Articles
Property Management Marketing Ideas for March
Posted on 09. Mar, 2010 by Heather Blume.
We in the property management world know that sunshine brings in the tours, something that has proven to be a major challenge this year. To encourage a little more traffic, here are 3 ideas for your marketing teams.
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California 2010 Legal Update: Legislation and Case Law That Will Effect Rental Property Owners and Managers
Posted on 04. Mar, 2010 by KTS-Law.
As 2010 gets under way, it is important for property managers and owners to be aware of new legislation, case law and legal trends that will significantly impact our industry. Below is an overview of the most significant laws and trends for this year.
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50 Interviews with Property Managers: 7 Lessons For Your Business (Feb. 24 Webinar)
Posted on 25. Feb, 2010 by Aimee Miller.
In this February 24th webinar video recording, Mike Levy, author of the book 50 Interviews: Successful Property Managers, shares the top 7 lessons he learned while interviewing successful property managers. He provides examples and ideas about how to incorporate these lessons into your business.
Read a case study on how Ray Scarabosio of Jackson Group Property [...]
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The Best Property Management Companies Are the Ones That Have Built Strong Teams
Posted on 22. Feb, 2010 by Mike Levy.
Over the last several months I have interviewed 50 of the most successful property managers across the United States. Excellent people skills and an enthusiastic and positive attitude were qualities of successful property managers. But the one thing that became very clear, early on in my interviews, was that building strong teams was critical to [...]
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Hammer vs. Feather: Using Subtlety with Facebook
Posted on 18. Feb, 2010 by Heather Blume.
I see a lot of properties and companies doing a cannonball in the deep end of the Facebook swimming pool. I’d estimate that I’m “friended” or “followed” by at least six new properties or management companies a week.
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Apartment Vacancies Hit 30-Year High and That Can Be Good News
Posted on 16. Feb, 2010 by Marc Courtenay.
Just as the number of apartment vacancies reached multi-decade highs, the number of homebuyers who are about to need apartments to rent will skyrocket. Reis, a New York real estate research firm, says apartment vacancies hit a 30-year high in the fourth quarter of 2009. Vacancy rates hit 8%, the highest level since Reis started tracking 79 U.S. real estate markets in 1980.
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Seven Reasons Why Rent Checks Cost More than You Think
Posted on 11. Feb, 2010 by Jim Semick.
More property management firms are discovering that they can save a significant amount of time and reduce headaches during rent week by moving their resident rent payments online using ACH (automated clearinghouse) and other electronic methods.
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4 February Marketing Ideas for Property Managers
Posted on 10. Feb, 2010 by Heather Blume.
Whether you refer to the best known February holiday as Valentine’s Day or Single’s Awareness Day, this month packs a lot more marketing power than just events circling the 14th. Let’s look at 4 ideas that can bring you some buzz and some great new rentals!
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Tap In to Tax Time: Providing Resources for Residents
Posted on 09. Feb, 2010 by Heather Blume.
It’s the start of the new year, so inevitably the thing in the forefront of everyone’s minds right now is the same: tax time! Okay, maybe not. When it comes to taxes, you’ve got basically two camps of people.
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Secrets of Successful Property Managers: Attitude Makes All the Difference
Posted on 04. Feb, 2010 by Mike Levy.
Over the last several months I have interviewed 50 of the most successful property managers across the United States. What I started to realize was that there was a common attribute that many of the successful property managers shared – and it was having a positive and enthusiastic attitude.
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The Bottom Line: Rents Now Cover Mortgage Costs!
Posted on 02. Feb, 2010 by Marc Courtenay.
Few investors have noticed that rents are finally covering mortgage payments again in residential real estate. In many regions for the first time in years, rental income can pay the mortgage on smaller residential properties. We’ve waited a long time for this opportunity.
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Ditch That Rent Check: A World of Online Payment Options
Posted on 28. Jan, 2010 by Jim Semick.
Sure, the lowly check will be with us for a while. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t help send checks the way of the dodo bird. According to a Federal Reserve System study, check usage is in steep decline, and checks now represent only 30 percent of all non-cash payments. Electronic payments are now the clear winner with consumers.
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Secrets of Successful Property Managers: Excellent People Skills are Critical
Posted on 27. Jan, 2010 by Mike Levy.
Over the last several months I have interviewed 50 of the most successful property managers across the United States. One thing I consistently heard over and over from the property managers, is the importance of having good people skills. The five critical people skills identified were:
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Top Retention Strategies To Get Customers for Life (Jan. 20 Webinar Recap)
Posted on 21. Jan, 2010 by Jonathan Brownfield.
