CasaSugar

10 Tips For Short-Term Rental and Sublet Agreements

CasaSugar — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 07:00:23 -0800

Did you know that Washington DC residents are renting out their homes for the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration? Residents can stand to earn a pretty penny: the pictured home is renting for $550 a day! The practice is becoming so popular that there's even a website dedicated to the cause. Whether you're a DC resident looking to rent out your house for inauguration weekend, or a homeowner or renter who'd like to do a short-term sublet for an upcoming vacation, it's better to be safe than sorry when offering your home to a stranger. Douglas Culkin, president of the National Apartment Association, notes that, "By taking some basic precautions, people can leave their homes feeling like they have done their due diligence to ensure a smooth renting experience.”

To see tips from the National Apartment Association, read more.

Draw up a basic, legally binding agreement to secure payment that includes a damaged property clause. Get 50 percent deposit in advance.
Give strong consideration to doing a background check of the resident. It costs about $30 to $40 and can be done in minutes. Search for “resident screening” to find a vendor. Incorporate the cost of the screening into what you are charging for “rent.”
Make sure you're protected with insurance - if someone injures themselves in your home you may be liable. Check your policy.
If you currently rent your home and are thinking of sub-letting it for the week, check with your landlord to make sure you are legally allowed to do so before you post your advertisement.
Make a duplicate set of keys. Send them via an insured carrier service but do not include your home address anywhere in the package, in case it gets lost or stolen before reaching its intended recipient.
Change the locks after they leave. Incorporate this cost into what you charge for rent.
What about pets? If your lease agreement allows them, you'll have to decide if you want to let a renter bring their pet for the week, but be clear if no pets are allowed so there are no surprises upon your return.
As a courtesy, alert your neighbors, who will see strangers entering and exiting your home during their stay, so they don't call the police.
You'll exchange emergency numbers with your renters, but in case you are not immediately reachable, leave a second local emergency contact number, especially if you plan to leave the area.
Clean out the fridge, make some closet space, etc. Schedule to have a cleaning company come before the renters arrive and after they leave. No one wants to see the other's leftovers.

Source

Online Sale Alert! Deep Discounts at Green With Glamour

FabSugar — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 02:00:22 -0700

Green With Glamour, a fabulous eco-conscious site, is providing deep discounts you don't want to miss out on. In the eight pages, you'll find scarf tops, wooden jewels, and sexy dresses, all eco-friendly.

I'm drawn to this Sublet Clothing Natural Alison Dress ($146, originally $243), not only because it's made of organic cotton and bamboo, but because it's super stylin'.

DEARSUGAR Needs Your Help: Sayonara Sublets

DearSugar — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 13:23:40 -0700

DEARSUGAR and Hasta La Vista Venus could use some advice about courtesy when it comes to leases and roommates. As you become older, this kind of thing only gets trickier. What do you think is the proper way to handle her situation?

Dear Sugar
I am the "master tenant" on a fabulous three bedroom apartment that I share with two roommates. I found the place and my name is the only name on the lease. The other roommates sublet from me.

Recently, my boyfriend and I have decided to move in together, and we want the fabulous apartment to ourselves. I am locked into my lease for another year, and I know that I can't really kick my roommates out, but I'd like to ask them, politely, to leave.

How do you think I should go about it? Should I offer to help them move? Should I offer them money to move? Should I give them a set time when I need them out? I don't want to be mean and leave them stranded, but this is my apartment after all. Hasta La Vista Venus

Mission Street Food: Transforming San Francisco's Food Scene

YumSugar — Wed, 13 May 2009 05:50:35 -0700

While it's true that most restaurants have been hit hard by the economy, at least one eatery is flourishing. Meet Mission Street Food, an unusual dining concept that's taken flight in San Francisco's Mission district. Two nights a week, Anthony Myint, a former line cook at a well-known restaurant in town, sublets space from a hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant, invites a guest chef to cook, and serves up creative, experimental dishes sourced from well-known farms in the area. Without the overhead costs of a fine dining establishment, Mission Street Food is able to donate a portion of profits to food charities like Meals on Wheels or C.H.E.F.S. The concept also gives Myint and his fellow colleagues a chance to experiment with new dishes. Keep reading to scope out the Mission Street Food scene.

