[taxgal]

Interested in doing "due diligence" on potential landlord from a tenant's perspective before signing lease..Interested in renting a townhome privately..not through real estate agent..

Anyone here know Hartford County official website to do some type of check on landlord of mortgage standing? I understand that there should be a way to check on a county public records to show if there are any liens from the mortgage being in default????

Much thanks for any input? Read on Hartford Courant that as of March 31st, 5.3% of all home loans are either in foreclosure or 90 days past due..

Don't want to be sorry later! Thanks very much!

[itscolduphere]

I'm not sure how you would check on that, but as a former CT renter I'll clue you in on a little known law in CT; landlords must deposit your security deposit into an interest bearing account and refund that interest along with your security deposit at the end of the lease. Also, you can sue your landlord for twice the security deposit if not refunded within 30 days. (Mentioned somewhere on ct.gov website)

Never thought to check for liens on the property... interesting.

[AmyBergquist]

You can do a search here to see if there are any outstanding court cases against them, which would include foreclosure... Case Look-up

[taxgal]

I could also request the landlord to give us a report from the lender on mortgage history..
Date of payments due and payment due date to give us some assurance that mortgage is in good standing..

After all, I'm sure landlord will do due diligence on us as tenant..

We want the same level of assurance as the landlord has on us...If he is on the "up and up", he shouldn't mind..If he is "under water" then he'll balk and not give it....Better to find out now then!

Hartford's Courant article 5/38/09..5.3% of all Ct home loans are 90 days past due or in foreclosure...Things seem to be worsening each month...

"Blind faith" is just plain stupid these days....

[AmyBergquist]

Hmm, I'm a landlord and I'm not sure it's a realistic expectation that they would be willing to give you mortgage information. I'm current on my investment property mortgage but wouldn't be comfortable giving out specifics on it. My bank would also not be authorized to give you any information about me or my payment history. You could do a search on the specific landlord via the court documents if you were concerned about their financial viability and whether or not they were current on payments.

A better bet may be to ask to speak with previous tenants that rented from the landlord. Was the landlord responsive to requests? Was deposit money returned in a timely manner? That kind of thing.

[taxgal]

There are no previous tenants in this particular situation...Home occupied property..First time the property will become investment property.

But you would be comfortable as the landlord and find it necessary getting assurances on me as a tenant?

For all I know, this landlord could be "underwater" trying to show her lender in good faith that she is making good faith attempts on renting the property.

Our family has too much too to loose with a potential foreclosure situation. We are an executive relo; Trying to be prudent with a 1 yr lease before diving into a purchase..

Here's our philosophy..If a landlord is forthright in her intentions, she'll provide those assurances to us..If not. we'd rather rent a corporate apartment than be in a situation we'll regret down the road with a possible foreclosure...

[JayCT]

What do you have to lose? You are leasing a home for one year, not a lifetime. I would never provide a prospective tenant with the information you seek. It is none of your business. If you feel that you can not rent a place without this type of information, I suggest you stick to looking for rentals in large corporate-owned complexes. Jay

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by JayCT

What do you have to lose? You are leasing a home for one year, not a lifetime. I would never provide a prospective tenant with the information you seek. It is none of your business. If you feel that you can not rent a place without this type of information, I suggest you stick to looking for rentals in large corporate-owned complexes. Jay

I would normally agree with you. However, there have been horror stories of tenants being evicted because their landlord is in default of their mortgage. This really isn't happening in Connecticut though...

[taxgal]

Was fortunate enough to work a deal with a landlord who is being transferred as well for an annual lease; He didn't want to "take a beating" on his beautiful townhome, but instead will market it late spring..Feels more comfortable that he'll get a better price next spring.

Hunters Run in Avon! A real nice place to "hang our hat" for a year, before rushing into a purchase..Perhaps the market will even decline a bit between now and then, who knows? Anybody's guess right now!