PropertyManagementMaven

One of the "profit center" fees I thought I would never charge I am now charging - for RENTAL/Landlord verifications.

I have a policy of ONLY providing this information IN WRITING with a copy to the new landlord AND a copy to my residents * NO She Said/He Said if their new landlord blames ME and the information I am providing for their not getting their new rental home.

I also charge a $25 "forms fee" for this.  I started charging this fee when I was getting Rental Verifications from multiple lenders when departing residents were buying a new house and they were "shopping" for a lender.

I request that these forms be brought to my office ALONG with a $25 check and I will complete them and MAIL them back to my residents and to their new landlord.....sorry, no FAXES.  If the resident wants to hand-deliver the copy to their new landlord, I'll mail them both completed forms.

I just received a landlord verification for a couple who has been with me for 3 years and are moving closer to town.  Their lease is not up for 5+ months and for me to provide a landlord reference NOW is PREmature so I have not responded to their proposed new landlord and I have REconfirmed with them that their lease does not terminate until mid-June.

While many would think that providing this information should be pro-forma for the current landlord, when they purchased a home, my reasoning is that they paid for their appraisal and their credit report.  I have to do work to complete the rent verification/landlord reference form * probably 15 to 20 minutes * so why should I not get paid?  Also, I require the money with the form so that there is no discussion about the fee coming from their security deposit. They have paid a credit or application fee to the NEW landlord, so they should pay me for assisting them in that process.

It is interesting when I go for a property management presentation and get questions about "tenants destroying" rental property.  I know the owner has been on some DIY landlord sites and read "horror stories".  Most DIY landlords do NOT have the resources, skills or education to manage their investment property successfully * hiring a property manager will actually save them money and headaches and we are cheaper than an attorney!

I suspect this MLS is working from an OLD and outdated list of words published by the OPA * Oregon Publishers Association and later blessed by the National Newspaper Association and which has been disavowed by HUD.

10 years ago, I attempted to place the term "single family home" in a local newspaper classified ad and it was rejected - I had to get a "clarification" from the legal rep at NNA before the local newspaper realized the list they had had been the basis for an actual HUD ruling.  While NNA had done extensive outreach to members about this list and the corrective memo by HUD's Anita Achtenberg, many smaller newspapers had not gotten the message.  This is a great link for an overview with a link to the actual memo.  

http://www.fhcsp.com/Laws/ads.html

According to Forbes, The Mags' half-time show is worth $84,000,000 IF she was getting paid - which she is not.

Typically, entertainers would have to appear 20+ times on LENO to get the media exposure that a half-time show at the Super Bowl will generate.  

The "Peas" did not get paid and with Mags having a new movie, W.E., coming out this month and a new CD in March, this exposure is priceless.

While she won't get paid, all of her expenses ARE being paid for including dancers, musicians, transportation, lodgings.

What every real estate agent has heard and few remember is that there are EXEMPTIONS to the FEDERAL Fair Housing Act.

One of those exemptions is the Mrs. Murphy's rule OR Mrs. Murphy's Exemption under the FHA.  This exemption provides that if a "dwelling" has four or fewer rental units and the OWNER lives in one of those units, that the home is exempt from the FHA.  There really is no Mrs. Murphy * she is a fictional elderly widow who has converted her home into a rental or boarding house to supplement her income.

NOW, with the economic downturn, there has come the recent EXPLOSION of roommate advertising and matching websites.

Trisha Rowe of Grand Rapids Michigan wanted a roommate for the three bedroom single family home she owned.  She posted a notice in a church bulletin indicating that she was looking for a female CHRISTIAN roommate.  The Fair Housing Center of West Michigan filed a complaint stating that Ms. Rowe expressed an ILLEGAL preference for a Christian roommate.  This prompted the Michigan Department of Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to take action.

....almost like Mrs. Murphy was NOT a feature in the FHA.

The Alliance Defense Fund provided legal assistance to Ms. Rowe and invoked her freedom of association under the First Amendment of the US Constitution and ULTIMATELY HUD agreed.

In a separate case, Roommates.com, which provides roommate locator service from their website, requests that users provide a "profile" where their roommate preferences can be "searched".

The Fair Housing Councils of San Fernando Valley and San Dieto filed lawsuits against Roommates.com indicating that these searches were a violation of the FHA.

Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals of the Ninth Circuit rejected these Housing Councils' claims.

The Court indicated that a roommate's unfettered access to one's home implicated considerations of SAFETY, PRIVACY, PROPERTY PROTECTION and the CONSTITUTIONAL FREEDOM of ASSOCIATION.  

KUDOS! Mrs. Murphy is Alive and Well and Taking in ROOMMATES!

I ask owner/clients about utility costs during my property management presentation at the property.  When asked by a tenant prospect, I provide those number$ with a caveat as to the # of occupants and if anyone was working from home. 

I got a phone call from a local homeowner inquiring about renting his house and in the fashion that these "cold calls" usually go, he was hesitant to give me his address * like I was going to come over there and stuff his mailbox with my literature!  He should BE so LUCKY.

After some basic questions, I gleaned that 1) he had a LARGE rural home that he was in the process of finishing off the basement himself; 2) he has at least 2 mortgages on it and he bought at the HEIGHT of the sales market; 3) he loves the home and "hates" to leave it. Meanwhile, he is talking to HeadHunters about his employment prospects and expects to leave this summer.

He THEN proceeded to tell him what rental amount he wants and how I should proceed to market his home AND who his target renter market would be.

I suggested that while I had not seen his home, I know where it is * within NOISE distance of the interstate * 20 minutes to the nearest public school and middle school students have to change their bus once * 15 min to nearest grocery store * and YES!  his home is in God's Country because I live 5 minutes away in the same ZIP CODE.

