Frequently Asked Owner Questions

How do you screen prospective new residents?

We run full background checks (including criminal, credit, eviction, landlord, and civil) on all prospective tenants. We follow all applicable laws with application requirements and can work with varying levels of criminal/misdemeanor backgrounds (we do not take violent felons, violent misdemeanors, or assault). We will not take anyone with a prior evictions in the last 2 years or any apartment/landlord collections currently unpaid. With poor credit and/or previous evictions and collections, we may require additional deposits or other measures in order to approve an otherwise qualified applicant.

Also note, we physically call and verify income and employment on each applicant. We require VERIFIABLE income equal to 2 ½ times the monthly rental amount. We call references and previous landlords to check prospective characters.

Rental owners may also change rental qualification parameters based upon market conditions, so long as they are uniformly applied at a property.

How do you advertise?

We have a corporate account with Appfolio, which syndicates our ads to numerous rental sites. We list our properties on Facebook Marketplace and try to avoid Craigslist due to the amount of scams being put on potential renters. We also utilize our website to advertise all of our open listings with direct links for prospects to view details online at their own convenience and apply online as well. If the property is not on our website here, then it’s not currently available. Additionally, we physically use “For Rent” signs on the properties to receive additional interest and phone calls.

How do you determine new market rents?

We look at other similar units/areas and conduct market studies to determine rental rates. Often rates are determined through the amount of showings and market rate of our own similar properties in the same areas. Availability, condition, amenities and timing are all factors we consider. We work with ownership to determine what goals they would like to achieve and then set an actionable plan in place to achieve them.

How do you determine rent increases for existing residents, and how often?

If a renter is in good standing with us, we send a letter to the current tenant 35-45 days in advance of their lease termination date generally with two options: a one-year rate and a month-to-month rate. We currently average about 3% increases unless the market makes a dramatic change in either direction.

How long are leases and do you do a month-to-month option?

On new leases, we normally offer only one-year leases when advertising a vacant unit. Lease renewals are generally given two options: one-year or month-to-month terms. Each option has a different price point depending on term and marketability. As in all things, lease renewals often can become a negotiation, but we attempt to maximize return and stability on behalf of ownership. On certain circumstances, we may offer a unit for a shorter term, but an increase in monthly rent would be required.

What is your charge for maintenance jobs that are done in house? I.E. what are the charges for snow removal? plumbing? electrical? heating/boiler issues?

Our in-house maintenance staff is billed at $50/hr. In addition to their vast contracting and overall maintenance experience, our maintenance specialists can also do basic plumbing and electrical repairs. If it is a boiler issue or other larger/more complicated items then we typically use our outside vendors (unless ownership has specified their own) whose prices may vary. They are reliable, reasonable and responsive. We strive to make the process as transparent as possible so that ownership can easily determine why expenses were incurred and what work was completed.
We only employ insured, licensed professionals to protect ownership.

What is your general turnover rate? What turnover rate would you anticipate at our building?

Turnover greatly depends on the property. We try our best to keep our residents happy, which typically keeps them around longer for a lower turnover rate.

What is your vacancy rate? What would you anticipate it to be at our Building?

In this market we have a very low vacancy rate, some of our buildings maintain 100% occupancy and generally our vacancy is only increased when we do major updates to a unit.

What is your eviction rate?

Our eviction rate is very low. We pride ourselves in great communication and reasonableness and we look to always avoid eviction proceedings. Most often, tenants will move-out when needed and work out a plan to pay their fees and charges in the future. There are big benefits of voluntarily surrendering the units promptly and in good condition.

How do you handle evictions? What are the charges?

We conduct our evictions as follows:
Rents are normally due on the 1st and considered late at midnight on the 1st. Starting on the 2nd day of the month, a $25 admin fee may be assessed and a daily charge of $15 per day begins accruing on any outstanding balance of $50 or more. Depending on communication with a resident, anytime on the 2nd or later, tenants with outstanding rent balances are served with a 10-Day Notice to Pay or Quit, and an additional $50 posting fee is charged to the tenant.

Should the tenant not pay their rent in the 10 day period with all fees and a reasonable compromise not be reached, they are sent to the Eviction Attorney ($250) to begin eviction proceedings. Then we order a writ immediately which schedules the Sheriff to conduct the eviction ($150 but varies by County). Should it come to physical eviction, we usually need to have 3-8 workers at the site to remove all of the tenant’s belongings within 45 minutes. This cost to residents usually runs around $250 – $750, depending on help needed and amount of debris/furniture left behind.

We pride ourselves in great communication and reasonableness and we look to always avoid eviction proceedings. Most often, tenants will move-out when needed and work out a plan to pay their fees and charges in the future. There are big benefits of voluntarily surrendering the units promptly and in good condition.

What do your leases look like and what addendums do you add?

We use an attorney-drafted lease, which has is vetted by the industry group and periodically updated in accordance with the changes in both legislative and judicial proceedings. We offer electronic lease signings for convenience, quality organizational record-keeping and to stay abreast of technology trends.

Addendums include: Lead-based Paint; Mold; Smoke-free (includes all forms of smoke unilaterally); Marijuana Addendum, Drug/Crime-free; Pest control; Property Rules and Regulations (Customized for the property); Keys and Parking Regulations; Smoke/CO Detector Addendum; Utility Billing (Per vendor); Pet Addendum; Parking Addendum; Move-Out Procedures; Asbestos Disclosure; Plumbing & Drains Addendum; and possibly others based on property

How often does one of your staff show up at the property and walk through looking for maintenance issues? How often is there an inspection of each unit looking for deferred maintenance? My experience is without a quarterly (or more frequent) unit walk through

We strive to not disturb our residents unless needed. We try to do bi-annual inspections at the very least and will be active on the properties to see if anything needs done in or around the common areas. We are trained to look for issues and we take inspection pictures and notes at each property visit. For our properties, we send out reminders to our tenants and look to have them report anything that is not working correctly and needs help.

What are your policies regarding police and complaints? Have there been any incidents with police involved? If so, please elaborate.

The Crime Free Addendum allows us to address most issues related to police activity. Simply by causing the police presence by either the tenant or their guests, we can initiate eviction if needed. Most times we can handle the situation by communication and a warning letter but repeated or drastic violations are not tolerated. We enforce a strict policy against abuse or violent nature and we will do our best to always keep our properties free of crime or other major disturbances.

What are your policies regarding renting to felons?

We do not take violent felons, and we will consider felons with non violent felonies or misdemeanors with a clean record since.

Are there any other costs you would be passing along to me that are not included in the management fees?

Management fees vary on location and number of units. Outside of the negotiated fees, only costs associated with the property are passed onto the Owners.

How do you handle service dogs, vs therapy pets, vs pets?

Tenants must have proof of a disability that warrants a need for a service animal in order for them not to be charged additional fees. A certificate obtained online and does not show proof, is not an acceptable document to avoid management acceptance/denial of an animal and/or additional charges. For more information, you may see the notice provided by the HUD as a reference for good information at: HUD Assistance Animals Notice

On our leases, we charge a non-refundable pet fee (not a deposit) of $250 with an additional pet rent of $25/mo per pet. All pet damage is treated as any other damage and charged to the tenant accordingly. We do not accept some types of aggressive dogs by nature, and do not allow cats in our properties.