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How-To: Find an Apartment on Craiglist

CasaSugar — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 09:00:07 -0800

Apartment hunting is a necessary evil. It's not fun, but you can't fake it either - unless you actually like crashing with your parents. Short of throwing money at a broker, there aren't too many secrets to apartment hunting; you've just got to search the local papers, classifieds, and online agency listings, cruise the neighborhoods you like for signs, and of course, scour Craigslist in depth. I'm sure you can handle most of this, but there is a method to the madness of Craigslist that you may not all be aware of. It doesn't guarantee you a dream pad for the price of a shanty, but it'll at least get you in front of what you're looking for. If you're looking for tips on how to up your credit score for a prospective landlord, you'd better check out SavvySugar. To hear my tips, read more.

First of all, if you're looking for an apartment from long distance, you should be extra cautious, demand to see many photographs and references, and don't sign a lease until you or someone you know has visited it.
Moving on - no pun intended: You should begin looking for a place two months in advance of when you want to move. Most places are listed about a month ahead, and in big cities, apartments will go in a day. But, if you give yourself two months, you'll get a better idea of what's available, what you can afford, what neighborhoods you like, and how quickly things are going.
You should already have an idea of what you're looking for. So write it all down in front of you, and don't be too picky; a penthouse apartment with maid, pool, gym, and ocean and mountain views for $700/month is never gonna happen.
The wonder of Craigslist is that it allows you to add your search terms to your RSS reader. To do so, go to your city's site on Craigslist, click "Housing," then fill in specifics like keywords, rent, number of bedrooms, neighborhood, and whether you need a pet-friendly place. Then, choose "apt/housing for rent" from the drop down menu, and check off "has image." Then, scroll to the bottom of the page and click the yellow "RSS" button. This will bring up the feed and allow you to add it to your RSS reader. Try Google Reader or Bloglines, if you don't have one already. Just so you know, you can use this same method for looking for furniture, cars, or anything else on Craigslist. And, you can download an app to your Blackberry or iPhone for your reader so you can read listings on the go.
If you're open to a range of living situations, neighborhoods, rents, etc., then your chances of finding a place are greater, but that also means you'll need to subscribe to more feeds. So go through the last step again until you've entered all the possible search terms and combinations.
I have 118 blogs in my RSS reader (a lot!), so if I were apartment hunting, I'd want to compound them all. You can combine a bunch of feeds into one with FeedBlendr.
If you're afraid to get dirty with an RSS feed, you can do it the old-fashioned way, by making methodical searches. Peruse Craigslist's various categories (apartments, rooms, sublets) the same way you entered a range of search terms. You never know: a temporary rental could last three years, or a shared apartment could be with someone who travels nine months of the year.
Whichever way you'll be reading the listings, you need to do so routinely. Get up first thing and the morning and then look again every few hours. Set an alarm if you have to remind yourself.
When you see something that you might like, click on the map link at the bottom of the CL page to verify its address (people lie about neighborhoods sometimes). Or better yet, use a Google Maps/Craigslist mashup like MapsKrieg, which allows you to see all the listings for your location on a map.

Stay tuned for tips on actually snagging the apartment you want once you've found it!

Source

You Asked: His Mother Is Trying to Control Him!

DearSugar — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 13:30:00 -0800

Dear Sugar,

My boyfriend and I have been going out for four years; since I was 20. Despite working full time, he still lives at home with his mother who is very controlling, and in turn, he lets her treat him that way. The problem is he can't say no to her. She frequently makes plans for him and guilts him into staying home. It's gotten to the point where he doesn't have any friends he sees regularly besides me.

