Posted on November 30, 2011
Homeowners associations are in place to keep the people of a neighborhood happy, to hear the thoughts and suggestions of the members, and to charge fees to members of the HOA in order to fund keeping grounds well kept, and to fund projects in the future. Another key reason neighborhoods use homeowners associations is to keep the value of the homes in the neighborhood as high as possible by having guidelines and rules as to how the exterior of your home should be kept. Hiring a management company to take care, or at least assist your HOA will not only make it more organized as a whole, but will make it easier to enforce rules and payments so that the neighborhood can be upgraded in the future.
The first thing to consider as a HOA is how you will collect payment from the homeowners and what you will charge. A management company can assess the properties in the neighborhood as a whole, and write out a budget that reflects the proper amount that should be charged to each member of the homeowners association. They will then be in charge of the collection of payment, the investing and spending of the money collected, and they will be in charge of fines that are released for people that break the codes of the HOA.
Other things to consider inside a homeowners association is many neighborhoods have plans of bettering their community. The budget that they work with to start new projects comes from what they charge people that are a part of the association. Meetings can be held and the raising of the charged monthly fees to have a pool installed can be better explained and written out by your management company. This can also be organized by having separate budgets for maintenance and future upgrades.
All in all, a homeowners association is there in place to help assist the homeowners in preventing their neighborhood from losing value of the home by placing rules that make people upkeep their lawn, or prevent people from doing outrageous things to their home. The main purpose of the management company in this sense is to just better organize everything so that the association is running smoothly and actually functioning like it should be. If the HOA is not functioning like it should be and properly collecting fees due from the homeowners, then there is no reason to have it at all.
Posted on November 15, 2011
When leasing or managing a commercial property the main focus for the real estate agent should be to grow property income wherever possible. That means good decisions when it comes to:
- New Tenant selection and lease documentation for the term of the lease
- Stability of the current tenant mix and profile
- Arrears control and management with existing tenants
- Outgoings controls that allow the property to perform well for the occupants and yet not exceed expenditure benchmarks for a property of similar type in your area
- Tenant mix in multiple tenant occupancy property for compatibility to other occupants
- Lease terms and conditions that reflect the requirements of the landlord or investor
- Rental amount and rent review strategy to allow rent growth in parity or better than the surrounding market and property
- Options for a further term where appropriate given the age and type of the property
- Highest and best use for the property given its location and zoning
- Lifecycle management including strategies and decisions on refurbishment or redevelopment
So these are the main factors that can help a property optimise its income for the owner. The best property managers and leasing agents should bring these skills and disciplines to the client and property owner.
Property performance is all about being ahead of and on top of the property changes and challenges. Every property decision should be based on the strategy of growth and improvement for the owner's portfolio. That being said, many property owners have differing targets and that is where the property manager should spend time getting to know the targets and design the management plan to suit.
The monthly report to be provided to a property management client should reflect and include these main topics:
- Income detail for the month
- Expenditure detail for the month
- Arrears commentary and strategy underway
- Lease and other documentation outstanding
- Tenant mix report and strategy on upcoming changes required
- Lease expiry and renewal report
- Customer visitations (in the case of a retail property)
- Vacancy detail and leasing strategy underway for that
- Tenant contact and meetings report with due focus on tenant expansion, contraction, and relocation
- Maintenance management and outstanding maintenance
- Budget performance on income and expenditure to date
- Capital expenditure items and performance
- Common area functionality report including services and amenities for customers and tenants to the property
- Regional changes and market commentary that can impact the property
- Regional commentary on competitive property and their vacancies that can impact the clients property
- Supply and demand for space in the local area
From the above list the client can be well informed and hence make clear decisions on the future of key property matters. A professional property manager working on commercial property should provide this quality monthly reporting and market intelligence for their landlords.
Posted on November 7, 2011
Before renting your apartment, protect yourself and your tenant from legal disputes regarding the condition of the apartment upon move-in and move-out. Landlords hire inventory clerks to draft detailed inventories of the property. These inventories provide both a pictorial and print description of the property. All landlords should consider this document before renting.
What is Included in a Property Inventory?
The document will detail all the contents of the apartment before renting to tenants, along with its contents. For instance, if the apartment contains light fixtures, drapes, blinds or any type of furniture, the condition of the property will be listed on the document. To avoid conflict, customers will draft these documents to list everything that is included in the apartment at the time of rental.
The apartment's value and the value of the items at the time of rental are also included. Photographs are essential to documenting the condition of the apartment. Photographs are less disputable than a description that may be fabricated or misconstrued. All landlords will find this document essential to the rental process.
Why have a Property Inventory?
This document is essential to any dispute that requires a court trial or mediation. Most disputes may be settled between the landlord and the tenant with the document alone. Those cases that make it to court will be easily settled by a judge if proper documentation is presented during the course of the case. Typically, the property inventory contains enough information to settle most cases within a reasonable amount of time.
Legal fees, if the case goes to court, may be enormous. The property inventory is a money saver and time saver to help tenants and landlords avoid disputes over deposits and other damage to the property. Property Inventory may also be used for tax and insurance purposes.
What is the Procedure for Renting an Apartment?
After the tenant fills out the application and is approved, a check-in report is required. The report will detail the condition of the home and the items in the home at the time of rental. If the inventory item is present in the home, the condition of the item will be documented. The keys will be issued to the resident when the documentation is complete and each check list item is verified.
The check out report is provided at the end of the tenancy period. The assets of the property will be examined to determine how they compare to the condition prior to the condition before the apartment was move into. The checkout report will help the landlord renting your apartment determine if all the items were left in the same condition that they were found in. Normal wear and tear is normal, but extensive damage is not.