Where can I look up property deeds for FL?

[Kellydelly]

Can someone point me in the right direction ?

 

[hmp2z]

What county are you looking for? We own in Lake County, and you can find information on the property appraiser's website, as well as the County Clerk's website. The Prop. Appraiser will tell you when it was purchased, by whom, and for how much money. It will also give you the option to view the land from a satellite map, like Google Earth.
Cheers!
Heather W

 

[Kellydelly]

The property is in Kissimmee. I'm not sure what county that is.

 

[isla bonita]

Here is the site

http://www.property-appraiser.org/

 

[kylara]

Kissimmee is in Osceola County.

 

[Kellydelly]

Thank you! Now I'm wondering what's up with the house we have rented for next month, though. The owner that is listed for that property is a builder, not an individual. Isn't that odd? I expected to see the same name that is on our rental agreement. I was already nervous about renting directly from an owner and now I'm even more so .

 

[JimB.]

It may be a spec or model house that is not sold.

As long as you pay by CC or pay the final bill AFTER your stay, you should be OK. Check the local BBB if you have concerns, or better yet, ask the owner for references from past renters.

 

[5mins2disney]

Well I don't know of ANY owners that would accept payment after a guest has already stayed there, good luck on that one! LOL The owner has a lot more to lose and is a lot more at risk than the guests in these cases, I've already had one person try and scam us out of free rent using a fake money order, unfortunately there's a lot of dishonest people out there these days. If you're nervous for some reason call them, get a sense of comfort with who you're staying with. You could ask for other guests...references...to speak with their management company, etc.

It's not something I would be super nervous about though, we did it tons of times ourselves before buying our own place and it worked out great in fact! We've stayed in various Disney rental properties, other parts of Florida, Colorado on ski trips, and we've had nothing but excellent vacations! If you're still that nervous about renting from an owner...there are many many reputable property management companies in the area that will rent direct to you as well, and you have some futher assurance that they are who they say they are and will get you into a nice place. You can also check the local BBB to make sure both the MC and the homeowner don't have any significant outstanding issues against them.

Good luck, I'm sure it will be fine! Hopefully they had you fill out a rental agreement that states the terms and conditions as well? You can also pay via a credit card, Visa will side with the cardholders in most cases should you end up being defrauded. Another thought... purchase trip insurance in case something goes wrong...yes you can buy it on a vacation rental and it would protect you in case of sickness, hurricane, the place not being there, etc.

From http://www.insuremytrip.com/ a site that allows you to compare multiple offerings of travel insurance:

Q. Is it possible to insure the rental of a house or condo?
A. All of the companies on our website will provide reimbursement of villa, condo or other rental property as long as there is a written agreement/contract between the insured and the renter. Reimbursement of your pre-paid cost will be made if the trip cancellation or interruption was caused by a peril named in the policy.

Once you have a quote / invoice and a signed rental agreement between you and the owner... you can go on the internet and purchase trip insurance from any number of providers of this sort of thing. It's also peace of mind against all sorts of other things that might go wrong...on our trip in May (as rentors) I actually got very sick (bad ear infection) and was worried I wouldn't be able to fly...had to go to the urgent care place down in FL...and we thought what would we do if we had paid for airfare, a place, etc and for some reason couldn't go?

In the fall our trip was delayed by Hurricane Ernesto...fortunately they cancelled the flights at the last minute...and we were going to our own place and it happened to be open a few days later..so we could just back up our trip by a few days. The rental car company too ended up being cool about it...and since we had booked on priceline.com those things usually aren't refundable or changable, but we got lucky and they let us cancel and rebook.

 

[JANNYANS]

Kelly,
I suggest that you contact the person that you have booked with immediately.
Tell them that they are not listed as owning the property. Was it listed as a new property and did you see pictures?.
The purchase of a new property does not always go smoothly. More checking would be advisable.

 

[Kellydelly]

Kelly,
I suggest that you contact the person that you have booked with immediately.
Tell them that they are not listed as owning the property. Was it listed as a new property and did you see pictures?.
The purchase of a new property does not always go smoothly. More checking would be advisable.

I'm going to guess that the person who I think owns the home is associated with the business that is listed on the deed? I emailed the "agent" (who said she was a friend of the owner) and told her my concerns with the name on the deed not being the same as the name on my rental form. She responded that as far as she knows, Mr "X" is the owner. That's all she said. I did sign a rental agreement, I did pay with a credit card through paypal to protect myself as much as I could. We usually rent through a management company but this time they were already totally booked by the time I called to get a reservation. So this is a first for us, dealing directly with an owner. I will call the people that are listed as the property management team tomorrow (should have done that a week ago when I investigated the deed). Hopefully I'm just being overparanoid. Wouldn't be the first time . Thanks for all your input!

 

[5mins2disney]

I'm sure it will be fine, I have never heard of a vrbo owner defrauding a guest in this manner. (I have however, heard of guests defrauding owners! LOL) Just call them and get a sense of comfort that it's all above board, and start planning your trip instead of worrying!

 

[FLParadisevilla]

I must agree call and get your peace of mind or purchase trip insurance they do cover rental homes. I had a guest who hurt his back and could not travel. He had trip insurance, I provided him with receipts for his payments to me and they covered his cost of our home!
I also have to agree start getting exicted about your vacation! I think you will have a great time!