The other night we arranged to go out for dinner. When he got home from work, his mom had made him dinner because he forgot to tell her we had a date. Rather than saving the dinner she made for another day, he called and told me he changed his mind about going out and then he got mad at me for being inflexible when I got upset.

Clearly his mother is causing a rift in our relationship. It feels like she is trying to fight me for his attention all the time. This has been going on a long time now so I guess it is my own fault for putting up with it, but I don't think he will ever change. Do you think I should wait until he moves out or see if things change on their own? - Competing Courtney

To see DearSugar's answer read more.

Dear Competing Courtney,

First thing's first - talk to your boyfriend about how his actions affect you. He might be feeling pulled in two directions by the two women he loves most. So if he's not aware that he's hurting your feelings, he might just be trying to avoid hurting her's. Since your boyfriend has a full-time job, I think it's time he looks for a place of his own. I understand money is tight for almost everyone right now, but there are always options: roommates, a small studio, or a sublet.

Waiting for something to happen on its own isn't your best bet here, so voice your concerns and set some ground rules. If he's unwilling to make time for both of you, you'll need to decide if this rift is something you can tolerate. Good luck.

Source

This or That: A Violation of Your Privacy or of Your Relationship?

DearSugar — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 07:00:00 -0700

After losing your practically perfect roommate of a year - she moved away for grad school - you were stuck looking for someone to sublet the extra room in your apartment. Perhaps out of desperation you made a choice too quickly, and now you're stuck with your current roommate who gets on your nerves. What's worse, she has zero boundaries, which you realize when you come home early from work and catch her in the midst of some unacceptable behavior. Would it be worse if . . .

This: She's in the middle of your bedroom casually browsing through your journal and box of personal items? When you confront her she has the gall to get testy about some of the things you wrote about her.

Or . . .

That: You walk into the living room only to see your boyfriend averting his eyes on the couch while she traipses around completely topless? When you ask her to put on some clothes, she makes a big issue of how she should be allowed to be comfortable in her own home.

Source

Home Away From Home: Hotel Alternatives For Wedding Guests

CasaSugar — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 08:30:04 -0700

If you're having a destination wedding or you have invited out-of-towner guests to your wedding, it's proper etiquette to offer suggestions on places where they can stay while in town. Of course, hotels are the first thing that come to mind. Some guests may prefer lodging that feels more "home-y," and others simply can't afford the costs of hotels (especially in high-traffic tourist spots). So, it would be a nice courtesy to send your friends and family a list of hotel alternatives for your big day. If you're like most brides, you've probably got a lot on your mind (and to-do list), so I've compiled a list to help you out:

Craigslist is an online classifieds website that lists vacation rentals and temporary sublets by owners around the world.
Stay4Free is a network that helps you find addresses of people offering free accommodation to travelers all over the world.
Digsville lists home exchanges in more than 55 countries.
Home Base Holidays is a major international home-exchange agency, with access to listings from several home-exchange agencies.

There are plenty more where these came from, so read more.

Hospitality Exchange is a traveler's directory of travelers who offer each other hospitality in their homes.
Home Exchange is the vacation alternative "where you stay in my house and I stay in yours."
Home-Exchange International is a home-exchange membership with thousands of home listings in over 60 countries.
HomeLink International is the world's leading home-exchange organization with over 13,000 home swappers drawn from 72 countries around the world.
ChristianHomeExchange.com is a nonprofit service promoting home exchanges for Christians.
VRBO is a directory listing for vacation rentals by owner.
International Home Exchange Network arranges home exchanges, rents members' second or vacation homes and locate unique privately-owned vacation rentals worldwide.
InterVac offers members a multilanguage, real-time database of over 20,000 home-exchange listings.
Seniors Home Exchange is a home exchange membership for anyone over the age of 50.
Hosteling International is a hostel operator of more than 90 Youth Hostel Associations in over 80 countries, operating over 4,000 hostels.
Hostels.com is a comprehensive resource and search engine for almost 23,228 hostels worldwide.
EuroTrip.com is a travel website and community with thousands of ratings and reviews of hostels, guesthouses, apartments, and cheap hotels across Europe.
Vacation Rentals Directory is a human-edited directory of vacation rentals website indexing 1,152 vacation rentals websites covering 386 destinations.
Vacation Rentals 411 offers a diverse selection of private vacation rental homes, condominiums, cabins, and villas around the world for rent by property owners.
The Hospitality Club focuses on bringing people together from different cultures, and can help you find free accommodation around the world.

