And it's certainly not our mainline business, nor do we derive any income from it.  We would simply like to help those families that need it, and earn your good will .... perhaps you can send home buyers our way, or come back yourself when you're ready to buy, and we would appreciate that.

>We do have lists of rentals, and phone numbers of management companies in various towns we could send or fax.  We would also offer our office facilities for your use in hunting rentals ... a desk and a phone and whatever directions we can give.  Please accept this offer if it's appropriate.

But we might suggest that buying still may be an option to some.

For instance, some people feel it's useful to rent for a period before they buy. If it's to save equity or live through uncertain periods, that's a reasonable conclusion.  But in terms of getting to know the new territory and making relatively fast but still valid buying decisions, we're used to leading that kind of attack.  It's amazing how confident you can feel about a town in a few days .... maybe confident enough to go ahead with a purchase.

And if you feel you need to rent because you're not going to be in town but a few years, purchasing still may be an option.  We have quite a few clients that look for rentals, can't find them in their budget, and end up purchasing for the same, or sometimes less cash per month, with tax advantages still on top of that.

In this event however, it's our job help you make such a good purchase that the resale risk is minimized and you can live the 2 or 3 years you're here in reasonable confidence you'll resell safely.

In general, there are super tax benefits to ownership, as interest, taxes and some up-front costs are deductible, provided you itemize deductions.

Plus, you build equity when you make monthly payments, and you get any appreciation at resale, not the landlord. Best of all it's your house and you can do what you want with it.There's just something special about owning your own place.

But we've gone the complete circle here .... if you still need to rent and want some help, we'll be glad to try. We'll certainly also help point you to the better neighborhoods.