Property Management News, Articles and Resources

Manage Your Property Like a Dog

Posted on 12. Apr, 2011 by Lisa Trosien.

3

I’m fairly new to dog ownership. We actually got Izzy on August 12, 2010. And aside from absolutely adoring my little pup, I’ve learned a lot from her as well, especially when it comes to managing (believe it or not).

Continue Reading

How Property Managers Can Use Video

Posted on 07. Apr, 2011 by Aimee Miller.

1

AppFolio recently hosted a webinar featuring Todd Breen (CEO of VirtuallyIncredible.com) which included great ideas on how to shoot marketing videos, inspection videos, move-in/move-out videos and more!

Continue Reading

Screening Tenants Consistently for Fair Housing

Posted on 05. Apr, 2011 by Mary Girsch-Bock.

0

Under Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, commonly known as the Fair Housing Act, it is illegal for landlords to refuse to rent or sell a dwelling based on an applicant’s race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or disability. Does your management company base their applicant approvals on documented evidence of an applicant’s ability to pay or not pay?

Continue Reading

Fair Housing Resources for Savvy Property Managers

Posted on 01. Apr, 2011 by Marc Courtenay.

1

State and federal laws require nondiscrimination and equal access to housing for all people. There can’t be any discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, age, familial status, children, marital status, veteran status or membership in the armed services, the receiving of public assistance, or physical or mental disability.

Continue Reading

Property Managers Receive Free “Energy Review” and Save Money

Posted on 29. Mar, 2011 by Marc Courtenay.

0

There might not any “free lunches”, but hundreds of utility companies around the nation are offering free consultations and reviews on how to stop wasting both energy and money. The idea is to figure out how to use less energy and yet make your rental properties more comfortable for residents at a meaningful saving in costs.

Continue Reading

Will the Cost of Renting Rise in 2011?

Posted on 24. Mar, 2011 by Marc Courtenay.

0

Even though the Federal Reserve Board and the U.S. government keep telling us that there’s virtually “no inflation” and little if any “inflationary pressures”, most Americans know otherwise. Major financial news channels like Bloomberg and CNBC are reporting that in many regions around the nation vacancy rates are going down.

Continue Reading

SEO Continued: What is Digital Asset Optimization?

Posted on 24. Mar, 2011 by Charity Hisle.

0

The natural evolution of Search Engine Optimization is Digital Asset Optimization (DAO), the optimization of all of your online content. This includes images, audio files, video’s and even PDFs. Anything you place online has a keyword title, meta tag and a clear description to influence search engines.

Continue Reading

Love Your Residents More Than They Love You

Posted on 16. Mar, 2011 by Mike Brewer.

10

Warning…not for the faint-of-stomach but a true lesson in love. Roughly three years ago I had a most unusual experience. I had just moved to St. Louis and taken the role of property manager at a 700+ unit community near the city. I will say that the property gave a whole new meaning to ‘never a dull moment’ as there was always something going on.

Continue Reading

What’s The Most Important Resident Screening Criteria?

Posted on 15. Mar, 2011 by Mary Girsch-Bock.

0

When it comes to screening applicants, each property manager has their own set of criteria that potential residents must live up to. Establishing a consistent screening process when renting an apartment or a house drastically reduces the threat of discrimination lawsuits.

Continue Reading

A Landlord’s Inside Track to Debt Collection: The Bank Levy

Posted on 14. Mar, 2011 by KTS-Law.

0

The bank account levy is perhaps the most efficient means for collecting a money judgment. A bank account levy is the judicial process for seizing funds in a bank account to satisfy a judgment. Following an eviction, and after a money judgment has been entered, the landlord may levy the bank account of a former tenant to collect the judgment.

Continue Reading

Why Should I Rent from You?

Posted on 10. Mar, 2011 by Lisa Trosien.

0

Start using testimonials in your leasing office, in your models, on your website and even on your collateral materials. Have a variety of demographic groups in your testimonials. The 65 year old empty nester couple might not relate well to the 22 year old roommates fresh out of college in their first jobs, you know?

Continue Reading

Optimizing Your Property Management Facebook Page for Search

Posted on 24. Feb, 2011 by Charity Hisle.

2

While you shouldn’t focus all of your efforts solely on Facebook, it does make sense to optimize the content posted on Facebook. Facebook search is linked to keywords within all public posts, profiles, pages, groups and applications but very few are utilizing this opportunity to increase their Facebook SEO.

