Fall is my all time favorite time of year!!! The temperatures start to get cooler, and in Texas that’s something we all look forward to! Everyone’s schedule begins to speed up…Friday night football games, Homecoming events, decorations of pumpkins, beautiful fall leaves, and scarecrows with bales of hay, laughter and giggles while eating tasty chili and delicious brisket, snuggly blankets on a hayride wagon pulled by horses, the warmth of a crackling fire, while cooking marsh mellows for “somores” …and oh yeah…it’s BUDGET TIME!!!!

Just as we are enjoying a huge sigh of relief from “the summer slam of activities”, we begin a whole new endeavor of gathering statistical information from the current year, analyzing our performance from every possible angle, contacting vendors for new bids regarding services and product changes for the new year, and examining every nuance of expense savings and cash flow opportunities!

Of course preparation for this event is crucial: Items should include the following:

1. A full stocked “adult refreshment bar” for you AND your immediate supervisor. It is imperative that all parties involved are happy!
2. The “good candy”, you know what I mean!
3. All types of “migraine medicine” to be “periodically combined” with the adult beverages for a more calming effect so you don’t bite off everyone’s head at work!
4. A gross of pens, paper, pencils, a calculator, paperclips, file folders, highlighters, and any other type of office supplies you deem necessary to fill your desk to “look very busy all the time”!
5. Band aids for blisters on your fingers and wrist splints for your “carpel tunnel” wrist strains!
6. A Wee Gee Board and an Eight Ball to verify that your predictions are accurate…. “Decidedly So”….or are not …”Outlook is Doubtful”!
7. And finally a “Keep Out or You’re Fired Unless There is A Dead Body, and in That Case Knock and Come On In!” sign for your office door!

Yes, this is the time of year when your patience is tested beyond normal levels and your ability to project into the future of how this multimillion dollar asset will perform in the coming months and years which hinges on your credibility as learned professional. This is what your “real job responsibility” is all about!

Suggestion? Get every member of your staff, including your supervisor, and divide the budget into categories that that particular employee is responsible and accountable for and have each of them research those categories for the best ways to improve ….some example:

• Assistant Manager: Collections, security deposits, compliance, basic lease information
• Leasing Consultants: Marketing budget, concession allotments , occupancy percentages, renewals
• Maintenance: All categories for each member’s responsibility…painter, housekeeper, HVAC, landscaping, worker’s comp claims, safety
• Supervisor: All “non controllable” areas such as the mortgage payment, insurance, reserve replacement accounts

The more everyone on your team is involved in the overall predictions, the more accurate the information will be, and the better chances that your budget will be successful, as everyone has “personal buy in, commitment and investment” to achieve the goals for your community and for your management company, and your owners and investors because they had a “say” in the creation process.

Will we get everything we want? NO, but we still need to do the best we can and get as close to a “real picture” for our employers. After all….

“It’s not the desire to succeed that assures success…it’s the discipline to prepare yourself for it.!

Your Best Is Yet To Come!!!