Tenant Portals for Rental Property Management – Propertyware

3 Incentives to Improve Tenant Retention

Marc Eiting — Mon, 16 Jan 2017 10:00:00 +0000

Are your rental strategies attracting and retaining tenants, or driving them away? Learn how to attract new tenants and improve tenant retention by implementing these three savvy rental property management strategies:

1. Monetary Incentives

According to Software Advice, “a discount on rent is the most preferred monetary incentive” for tenants. By rewarding tenants with a discount, you can help ensure their loyalty. Tenants who pay their rent on time and who pass their home inspections with flying colors are tenants that you want to keep. Offer them discounts on their rent during the initial lease or during the renewal process with the condition of these good behaviors. Additional outstanding tenant behavior that may warrant a discount includes tenants who consistently pay the rent early or tenants who are celebrating a rental anniversary. You can show your appreciation through a rent reduction. This is an advantage for your tenants and also has long-term benefits for your company financially. Satisfied tenants move less frequently, obviating the need for move-out work and a time-consuming rental screening process. Use property management software to track your tenants’ payment histories, their care records, and their anniversaries so you know the premier time to offer incentives.

2. Competitive Amenities

A thank you gift for your tenants does not have to be in the form of money. An amenity, such as a new appliance or new flooring, can go just as far to win tenant loyalty. Consider offering perks that enhance their experience with community amenities, such as a gym membership or grocery delivery. These quality of life bonuses make your tenants feel valued and more likely to stay with your company. Track your partnerships and bonuses in a property management system to ensure that you reward your best tenants.

3. Outstanding Maintenance

To ensure that your tenants are satisfied, you need to stay on top of property maintenance; however, you can use additional repairs, maintenance, and home projects as incentives. Give tenants unique permissions to make desired changes, such as painting walls and other personal touches to the home. Offer extra landscaping services and garden furniture, or enhance their patio with a barbecue grill or fire pit. If one of your loyal tenants lives in a unit due for upgraded carpets or drapes, update those properties earlier to increase the incentive to stay. Keep track of your property maintenance and repair schedule with property management software so that you know what’s been completed and when that unit is due for improvements. Your tenants will thank you with loyalty.

Ready to Improve Your Tenant Retention with Propertyware?

Managing tenant relationships can be complicated. When you add reward programs into the mix, your tenant retention plan gets even more complex. Luckily, property management software facilitates integrated tenant management.

Track all of the data about each of your properties and tenants
Manage documents
Create custom reports

Schedule a free online tour of Propertyware today.

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7 Tips on Dealing with Bad Tenants

Leah Mendes — Tue, 23 Aug 2016 22:04:17 +0000

Bad tenants: they’re the bane of the property manager’s existence. But there’s a lot you can do to protect yourself from the pain. You’ve heard the old joke: “This would be a great business except for the customers.” It’s not about property management per se; problem customers are among the biggest headaches in any service business. You’d be hard put to find a manager with experience who can’t tell a horror story or two (probably many more) about rotten renters. The ones who treat the property like a flophouse, or sneak destructive animals (or a punk rock band) in. Or the pseudo-lawyers who pride themselves on “knowing their rights” when you confront them with problems and violations. Or the ones who know how to dance right on the edge of eviction, trying your patience but mysteriously knowing how to talk you into “one more chance.” And, of course the biggest category: the ones you have to haggle with over late rent and fines. This being said, there are things you can do to both head off potential problems and to deal with them once they happen. There’s no reason to re-invent the wheel: thousands of property managers face exactly the same issues each day, and plenty of good information is out there about dealing with them. We won’t address here how to prevent leasing to bad renters in the first place. Screening, interviewing, etc. is for another article. Our subject here begins at the time the renter has been approved and the leasing decision has been made. Here are 7 tips for dealing with problem tenants:

1. Be friendly but firm from the beginning

Of course, you won’t lease many properties in the role of a cold and dictatorial property manager during the sales process. But after the leasing decision is made, it’s best to be very clear about what’s expected of the tenants in terms of on-time payments, keeping up the property, noise issues, guests, pets and other potential trouble spots. This isn’t the time to be a buddy to the renter, or it won’t be long before you get that call for just “two more weeks on the rent” because of an unexpected dental bill, or learn the hard way that your renter is hosting concerts in the backyard and painting the walls lime green. To be clear: issues of policy such as these do not have to interfere with friendliness. Good property managers make their tenants feel at home and are helpful and understanding. But too much solidarity with tenants often leads to their pushing the limits of the relationship. Be friendly and helpful, but firm. Standing strong is a bit more awkward when the renter’s main contact is the same person who has to collect a late fee or make a demand. One strategy is to have the “enforcer” be a different person. But either way, firmness right upfront at the lease signing really pays off.

2. Put everything in writing

A comprehensive lease agreement is your best friend. Standardized lease forms are very helpful, but they won’t touch on your policies that are a bit different, or any of the unique features, amenities or special needs of a particular property you are managing. Take the time to customize each lease agreement to reflect in detail where your policies differ from the standard industry lease, and any rules or expectations specific to the property being rented.

3. Use certified mail for important notices

Every property manager faces situations in which renters claim they did not receive an important document, in order to delay whatever action is being demanded. You can avoid this by using certified mail for important notices, and prove notices were sent by including the certified mail article number on the document, sending a second copy by regular mail and keeping a copy for yourself. Just keep a stack of certified mail postcards and receipt slips at your office and you can get them ready before heading to the post office. Take away the “I never got the notice” excuse and you’ll save yourself a lot of headaches.