 

[ToriLammy]

I'm sure it will be fine, I have never heard of a vrbo owner defrauding a guest in this manner. (I have however, heard of guests defrauding owners! LOL) Just call them and get a sense of comfort that it's all above board, and start planning your trip instead of worrying!

What if you have called but always get voice mail and they never return your call? I've emailed the owner of the villa I'm renting every two weeks since I sent the final payment to ensure he got it and I get nothing. I'm really starting to get worried.

 

[JANNYANS]

They may be on vacation themselves of course but that doesn't excuse them -I always tell my guests if I am planning to be away for any time so they know I may not be in contact.
Do you know how to check for the ownership details of the home to put your mind at rest?

 

[ToriLammy]

I did use the link and checked and no it didn't put my mind at ease because the name is not that of the person I sent my money to. It actually shows the house was sold in Apr 06. Could be some special deal where someone else owns the house and this person manages it or at least that's what I keep telling myself. I'm hoping that it is all okay but as it gets closer I get more nervous.

 

[5mins2disney]

What if you have called but always get voice mail and they never return your call? I've emailed the owner of the villa I'm renting every two weeks since I sent the final payment to ensure he got it and I get nothing. I'm really starting to get worried.

That would concern me..... we never take more than a day or two at the very most to return an email...and if it was a phone call..even faster unless we're out travelling or something ourselves. Our guests are given our home phone #s, cell phone #s, work phone #s, and even our management company phone #s when they book a reservation with us, all so that if they have any questions, or even the slightest hint of a concern they know how to reach us via multiple avenues. Do you have their MC's phone #? If it was just one call or email and it hasn't been that long I wouldn't be concerned...yet...but you make it sound like it's been a fairly consistent thing. Guest service and being responsive is part of the equation...some owners and MCs unfortunately are much better at this than others, we had a guest who stayed with us who had an prior issue with a large MC not calling her back (I won't name them... but V.D. is not just a disease to avoid)....her bad experience led her to ask me for references prior to booking with us, she also called and spoke with our MC just to get a sense of comfort, and ended up being extremely happy.

The thing is....if you have a problem (it's rare..but things do happen)...how quickly are they going to respond to you? In her case they had a glass shower door shatter...and she couldn't get the MC to return her calls...NOT GOOD!

If it's still a long ways off and you are not getting responses now... perhaps you should look for another place...that would be my honest suggestion...go with someone who really cares about their place, their business, and most importantly, their guests!!

 

[isla bonita]

Just a little food for thought.

1. Florida is a bit slow in putting the correct people with homes. I know I own one and it was about 3 months or more before it came up.

2. Our home is in both mine and my husbands name. Normally that is not a problem but I never changes my name. His starts with A mine with W and so his name needs to be put into the system.

3. Things can look off at times but be perfectly fine. Until I tried it myself did I not realise that my potential guests see my husbands name and unless they go further and open up the screen my name is hidden.

4. Ask questions it might be something such as above or another varient.

 

[ToriLammy]

That would concern me..... we never take more than a day or two at the very most to return an email...and if it was a phone call..even faster unless we're out travelling or something ourselves. Our guests are given our home phone #s, cell phone #s, work phone #s, and even our management company phone #s when they book a reservation with us, all so that if they have any questions, or even the slightest hint of a concern they know how to reach us via multiple avenues. Do you have their MC's phone #? If it was just one call or email and it hasn't been that long I wouldn't be concerned...yet...but you make it sound like it's been a fairly consistent thing. Guest service and being responsive is part of the equation...some owners and MCs unfortunately are much better at this than others, we had a guest who stayed with us who had an prior issue with a large MC not calling her back (I won't name them... but V.D. is not just a disease to avoid)....her bad experience led her to ask me for references prior to booking with us, she also called and spoke with our MC just to get a sense of comfort, and ended up being extremely happy.

The thing is....if you have a problem (it's rare..but things do happen)...how quickly are they going to respond to you? In her case they had a glass shower door shatter...and she couldn't get the MC to return her calls...NOT GOOD!

If it's still a long ways off and you are not getting responses now... perhaps you should look for another place...that would be my honest suggestion...go with someone who really cares about their place, their business, and most importantly, their guests!!

Thanks for the response. It's not a long way off, we are scheduled for 3 - 10 January 07. I do have three different numbers to call but get voice mail at all three, all the time. Have left messages, no response. Am seriously considering looking for another place but would be out almost $3000. This is my second time renting and the first time went like clockwork. Maybe I am stressing over nothing but can't get rid of the bad feeling.

 

[JANNYANS]

Thanks for the response. It's not a long way off, we are scheduled for 3 - 10 January 07. I do have three different numbers to call but get voice mail at all three, all the time. Have left messages, no response. Am seriously considering looking for another place but would be out almost $3000. This is my second time renting and the first time went like clockwork. Maybe I am stressing over nothing but can't get rid of the bad feeling.

These things usually have a simple explanation, but this does not excuse the owner for not contacting you. In most cases a search of the Counties Tax and PA departments plus Court Records is sufficent to find out what has gone wrong.
Failing that we are over on the 5th December.