Source

You Asked: To Move or Not to Move?

DearSugar — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 06:01:03 -0800

Dear Sugar -

I have a huge decision to make. I can make all my dreams come true and move to Hawaii in February, or I can stay in my comfort zone and always wonder "what if?" I have a couple of friends there who are willing to let me stay with them until I get my feet on the ground, but I'm scared to death to move! I have a very stable, well-paying job in New York City and I have all my friends and family here, which includes my seven brothers and sisters. So should I risk everything to take a chance and move? I have this sinking feeling that I'm just going to move back to NYC anyways. Help! - Luau Laurie

To see Dear Sugar's answer read more

Dear Luau Laurie -

You say it would be a dream come true to move, so I say go for it! Of course, picking up your life and moving it to a new place is scary, but I agree with you - there's nothing worse than always asking yourself "what if" if you decide not to go. It sounds like you have friends in Hawaii, so you wouldn't be lonely, and Laurie, what could be better than living in paradise?! If I were you, I'd write out a pros and cons list, weigh your options, and go for it!

The thing about moving away from all of your friends and family is that they're all going to be there when you come back. NYC isn't going anywhere either. If you have a sneaking suspicion that you're just going to come back, give it a shot for a few months and enjoy it for what's it worth. Of course, leaving a well paying job is harder to swallow, so see if you can take a leave of absence until you're certain about Hawaii. You might also try to sublet your apartment and just pack the necessities.

Getting out of your comfort zone can be terrifying, but at the end of the day, that's what makes you grow as a person. If you decide to take the plunge and you feel like you made a mistake, you can always come back home and at least know that you tried. Good luck!

Source

This Week On Geeksugar - Computer In A Gameboy?

GeekSugar — Sat, 12 May 2007 10:29:39 -0700

In a possible effort to out geek iBoy, aka the boy who fit his iPod into his Gameboy, a man has managed to put a complete computer into a trusty little handheld. Geek Puts Complete Computer In His Gameboy
Word is, USB fashion makers have transferred their attention from USB sushi and egg flash drives to more wheaty and meaty USB delights. Freshly Baked USB Devices - Food Court Treats Galore
New "health" gadget on the scene: $200 battery-powered electronic cigarette that you smoke just like the real thing - only it delivers nicotine as a vapor. Electronic Cigarette - Pricey Way To Kick Butts
Most of us can no longer consider a life without the internet, technology or even access to electricity. Imagine if you powered up using car batteries in the home, and businesses such as bars ran off car batteries or their own power generators. How Do You Charge Up Without Electricity?
If you, or anyone you know is looking for a new place to live, you'd better check out MapsKrieg.com, a mashup of Google Maps and Craigslist.org that will help you find apartments, houses for rent, sublets or whatever living arrangement you are looking. Site Combines Google Maps And Craigslist
It doesn't take much to sell me on energy saving gadgets or the fact that we should all be monitoring our energy use, but I'm still unsure what I think about Blackle, a custom Google search that claims to save energy simply "because the screen is predominantly black." Website of the Day: Blackle
There are hundreds of bloggers I admire for their tenacity, drive, humor and innovative ideas, but very few who embody the combination of artistry, sarcasm and wit that 14, the founder of Gallery of the Absurd does. Geeky Girl We Love: 14 of Gallery of the Absurd