Frank Ponce Rea l Estate Investme nts

1. Don�t allow pets to move in without a large deposit. Yes, the dog looks cute, but he may eat your doors, cabinets, make holes in the carpet, and destroy your hardwood floors.

2. Don�t let your tenant move in without first having all the re-quired paperwork signed. It can be disastrous if your tenant refuses to sign the paperwork and worse if he re-fuses to pay.

3. Never give keys to anyone until the move-in check has cleared. It can be a real problem if the check doesn�t clear and it takes you three months to evict them, fix your place up again, and then find a new tenant.

4. Don�t ever give your tenants their secu-rity deposit before they move out. Who knows what could happen when they are in the process of moving out. They could drop the stove down the stairs and through a wall, and

who is going to pay for it?

5. Never rush to fill a vacancy. Take your time to find good tenants. Don�t get fooled into taking a tenant because he/she flashes you some cash.

Summer Issue 2006

5 M ISTAKES LA N D L O R D S CAN M A K E I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :

Crime Free Housing 2

Frank Ponce 2

4062 W. 129th Street 2

Fix up your place 3

142nd Street Club 3

Hawthorne Face-Lift 3

Who Can You Call? 4

SOUTH BAY COMMERCIAL & INVESTMENT NEWS

T H I N G S T O H AVE F O R Y O U R T E N A N T A T M O V E - I N It is imperative that you and your tenant have a signed copy of the rental agreement so that there are no misun-derstandings. Provide them with a lead base paint disclosure if the building

was built prior to 1978, and be sure to provide them with the pamphlet �Protect Your Family from Lead in Your Home.� The pamphlet comes in English and Spanish. You and your tenant should both have initialed copies of

the Enter/Exit Checklist to document the condition of the unit when taking possession and when vacating. Provide them with a copy of the house rules as well.

Boy, did I make a mistake in letting that guy in!

Be sure you have these on

hand

You can avoid a lot of headaches if you follow these simple

rules

http://www.frankponce.com

South Bay Commercial & Investment News

The Crime Free Multi-Housing Program is designed to assist landlords, managers and the police to improve the quality of life in and around apart-ment complexes within the City of Hawthorne, while re-ducing the calls for police service at participating com-plexes. With your participa-tion, CFMH can help eliminate gang, drug and illegal activity from your rental property. The program is free to land-lords, owners, and managers who want to improve the life around their properties. Simply call the Crime Free Multi-Housing office of the Hawthorne Police at

(310) 349-2823 or e-mail cfmh@hawthornepolice.com This programs works! Of the 250 properties in Hawthorne all that participate have seen a dramatic change� 35% reduction in calls for police, and a 42% reduction in part one crime rate. By participating in this pro-gram you will also learn good tenant screening, and crime prevention tips. If renters know your property is a CFMH they will most likely want to rent there knowing the other tenants are good and the police keep a good eye on your property. Getting in-

volved in what goes on in the neighborhood in which your apartments are located pays off handsomely. For example, a few years ago when I pur-chased a building in Haw-thorne I could not rent the 2 bedroom units for $750 a month, or a 3 bedroom for $1,000. Since I became ac-tively involved in eliminating the criminal element in my area my rents have sky-rocketed. I can rent my 2 bedrooms for over $1,000 and my 3 bedrooms for over $1,600! Do the math. It pays to help clean up your street by getting involved with the Crime Free Multi-Housing Program.

cated South of El Segundo Boulevard and West of Prairie in the South Bay City of Haw-thorne. Ideally located near the Los Angeles Intl Airport, and surrounded by the I-405, I-110, and I-105 Freeways, the City of Hawthorne could easily be termed the "Hub of the South Bay," by virtue of its location. Contact Laurie Inadomi-Halvorsen at (310) 791-6075

Pride of ownership security building located in prime Haw-thorne, southwest of the Haw-thorne Municipal Airport. All units are 2 bedroom / 2 bath with nearly 10% potential upside in rents. The building has 21 parking spaces and could have condo conversion potential. Buyers to conduct their own investigation regard-ing the condo conversion process with the City of Haw-thorne . The property is lo-

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F R A N K P O N C E - A N A F F I N I T Y F O R I N C O M E P R O D U C I N G P R O P E R T I E S

CR I M E FR E E MULTI -H O U S I N G PR O G R A M

1 0 U N I T S � R E D U C E D � $ 1 , 5 7 5 , 0 0 0 I N E S C R O W

have been instrumental in helping other landlords with renting issues, selling, buying, and day-to-day questions. I am fluent in Spanish and have made it my business to try to get to know as many landlords in the area as possi-ble. I am proactive in teach-ing other landlords �how to rent right� and avoid prob-

lems later. I know the South Bay and its people, and I am also a member of the Cham-ber of Commerce. If you are thinking of selling, buying, and/or exchanging, then I am the person to call. I can be reached at (310) 503-4158. I look forward to meeting with you and answering all your real estate questions.

