Article from Dan Ho

The biggest real estate trend right now for the Great Lakes state is lease to own homes in Michigan. During difficult times, people always become more creative. With houses simply not selling, homeowners who need payment relief have begun to turn more and more to what is sometimes called the lease option to buy.
This strategy also goes by many other terms, the most common of which is known as the rent to own.
It is a method of selling homes that works better in some areas of Michigan than others. For example, finding a lease option to buy in Grand Rapids, Michigan is very popular nowadays.
This isn't surprising due to how livable the city is:
Minutes away from the shores of Lake Michigan
Named one of the top fishing cities by Field & Stream Magazine, July 2006.
Named as one of America’s Most Livable Communities
Grand Rapids ranked as one of the healthiest towns for men by Men’s Health Magazine
Named by Christianity Today Magazine as one of the top places for Christians to work in America.
Of course, Grand Rapids isn't the only area where the rent to own is popular. Many properties in Southeast Michigan are being sold in this manner.
There are many reasons why both Michiganders or people who live out of state would want to lease to own homes in Michigan.
Here are some of the biggest advantages to the lease option to buy. This is applicable anywhere, not just in Michigan.
Pros for the Buyer:
Rent Credits -- this means a portion of your monthly lease is credited toward your down payment on the house (another way it can work is that this portion of the monthly lease is deducted from the price of the home when you buy it at the end of the lease term).
Less cash needed to get into the home. Most homeowners have to put down 20% of the house value to avoid PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) fees, and also have to pay closing costs which can total thousands. If you lease to own a home in Michigan, you'll need to put down a much smaller amount, often anywhere from 3 to 4%, which is sometimes called option consideration, and closing costs will often be paid by the seller.
People with poor credit who can't get a loan from a bank can often lease option to buy a home. This is because there is no bank needed to get into a home, and often the seller will help with financing. The buyer then has time to improve his credit during the duration of the lease and can then get traditional financing if needed later.
You get to try the home out before you buy it. If it turns out you don't like the home and don't want to buy it, you can simply choose to not exercise your lease option when the term expires.
Legal control of the home without owning it yet. You may also often assign your interest to another buyer as long as the seller agrees upfront to this.
Ok, now why would sellers want to lease to own homes in Michigan. Well, there are many advantages in it for them as well.
Some of the biggest ones are...
Get closer to FMV (fair market value) for your home. Try selling your home thru a Realtor in a bad economy for a sum anywhere close to its appraised value. You'll soon find out it's nearly impossible. But with lease options you are tapping into a whole new group of people who want to own homes but can't get the financing they need or will have to pay extremely high interest rates. This allows lease to own homes in Michigan to sell for much closer to their FMW, as these people are willing to pay more.
Better care of your property. This one is really simple to understand. If someone is renting to own your home, chances are much better that they will care for your property as if were their own -- because it will become theirs in the future if they exercise the option to purchase.
Less headache than a landlord because the tenant pays for maintenance on the property, not you.
Longer lease terms (often 2 years or more) and less vacancy. Longer lease terms also benefit the buyer if he or she has credit issues and needs time to improve their score.
Real estate investors, like this author, can also help facilitate lease option transactions. Through our networking and contacts, we locate sellers who are willing to sell their properties on lease option. As long as the sellers are motivated and willing to work on terms, we can work with them. We then put the property under assignable contract....locate a buyer for it, and then assign our interest to the buyer.
Real estate investors have helped thousands of sellers and buyers come together for win/win solutions, and often have the tools necessary for buyers to repair their credit quickly.
If you are looking to lease to own homes in Michigan, we can help.