In this January 20th webinar video recording, Jackie Ramstedt, nationally renowned Keynote Speaker and Performance Consultant for the property management industry, shares her perspective on how to establish a world-class approach to your customer service programs with specific goals for every member of your team.
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5 Ways Property Managers Can Build Their Facebook Audience
Posted on 19. Jan, 2010 by Charity Hisle.
In my last post “10 Tips for Property Managers Using Facebook”, we discussed the most important things you need to know to get your community Fan Page started on Facebook. Now that you have a Fan Page, what do you do?
Here are 5 ideas for building your audience on Facebook.
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January Marketing Ideas for Property Managers
Posted on 14. Jan, 2010 by Heather Blume.
In the multifamily business world, January is a notoriously difficult month for us. Whether it’s the propensity for snow, the cold wind, or the fact that USA and TNT keep running excellent marathons of TV shows, we just have a hard time getting foot traffic in the door. Don’t let the blustery weather cool your renting power!
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Work Place Violence Restraining Orders – An Effective Tool in the Prevention of Workplace Violence
Posted on 12. Jan, 2010 by KTS-Law.
Our law firm is experiencing a dramatic increase in the number of calls we receive concerning an irate tenant who is displaying signs and threats of violence. These threats are directed at on-site management, maintenance personnel or even independent contractors hired to perform work on the property. This article addresses one unique course of action [...]
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Bigger Isn’t Always Better: The Trend Towards Renting Smaller Apartments
Posted on 08. Jan, 2010 by Heather Blume.
When she was in 8th grade, as is tradition in my family, my sister got her first set of matched luggage. It was dark blue with tan piping and I remember it was from JC Penny’s. For 8th grade promotion, I think she received all the pieces to that luggage set that she hadn’t gotten [...]
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Rental Housing and Real Estate Market Trends for 2010
Posted on 06. Jan, 2010 by Marc Courtenay.
If you thought 2009 was an unforgettable year for real estate, property managers and residents, wait till you see what unfolds in the year ahead. Here are two of the trends.
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Chris Brogan’s Social Media Ideas for Realtors (That Also Apply to Property Managers)
Posted on 29. Dec, 2009 by Aimee Miller.
I love Chris Brogan’s articles and have been reading them for quite some time now. Chris is a renowned social media expert with a history of helping businesses create online relationships with their audience. So it was with great pleasure that I read his most recent post, “If I were a Realtor.”
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SoftwareAdvice.com Survey: How Are Property Managers Using Technology?
Posted on 23. Dec, 2009 by Aimee Miller.
SoftwareAdvice.com recently sent out a survey to learn more about how property managers are using technology in their business.
A few interesting highlights:
1. Almost half of the companies surveyed grew their business last year – either growing by increased revenue or more units. This is great to hear in a struggling market! But how did they [...]
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10 Tips for Property Managers Using Facebook
Posted on 21. Dec, 2009 by Charity Hisle.
Facebook is opening doors for property managers to engage in conversation with residents and their local community. The question everyone wants to know is, how? It’s easier than you might think! Here are 10 tips for apartment communities using Facebook.
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Preparing Your 2010 Property Management Marketing Plan (Dec. 15 Webinar Recap)
Posted on 17. Dec, 2009 by Aimee Miller.
On December 15 AppFolio hosted a joint webinar with Multifamily Insiders and brought in a special guest speaker, Lisa Trosien. In the video below, Lisa shares her perspective on marketing trends, social media, tips and creative ideas from around the country to help you create a great plan for marketing your vacancies and property management [...]
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5 Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Rental Properties
Posted on 16. Dec, 2009 by Marc Courtenay.
If you had an unlimited budget for upgrading your properties you wouldn’t need an article like this one. In the current economic reality, we have to be creative and financially careful when we are trying to make our units more appealing.
As a property manager, you know what it is like to have a tight schedule and an even tighter budget, so I thought I’d share with you some simple and “cheap” ways to spruce up your inventory to attract new residents.
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4 Quick December Gathering Ideas for Residents
Posted on 10. Dec, 2009 by Heather Blume.
Whether it’s the food, time of year, or the weather, there’s something about the holiday season that makes people more social. That makes this a great time for property managers to bait some resident retention by using smaller gatherings or groupings. Here are four ideas to get you started.