Continue Reading

Getting Up To Speed With Fair Housing Laws

Posted on 21. Feb, 2011 by Mary Girsch-Bock.

0

Are you up to date on the Fair Housing Laws? Both federal and state anti-discrimination laws need to be adhered to on a regular basis in order to prevent potential lawsuits from crippling your property management company.

Continue Reading

Beginning SEO for Property Managers

Posted on 17. Feb, 2011 by Charity Hisle.

1

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to your website from internet search engines. Search engines want to return the most relevant results possible to their users. According to eMarketer, 94% of shoppers click on the 1st through 10th search results. Optimizing your online presence for search engines will drive traffic to your website.

Continue Reading

What My Kids and Walmart Taught Me About Sales

Posted on 09. Feb, 2011 by Lisa Trosien.

0

Several years ago, I had the honor of speaking at an industry conference held at the Wynn hotel in Las Vegas. It’s a great hotel and if you ever get the chance to stay there, take it. After three nights I was not only in love with the hotel, but I was big time in [...]

Continue Reading

Choose Your Collection Partner Wisely

Posted on 07. Feb, 2011 by KTS-Law.

0

The battle on the collection field has always been fought with the sword and the shield. It is a game of offense and defense. When choosing a law firm or collection agency to represent you, it is important to find one that maximizes recovery and at the same time protects you from unwanted liability for alleged debt collection violations.

Continue Reading

Property Values Still Plunging, Great Opportunity for Property Managers

Posted on 02. Feb, 2011 by Marc Courtenay.

0

Back in November 1997 I purchased a 3 bedroom condo in Santa Barbara, California for around $265,000. Less than 6 years later I sold it for $749,000. Now I’ve learned that in many areas around the country it’s 1997 all over again.

Continue Reading

5 Rules for Avoiding Craigslist Scams

Posted on 28. Jan, 2011 by Mary Girsch-Bock.

0

Craigslist has become an indispensable resource for just about anything. One of their most popular sections is Apts/Housing, which covers everything from monthly move-in specials to single family home rentals. However, the single family homes category is ripe with scammers looking to rip potential renters off.

Continue Reading

Distinguish Your Business by Accentuating the Positive, Eliminating the Negative

Posted on 25. Jan, 2011 by Marc Courtenay.

0

In these challenging times there is one question all property managers should be asking themselves; “Why would my clients and residents prefer me and the properties I’m managing?” Recently I asked a successful, long-time property manager the simple question, “What keeps your owners happy?” It was another way of asking the question in paragraph one.

Continue Reading

5 Tips To Promoting Community Events On Facebook

Posted on 20. Jan, 2011 by Charity Hisle.

0

Whether it’s an open house or a pool party, your apartment community should be sharing events on Facebook. As the largest social network, the average Facebook user is connected to 80 community pages, groups and events. Facebook is a good place for property managers to share events with their residents and prospects.

Continue Reading

6 Topics for Your Property Management Blog

Posted on 18. Jan, 2011 by Aimee Miller.

2

We all know how happy great, new content makes Google. If you can find 30 minutes each week to write 1 or 2 articles for your property management blog you will definitely start to see more traffic coming to your website.

Continue Reading

Property Management 1099 Cheat Sheet

Posted on 12. Jan, 2011 by Mary Girsch-Bock.

0

Even though the IRS has a thorough set of instructions available for 1099 processing, many people still find themselves unsure of who should receive a 1099, what the minimum amount is or when they need to mail the 1099’s by. So, I’ve made a list of suggestions that you can use as a cheat sheet, or as a refresher of the basic rules you should know to make property management 1099 processing quick and painless.

Continue Reading

Don’t Let the Bed Bugs Bite — Dealing with Infestations Naturally

Posted on 07. Jan, 2011 by Marc Courtenay.

0

Recently I had an interview with a prominent West Coast property manager. We were discussing some of the most recent “challenges” facing property managers. The conversation quickly shifted toward bed bugs and pest control. More and more residents and managers are trying to find healthy alternatives to toxic pesticides when attempting to eradicate the ever-resilient bedbug.

Continue Reading

5 New Year’s Resolutions for 2011

Posted on 28. Dec, 2010 by Mary Girsch-Bock.

1

No matter how cynical you are the New Year always represents an opportunity to begin anew. Here is a list of five resolutions that all property managers should make that will bring rewards throughout 2011.