security deposit directions. Docusigned the lease docs. Went to see the house again. Understand the inspection is scheduled for Wednesday, July 22. Tuesday, July 21- Overnighted check. Wednesday, July 22- Received email confirmation from HPA that check and lease docs all received. Evidently, the inspection is today. Tuesday, July 28- HPA responded to inspection by countering with either making certain repairs, or decreasing the price. Agent couldn’t tell me the amount of the decrease, but I get the feeling it’s a couple/few thousand dollars. Seller would not decrease at all. HPA decreased their counter, but seller would not budge. I offered to make up the difference. Evidently, HPA will do this by adding the difference to my purchase price. I gave the agent the OK to do that and am currently awaiting amended docs from HPA. The increase will be $1,500, as I understand it (wish I knew this was an option with the first house). Wednesday, July 28- About 10:30am, received email from HPA confirming new purchase price based on increase by $1,500. I responded back and confirmed, as well as requested a faster move-in date. They responded quickly, not promising anything, but being open to it. Monday, August 10- HPA closed. Waiting to hear from property management company as we are trying to move in quicker than the 22nd. Tuesday, August 11- Received email from HPA confirming the closing, and referring to Pathlight Property Management Company moving forward. I sent an email asking if there is any way we can move in quicker. Received email from Pathlight notifying of setting up my client portal. Received email introducing to my contact at Pathlight, notifying of everything I need to do to move in by the 22nd. I sent my contact an email asking for an earlier move in date.
Thoughts on experience:
HPA is a legit company offering a distinct service with transparent (but strict) terms. The first year rent was right at, possibly a little below market (we know of a townhome just down the road that rents for $300 more than what our rent will be). The escalation on the purchase price (5%) was fair in our area. Actually, because the first year purchase price is based on a lower initial purchase price, our first year purchase price is right at what the home was listed for. So it’s like locking in the asking price for a year.
In each case, HPA’s max offer was about 5% off of asking price. That seems fair for a cash purchase, but if your area is a seller’s market, it may be more difficult to get an owner to come down that much. Also, seems HPA tries to beat down the price a bit after inspection.
We had some hiccups with bad information from HPA (specifically, that they did not buy homes in HOAs with rental caps—that info was corrected). The first home in the neighborhood took a long time to get through underwriting due to rental restrictions. But once it got through, things went very quickly. And with the second home in the same neighborhood, it really went fast.
Apart from the hiccups, and at times I might recommend to HPA just picking up the phone, they did respond very quickly and throughout weekends.
I recommend doing some poking around to try to figure out situations regarding homes. Both homes we had offers put on were vacant so we figured the seller would be more motivated. If you are going for a well-priced, nice home that is occupied and seller is not motivated, in a neighborhood with rental caps and that the HOA needs to approve the lease, then you may end up losing the home as the process takes some additional time and the seller may not take the “low” offer. We actually did not even pursue a home that we liked more because we thought the home was a bit overpriced and we heard there had been a few offers that were “too low."
Make sure the real estate agent is really on it. Ours did an excellent job of pushing things through and staying on top of things. While she was limited in what she could say regarding offers/counteroffers (HPA is technically her client), she did inform us at every step and was good to her word on following up. I can't say how important it is to have a real estate agent that does not delay and stays really on top of things.
If this is a good option for you, don’t wait until you’re in a pickle like we were. Give yourself plenty of time for the process to play out.
I hope that helps someone going through the process. Feel free to post in comments any questions and I'll respond.
Last edited by Markca; 08-11-2015 at 02:11 PM..
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Our HPA Experience
