Owning Real Estate Has Two Sides, Pleasure & Pain

Owning real estate has its ups and downs. When everything is going well, nothing could be finer. Yet... when unplanned events happen, real estate becomes a living hell.

I found that a Problem Prevention Check-Up is a new and better way to confront an age-old problem. Emergencies.

Just imagine a $3.00 hose to your washing machine breaking and causing you weeks of mayhem, lost time and grief plus $4,600.00 in damages! It happened to me…

Yes, some insurance policies do pay for most of the damages, but, you must very well earn it by investing your time and energy. Your lost time is never paid for by insurance.

According to Ron Alford, Technical Director of Disaster Masters Inc.®the best way to cure most real estate problems is to identify the seeds of disaster (Disaster Seeds ™) and then eliminate them before they blossom into expensive emergency services or into a full-blown disaster.

Because emergency services always cost the owner the loss of his time and money, it is far better to stay on top of the things that are likely to go wrong, rather than wait until they occur. Also, it makes good sense to have a contingency plan for unavoidable emergencies; a simple plan that can be implemented with one phone call.

Alford says "Even the most sophisticated of property owners are rarely able to identify and fix dormant disasters because they are simply too close to the issues or don't have a clue about what to look for and where to start. Moreover, building and maintenance contractors who work with property every day become blind to ordinary things which are likely to cause serious damage. In too many cases, incompetence of the contractors is the problem.

It takes people with special training to be able to locate disaster seeds and recommend cost-efficient remedies. For example, Alford has managed over 13,000 insurance claims during his career and has special training in disaster prevention. Of the thousands of claims he has managed, he said "In almost all of these cases, these events could have been prevented if the property owner had sought advice on how to Disaster Proof his or her property."

Alford says, "Every building and piece of property, every house has an infinite number of hidden problems waiting for the opportunity to blossom in to a real pain for the owner."

In a recent TV interview on crisis management and financial recovery, Alford was asked how to best avoid problems that can lead to disasters. Alford’s answer, "Every property owner should get an annual check up on their property much like they do with their personal health. Deciding to take these kinds of pro-active, preventative measures will be very cost efficient over time. In almost all cases, these prevention checkup tours uncover hard-dollar savings for the owners, such as ways to reduce energy costs, insurance premiums, etc. These savings add up to more than the cost of the audits over time. The net result is that it does not cost the owner anything, it saves him or her hard dollars. For example, a 40 gallon hot water heater can be bought and installed for about $400.00 if you have time to shop and work with the plumber’s schedule. In an emergency situation, the exact heater will cost $900.00 or more!

Educated people get annual medical check ups to AVOID serious problems, and to reduce the surprise of medical problems. We even have our cars inspected once a year for safety! Doesn’t it make the same sense to have your most valuable possessions checked as well? This provides the property owner with a good start on a realistic contingency plan as well as being able to enjoy the property and avoid all sorts of emergency service needs that cost a fortune, and always happen at the most inconvenient time!

Since 1985, Disaster Masters Inc. ® has been providing organizations and corporations in the New York Metro area with pro-active crisis management consulting and Disaster Prevention Check Ups ™. Recently they have created a residential property division for property owners.

This service is extremely valuable for two-income families, and those whose time is worth more than $300.00 per day. Especially seasonal property owners and landlords who do not have daily contact with their property.

Alford said, "We understand the problems that are associated with seasonal and income property because we have helped thousands of owners recover from disasters and mishaps over the last 25 years. With this new residential service, now absentee property owners, investors and landlords can avoid having to endure the pain of emergencies and focus on the benefits and the pleasures they want from their investments."

Because I had a personal interest in this kind of unique service, I asked Alford the following questions. His answers gave me enough information to use Disaster Masters' services to avoid most future emergencies.