“I’m proud to be paying taxes in the United States. The only thing is I could be just as proud  for half the money.”      ---Arthur Godfrey

OWNERS NEWSLETTER – APRIL 2007                                                                

GRASS CUTTING – With the mild temperatures and recent rainfall, the grass has really been growing. Renters that live in duplexes and single-family homes are responsible to keep their yards maintained. However, many do not cut their grass on a regular basis and during the growing season, it can get very tall in a relatively short amount of time. The City of Killeen has beefed up its code enforcement department and appears to have a fleet of inspectors that roam the city looking for violations. If the city finds the grass too high on a property, it will often issue a citation to the property owner. If you happen to receive a letter from the city, there is no need to worry. Simply notify us and we will rectify the situation immediately. We do inspect the properties we manage on a regular basis, but a yard that has not been cut in the last fourteen days can easily be tagged by the city before we become aware of it.  

INSURANCE – Everything is bigger in Texas, including insurance premiums. Texas is the most expensive state to insure a home with an average premium of $1,362, or 2.5% of the average Texans’ household income. And that’s with the 13% reductions we’ve seen since 2003 when legislation was passed to tighten regulations on insurance companies. Since every possible natural disaster can happen in Texas, including earthquakes, we’ll likely remain one of the most expensive states. Increased property values also cause premiums to rise. 

4^th INFANTRY HQ TO DEPLOY EARLY – The 4^th Infantry’s headquarters and special troops battalion have received orders to return to Iraq this September. This represents approximately 1,000 soldiers. The Division’s 1^st and 4^th Brigade Combat Teams have not yet received their orders, but are expected to deploy to Iraq later this year. These teams will move to Ft. Carson once they return from their deployment. Nothing unexpected about this news.

MARCH TRAFFIC – We were successful in leasing close to thirty properties last month and ended March with an overall occupancy rate of 92%. We denied almost as many applications due to very poor credit, bad rental references, or the criminal history of some applicants. We saw twelve of our renters vacate at the end of their leases due to military orders and two that purchased homes.

David Gerke

CO-Owner/Broker