Property Management Software

Do you manage real estate properties with HOAs? Is communication with your residents something that is common for you? As 2019 begins, HOA board members should consider offering feedback on how the HOS can improve the community and make it a great place to live. Responsibility Tenants should take responsibility for abiding by the CC&Rs and staying current on their HOA fees. Violations of the rules or failure to pay the HOA fees/dues is not a win for anyone. HOA boards have a lot of power over the property owners. Sharing Tenants should have the ability to express their ideas, suggestions and their concerns in order to help improve the community and build lasting relationships. Residents are important in sharing the thoughts of the community. They should be included in the regular board meetings. Building Relationships Tenants should make an effort in participating in any events, social or cultural activities in the community. This gives t...

Many homeowners and property management companies do not consider home maintenance until something breaks. Is that the best way to maintain your investment? Whether you are a new landlord or seasoned one, you should establish some maintenance protocols. Here Are Some Tips For Protecting Your Investments: Establish A Home Maintenance Plan A good place to start is by establishing a maintenance schedule. A good property management software will assist you in creating reminders for asset maintenance. Things like changing air filters, water filters etc. You’ll need to plan on cleaning your gutters and trimming trees from time to time. Pest control is another item that is often overlooked. Depending on your lease agreement, you may need to spray or have ground treatment performed a few times a year. When it comes to assets such as appliances, make sure to send in any warranties and follow the maintenance recommendations in your owner’s manual. Upload the ...

All the talk about a 2019 downturn may end up being exaggerated, just a bit. There are some signs of a slight decline, primarily due to the uncertainty in the market. However, many of these are simply overblown. The economy’s fundamentals are strong and there seems to be a good amount of momentum. This is good news for property management companies. As multifamily real estate continues to grow investor’s portfolios, property managers should have a positive 2019. REITs This 2019 also is gearing up to be a positive year for REITs as well. Rising interest rates don’t affect the REITs like other sectors. Market Ups And Downs Experts are always trying to predict the next downturn. Recessions are somewhat predictable. Imbalances are one cause of recessions. The imbalances between supply and demand. Too much multifamily construction projects that exceed demand will eventually require a correction in the market. Too much debt also can be a factor in m...

The self-storage market has seen significant growth over the past decade. It seems Americans continue to collect too much ‘stuff’ that doesn’t fit into their homes. That’s all great for property management companies. However, the industry is changing. Increase Of Self-Storage Units There has been a significant increase in self-storage construction as demand has risen. With new construction comes the inevitable rent adjustments. Current storage unit owners are realizing that they are having to cut some rent to compete for business. 2019 is expected to see the same growth pattern, with more construction of more storage units. Even so, the occupancy rate remains very high because, let’s face it, we love our ‘stuff’. While new construction is taking place, all estimated new units will account for less than 10% of overall market. This is considered a development phase. With the increase in storage units, this will require property managers to maximiz...

The choices for multi-family investors continues to grow for 2019. Sure, there are concerns about higher interest rates, property values and high inventory but that doesn’t seem to affect the availability of capital sources. This is good news for property management companies. As the real estate market remains strong, more investors will rely on property managers and property management software to support their portfolios. Debt Funds There are several equity funds that are providing financing for developers by way of debt funds. These ‘bridge loans’ can go as high as 85% of the property value with competitive interest rates. Once the property has been completely leased, the developer can move to a more permanent type of loan. Interest Rates Even though there have been some recent rate hikes, rates are still considered low for traditional permanent loans. In 2018 Q4, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been in the area of 4.25% – 4.50%. These loa...

Since I am in in the property management software business, most all my blogs are related to property managers or landlords. However, this blog will cover a new federal program for real estate investors call Opportunity Zones. While it may benefit property managers or property management companies, it’s definitely geared towards real estate investors. With that in mind, read on! The Genesis Sean Parker, the co-founder of Napster (not part of the gold heist with Mark Wahlberg) worked with law makers on a new program call Opportunity Zones. The states governors are responsible for identifying low income census zones in their respective states. Today, there are approx. 8700 defined Opportunity Zones nationwide. The zones are geographical areas that have been designated as investment opportunities that will benefit the community as well as those investors who participate in the program. The program was created by the federal government in an effort to d...

  Is there any special way for property managers to handle multiple roommates per lease? Common Issue This is a common issue for landlords and property management companies . My first advice is to spell out the details of guests and roommates in the initial lease. Be upfront and make sure you specify all the details that you want up front. Ask the new tenants, do you plan to have frequent quests or visitors? Depending on their answer, you may want to include those individuals on the lease. Avoid Mistakes If it’s not in the lease, don’t make exceptions, unless you want to update the current lease. Make sure you are protected as much as possible. If the tenant falls on hard times and needs to bring on a roommate to help with expenses, make sure you are aware of it. You will want to have that roommate complete an application and go through the same background screening as everyone else. Screen them as if they are a new tenant for you. A good Property manage...

  When it comes times for your tenants to move out, landlords and property managers must decide if they can return the entire security deposit or not. 1 in 4 tenants say they did not receive the amount of return they were expecting. So, what is the deal? Full Security Deposit Refund Believe it or not, most property management companies want to return the full deposit to the tenant. Why? Because it would mean that the property was left in the same condition it started in. That’s good for the property management company as well as the property owner . But the fact is some tenants do cause damage or leave the property in a state that requires some work to be done for the property to be “move in” ready. Wear & Tear Vs Damage States have established laws to help define what is wear and tear vs damage. In general, property management companies can deduct damages from the tenant’s security deposit . Here are some examples: Wear And Tear Minor nick...

  Hard money lenders have changed from the typical definition a few years back. In the past, loan sharks were often synonymous with hard money lenders. Part of the reality that backs that point of view was those lenders often loaned money to people they didn’t believe would succeed. When they would fail, the loan shark would move in and swipe up the collateral and reap the financial benefits. Many hard money lenders of today are a different breed. They are sources of capital in the private sector that help real estate investors with their funding needs. They are generally a more viable option of funding when traditional funding resources have passed on the opportunity. Lending Algorithms Today’s hard money lenders have a better application process that help determine whether or not the property owner will secure the capital that they need. Lenders look at the real estate investment opportunity even more than the individuals FICO score or their personal wealth. ...

  It’s time to face the fact that there is a good chance your tenants don’t love you. If that is true of your property management company, then maybe it’s time to find out why.   With all the potential issues that can go wrong, coupled with numerous tenants, it’s common to have rocky roads with tenants. However, a good property management company can implement processes and procedures to reduce the amount of complaints. Good Relationship A good and open relationship with your tenants is the start of good things to come. Good relationships lead to less vacancies and higher retention rates. Communication is critical for property management companies and the most common way of communicating is SMS, email and the phone. Communicate about everything. Most property management software systems include these features as well as logging all past communications. So communicate about general violations, reminders for events, trash pickup, upcoming invoices, holiday s...

  Many industries throughout the marketplace have changed their practices in response to developments in technology, but real estate, including property management is still largely stuck in the past. On-demand app development is making access to services easier than. Artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things are connecting us in new ways every day. It’s clear that taking advantage of these developments is key to progressing. As an industry with roughly $280 trillion in value , taking advantage of these new opportunities could produce billions or trillions in profits. A number of large real estate companies are attempting to build their own in-house technology, but in many cases, it would be more efficient for them as well as and property management companies to use existing solutions. These are some of the most exciting possibilities that new developments in technology can offer the real estate industry. Outsourcing the Cloud Cloud services is a rapidl...