He had the PERFECT opportunity to get a professional property manager's expertise and insight FREE!  A professional property manager who LIVES 5 minutes from his property and has done rental management in the area for the last 20 years.....and YET, he wanted to tell ME MY business.

So the COLD HARD truth is what I told him....his idea of $3k for rent is unrealistic - they are not getting that in the GATED, golf course community 10 minutes CLOSER to town with the same zip code; that his "finishing" off the basement would not get him an additional $500 per month in rent AND that he may have to include yard service in the rent because of he home was on 3 acres that required 3 hours of mowing every 2 to 3 weeks.

I told him that I would be happy to view his home; however, I would not take it to lease and manage if he insisted on being unrealistic * YES! I said THAT word * with his anticipated rent....WHILE I was thinking that I am sure he can find a newbie real estate agent who would L♥VE to take an over-priced RENTAL listing.

HTML>Rental Home - Lake Monticello, VA Single family rental,

> Click here for full details, additional photos, and an inquiry form < Single family 29 Hopi Way Lake Monticello VA 22963 4 beds/2.5 baths $1495 / month     Gibson Management Group, Ltd. Wallace S. Gibson CPM  PO Box 106 Keswick, VA 22947-0106   Phone: 434 979 9723 Email: cvillecpm@aol.com Website: http://VaHomes4Rent.com Location information 29 Hopi Way  Lake Monticello VA 22963 Planned Community: Lake Monticello Elementary School Zone: Central Jr. High School Zone: Fluvanna High School Zone: Fluvanna Driving Directions: Outside the Lake * Rt.53, L on Rt. 618, L on Tuscarora, R on Seminole, L on Kiowa, L at 2nd Hopi Way * House is on the left Detailed listing information Remarks: SUPER HUGE * 4BR, 2.5BA home with 2-car garage. Large living room with fireplace, formal dining room, eat-in kitchen with all new appliances and back deck off kitchen. 4 bedrooms upstairs and 2 baths upstairs. Nice level back yard. Easy access to Louisa, ZionXRoads, Pantops * 20 minutes to UVA and JAG schools Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 2.5 Monthly Rent: $1495.00 Date Available: July 1, 2012 Lease Info: 12 months Included in Rent: Trash Application Fee (Standard): $25.00 Sec Deposit (Refundable): $1495.00 Pets: Possible, with approval Fireplace: One fireplace Heat: Electric heat Cooling: Central air Community Features: Gated community Clubhouse Playground Common area Barbeque grills Lake Tennis court Picnic area Approx Square Feet: 2400 Dwelling Type: Single family Floor Coverings: Carpet Vinyl tile Window Coverings: Mini-blinds Vertical blinds   All listing information is provided by the managing or leasing agent, is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed, and should be independently verified. Information is © Copyright 1997-2012 HERO PM and individual providers of data, who are bound to a membership agreement. HERO PM and all their websites are interactive computer services. Unauthorized reproduction strictly prohibited.

I've been working on my lease renewal spreadsheet for 2012.  With fixed term leases, I task residents with advising ME in February if they wish to renew their lease for another 12 months.

While many do not do this, for the last 3 weeks, residents have been e-mailing and sticking notes with their rent checks that they want to RENEW their leases.

Although I try to warn residents of the issues effecting non-renewal of their lease * 2 pay or quit notices in 12 months * excessive maintenance requests (dripping faucets that do not drip when the plumber checks) * these issues are often over-looked as reasons AFTER the fact and residents think that once they are IN their lease, they get to STAY there until they want to leave.

Fortunately, by tasking them with notifying me and providing WARNINGS in my original lease resident handbook as to how to AVOID the issue of NONrenewal of their lease, there are no Fair Housing issues with my process.

I also use this rental renewal process to INCREASE rents and change or tweak my lease terms.  This year I will be warning area residents on our county water service that there will be a $25 charge if the owners are notified that their water bill has gone delinquent.  This is a process which is tedious to deal with as there is already a warning on their water bill that is often ignored.

Lease renewal time is a GREAT time to increase rents to JUST under market, tweak terms and conditions AND REaliegn lease end dates to be in the PRIME rental season.

PRO property managers RENEW with CONFIDENCE!

I hate CATTLE CALL listing/rental presentations.....the property owner dials or e-mails area property managers for information on listing or property management services.

These seem to start in January and I try to PRE-screen some of these contacts for the type of property and intent of the property owner.

I started receiving an e-mail about 2 weeks ago about my services and while the owner gave me a general area of their property, they kept asking me for my literature - management agreement.

I indicated I would provide it after I met with them and viewed their property and I did that yesterday.  They are leaving the area, have a very nice townhouse in a desirable school area that they had not realized.

The property owner brought out the management materials from another property manager and proceeded to use it as an outline of her questions to me.

It was VERY enlightening.  The materials were boilerplate and while they were in a nice folder, they were printed with the specifics of the property inserted by a very poor hand writing.

There was loads of information on their services; however, there was NO information regarding the JOYS of being a landlord - no information on the tax advantages - not even a Schedule E form.

There was no personalization - no photo - no personalization for the property owners - NOTHING.

....I'll go back today and take a picture of the exterior of their property when the sun and light is right, do my personalized management proposal and my hand-written thank you note and hand-deliver it to their door tomorrow.

Meanwhile.....I took photos of another property before a showing yesterday afternoon and have a property presentation scheduled for Saturday for a 2-year old home in a DESIRABLE, NEW subdivision minutes from a LARGE area employer....

GOT MILK?