I began helping manage prop-erties at a very young age. When I was still in junior high school I was already helping manage my father�s motels near Pasadena. I have been in the apartment business since 1983 when I began managing apartment com-plexes. I own my own apart-ments in the South Bay and

4062 W. 129th Street Hawthorne

Landlords and Police working to make it a

better place to live

Laurie Inadomi-Halvorsen

http://www.frankponce.com

South Bay Commercial & Investment News

Here are some tips on how to spruce up your property with-out having to dish out a lot of money. If you have the old aluminum windows on your apartment you can add window shutters. Pre-primed window shutters can be purchased at most hardware stores. Paint them an offset color so they stand out. Spruce up the kitchen by add-ing new faucets. You can also add new knobs to all of the kitchen cabinets. If your cabi-nets are that old brown wood

color from the 1960�s, then consider painting them a nice glossy white if you don�t want to buy new ones. Put in a nice entry foyer made of tile. You will be surprised how inexpensive this is to do and how your future tenants will love it. Put in a new front door. You can buy pre-painted white doors with an aluminum skin for about $130 from Home Depot. Put in new door handles throughout the units. These

are relatively inexpensive at most hardware stores and will make your units look new. Install new electrical switch plates throughout. Nothing looks worse than old cracked plates that are painted over. You can buy switch plates by the bundle and they cost about $5 for 10. Always replace the shower curtain for a new one. A new shower curtain gives the bath-room a fresh look.

the city as well as make Haw-thorne a more desirable place to live. Let�s watch Hawthorne Blvd. in the next few years and see how it be-comes more attractive. A great big �Thank You� goes

Hawthorne�s City Planning Commission has been work-ing hard during the last sev-eral years with the Commer-cial Rehabilitation Program. The program has given face-lifts to about 40 commercial buildings on Hawthorne Blvd. recently. What does this mean to landlords in Haw-thorne? It means Hawthorne is on the upswing and the road to beautification. This will bring new business into

out to the City Planning commis-sion from all of us!

Page 3

T H E 1 4 2 N D S T R E E T C L U B

SP R U C E U P YOUR APARTM ENTS W I T H O U T S P E N D I N G A L O T O F M O N E Y

H AW T H O R N E I S G E T T I N G A F A C E - L I F T

get to know one another. This site is located at: http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/west142ndstreetclub/ You are urged to pop in and join this site. There is a mes-sage board, calendar, you can post photos, a chat room, and

you can find out what is really going on in the neighborhood without really being there. This site has been instrumen-tal in fighting crime in the immediate area. Your man-agers and tenants are also welcome to join.

There is something to be said about the power of the Inter-net and the way it has the ability to connect us. A group of landlords in Hawthorne as well as the City Manager and other public officials have taken advantage of this tool as well. They�ve created a site where Hawthorne land-lords can exchange ideas and

Join this site to be up to date on what is going on

in the neighborhood

Watch Hawthorne get a much needed face-lift.

You can make your property look terrific

without making a hole in your

wallet

http://www.frankponce.com

Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT 68 Malaga Cove Plaza Palos Verdes Estates, CA 90274

Frank Ponce Real Estate Investments

Got a problem tenant you need to evict? Call Attorney Sherry Anne Lear for your evictions and Unlawful De-tainers. I have used her ser-vices on numerous occasions and I highly recommend her. Her number is (310) 265-9010.

When it comes to choosing a professional, one always wonders where they can find the best. Here�s our list of people you can call: Are you looking to buy or sell an apartment building? Call the pro-fessionals from Coldwell Banker Commercial. Call Frank Ponce at (310) 503-4158. Frank owns his own apart-ments in the South Bay, and has been in the apartment business since 1983. For Investment Property Fi-nancing call Don Derossi at Allied Capital Markets @ (213) 427-1200. Don is an expert in apartment building financing and is well con-nected.

Need to insure that new apartment building you are purchasing? Call Dan Petty at Farmers Insurance Group at (310) 782-8840. Mr. Petty is the best! I was once on a trip deep in the wilderness, without email or telephone, when a problem arose with one of my proper-ties. Mr. Petty immedi-ately took care of it. I returned home two weeks later to find out all was handled effec-

tively and in a timely fashion. You can count on Mr. Petty. Need a good handyman? Call Jose Becerra @ (562) 335-1304. Jose does tile, carpet, paint (exterior & interior), cement work, walls, hot water heaters, and much more. He is very reasonable in prices.

WHO C A N YOU CA L L?

(310) 378-5201 Office (310) 503-4158 Cellular (310) 544-5625 Fax frank@frankponce.com

Deal with the pros.

http://WWW.FRANKPONCE.COM/

Here�s a set of numbers you want to keep

Mail To:

http://www.frankponce.com

Summer Poem The joyful memories of our walk on the pier. The sun and surf and friends so dear. Foot prints in the sands of time all together in nature�s rhyme.