4. Prepare in advance for problems

If you’re lucky, you won’t often find yourself entangled in legal issues with renters. But renter’s protection laws can be arcane, and there are those out there who pride themselves on knowing these laws and beating unwary property managers over the head with them. That’s why it’s important to 1.) Either be familiar with these laws or have a “go-to” expert or attorney at the ready for when and if it happens. 2.) Make careful records of lease violations, problems experienced, neighbor complaints and other items that will help you make your case if the time comes; write all dates and the details.

5. Consider the neighborhood

Many neighborhoods are distinguished by having homeowners associations, neighborhood watches, and other formal or informal organizations. They can also have rules or merely expectations concerning vehicles (including RV’s) and parking, garbage pickup, pets in parks and schoolyards, exotic animals and more. As a property manager, you’ll avoid a lot of problems by knowing the quirks of each neighborhood and detailing them in a document you can provide to your renters before they move in.

6. Dealing with move-out trouble

One savvy property owner we know of attaches an “Intention to Vacate” notice to every new lease and reviews it with renters. If you’ve been renting for any amount of time, you’ve already experience renters who fail to give notice but ask for mercy, and renters who ask you to use their security deposit as their last month’s rent. But a security deposit is a security deposit, not rent, and it’s there for a reason – a reason that remains important until the day they move out. Proper notice is there to give you time to find a new renter. Explain these things if you have to, and then just politely say no. You might even have to remind a renter or two that unpaid rent will affect their credit. If you’ve made sure from the get-go that your terms are firm, you will have a lot fewer problems with misunderstandings or conflicts at move-out.

7. If you need an attorney . . .

If an eviction becomes necessary, try to avoid choosing an attorney at random. Start by asking people you know for names, particularly if they’re in the business. If nobody can give you a reference, call an attorney or two you know in other fields, and ask them if they know someone who specializes in the area of evictions. You can vet the attorney with a few simple questions. Ask them whether they specialize in evictions, how many evictions they do a month, and how long it generally takes them to get one done. You can even ask them how long it would take to get a particular case in front of a judge; if they know off the top of their head, it means they’re on top of the Landlord Tenant Court schedule, which is a good sign. No matter how tight a business you run, you’ll eventually deal with problem renters. But if you make things clear from the day renters move in, and stick to your guns, you’ll find life will be a lot easier for you. Above all, don’t fall into the trap of feeling guilty when you don’t give in to renters asking for special consideration. You’re running a business, not a charity. If a renter says they simply can’t come up with their rent or late fee for another two weeks, it’s a credit union, friend or family member who should be loaning them the money, not you. Remember: friendly, but firm.

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Dealing With Terrible Tenants – How Property Management Software Can Help

Marc Eiting — Tue, 09 Feb 2016 18:43:33 +0000

You prepared, planned and interviewed, but your new tenants are not working out the way you hoped they would. When you’re facing tenant problems, your property management software can serve as an unexpected ally. This software not only collects data but also helps you identify trends or send out information to prevent problems with tenants in the first place.

An Ounce of Prevention

A best practice for maintaining positive relationships with your tenants is to choose the right individuals to live in your properties. Property management software prompts you to collect certain information from prospects to make sure they are an appropriate fit. Moneywise suggests researching a tenant’s background and rental history in-depth before they sign a lease. Carefully review information about your tenants’ references and credit reports, as it contains valuable insights and can alert you of potential concerns.

Keep Track of Your Agreements

When a problem arises with a tenant, it is helpful to look back at agreements you’ve made with them to see whether there are grounds for a warning or an eviction. For example, the real estate blog Bigger Pockets says you should look to your lease for clauses about criminal and drug activity being grounds for automatic termination of the lease right. A property management system will help you keep these on file so you’ll have them at your fingertips for reference.

Assisting With Nonpayment

One of the major issues property managers experience is dealing with nonpayments and late payments. If a tenant is late with the rent once an exception may be made, but a tenant who is continually behind in payments negatively impacts your cash flow. The right property management software solution will help you facilitate easy payments by setting up an online portal where a tenant payment can be submitted online anytime. Automated reminders alert your tenants when they need to pay and let them know if they’ve forgotten to make a payment. The system also allows you to track those who are consistently late with the rent, flagging problems before they become too large. “I like the fact that it integrates everything together.” – Jim Stevens / Stevens Realty

Assessing Maintenance Issues

When a tenant has chronic maintenance issues that show up on routine maintenance visits, this is an area of concern and should be documented. This may mean a particular tenant is harder on the house they are renting than other tenants, and their actions could cause large-scale harm to your properties. Property management software helps you document maintenance issues as they occur so you can identify potential problems.

Tracking Incidents

In some cases, behavioral complaints and other incidents should lead to eviction. If the tenant is throwing loud parties every weekend, their behavior is disruptive and should be addressed. A great property management system allows you to track these incidents as they occur, along with related communication with tenants. If you need to take action against a tenant or pursue eviction, all interactions will be documented in your system for reference. Tenant issues are challenging, but property management software can help. Propertyware allows property management professionals to better prevent and respond to tenant problems. Sign up for a free tour of Propertyware today.

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