Yo Homeowners! Count your pennies!

I am by no means a rental agent. I really don't know the first thing about vacation rentals, what they go for, or what is involved in the process. I do know however, that you should never steal from the homeowners who you rent for. It just seems like a bad idea, and eventually no matter what, you are going to get caught.

That's why I was sort of surprised to see that in fact a local broker was arrested on charges of stealing from the very people she lived among, and rented for.

I think people need to be held accountable for their actions. I want to keep them honest here in the North Country. I don't want brokers, associates, agencies, even homeowners taking advantage of one another. That is what gives the general public a bad taste for Real Estate agents and rental agents. Homeowners who rent or list with ANY company that steals from it's clients has the right to know about it and make their own informed decisions about how they go about renting or selling. It's really none of my business whether they stick with the company or find a new one, but everyone needs to know.

A local rental agent I know, says the best thing homeowners can do who rent their properties through an agency, is to have a CPA manage the books to make sure the numbers add up. She feels at this point that it is "egg on the face" of rental agents, and that beyond damage control, establishing a new level of trust is of the utmost importance in a small community like our own. Because it really doesn't matter if it is only one agency that is doing something wrong, it has the potential to ruin it for the rest of them. Whats that old saying again?

-Josh Pratt