Model Apartment

Browsing through Google+ today, I ran across several posts by Mike Tempel of Nexus Real Estate Services showing off some great virtual transformations of a model apartment using a "virtual staging" solution.  I thought others might find them interesting, so I'm sharing them here.  (The provider of the virtual staging solution was VirtualStagingSolutions.com.)

Years ago when I had the task of putting together my first leasing guide, I relied heavily on the advice of a good friend, a supervisor with years of experience and obvious selling chops. One terrific tip she shared with me was that a leasing agent needs to become adept at finding the things in each room of an apartment home that the prospect was not likely to see. She suggested that we require each leasing agent to go into all rooms of an apartment, even the baths and closets, and find at least two things that were not obvious and explain what those features meant and how they could benefit the prospect.

In the years since, I have used that great idea as a cornerstone in my training. Think about it. When a somewhat less engaged leasing agent does a property tour, they usually spend a lot of time on pointing out the obvious, if they are even interacting at all. I cannot count the number of times I have walked into a furnished model with a leasing agent I was “shopping” and been lead to a room with an oval table and six chairs while the leasing agent offered “this is the dining room.” What a master of the obvious! Why do we even waste the time and energy if we are only pointing out things that are clear to just about everyone. I have had leasing agents fall this up by steering me into the kitchen and pointing to an appliance with the comment “this is the microwave.” As a sarcastic person by nature, I usually cannot let this go. I usually respond with something snarky like, “Oh yeah! I have heard about those. Can you show me how to work it.” The deer-in-the-headlights look I typically receive is well worth it. But seriously, if your prospect doesn’t know what a dining room or a microwave is, do you really think they are going to qualify?

So many property tours lean more towards “follow the leader” than a real plan to lease an apartment. We become better leasing consultants, property managers and salespeople when we get past the obvious and uncover the little things people aren’t likely to see. I explain this in my seminars as similar to the concept of “whiteout”. Just as when driving in a blinding snow storm it can become impossible to see your path forward, a somewhat similar thing happens to a prospect looking at apartments. All the more when in a vacant, they see white walls, white ceiling, light colored carpet and often lighter cabinetry and appliances. It can be easy to get lost in the sea of white, so that little things don’t stand out against the vast white backdrop. Especially if a client has toured multiple communities and a half dozen or more units, it can be very hard to see the differences. That is where we come in. Finding those two things in each room is crucial, pointing them out and explaining why they may be useful is salesmanship. They can be simple or complex, ranging from two cable outlets in the living room to make furniture placement more flexible to something elaborate like the fact that the drawers in the bathroom and kitchen cabinetry go full depth, providing more storage space than the typical ¾ drawers found in most apartments.   

By Ben Holubecki, STML Realty, Glen Ellyn, IL

By Salvatore J. Friscia, San Diego Premier Property Management, San Diego, CA

Every property owner should require tenants to issue a refundable security deposit which is held on file to insure against non-performance of the lease agreement. Non-performance may be, but is not limited to, anything from damages occurring during occupancy to expenses accrued due to the tenants conduct or failure to pay rent.

The confusion begins with the property owner not knowing how much to require the tenant to issue for the security deposit. It is important to understand that security deposits for residential properties are controlled by statute and call for nondiscriminatory  and equal treatment. It is a prohibited discriminatory practice to charge a family a different amount then an applicant without children. It is also prohibited by law to require an excessive amount for the security deposit. In addition to collection of one month’s advanced rent, the maximum security deposit allowed (at least in the state of California) for an unfurnished unit is two months rent and three months rent for furnished properties. [California Civil Code 1950.5(c)] Check your local area laws for similar guidelines in your area.

By Geoff Roberts, Buildium, Boston, MA

When determining rental rates, you want to strike just the right balance between maximizing your profit and remaining competitive in your local rental market. Following are some tips for finding that magic number.

By Ben Holubecki, STML Realty Group, Glen Ellyn, IL

I’ve always had a lot of respect for professionals who truly learn from their mistakes.  Many of the top companies and executives in the world admit that they have made plenty of them over the years.  What sets the successful companies apart from the unsuccessful ones is the ability to immediately make adjustments and avoid making the same mistake twice.  It can be costly to make an error on the job but it can be devastating to repeatedly make the same mistake over and over again.  That’s why I sat down last week to reflect upon a recent string of lost property management accounts.

Those of us who manage properties owned by others all have our steady, long-term clients.  These are the ones that we can count on.  We depend on them to provide the residual revenue that drives our business and allows us to operate on a monthly basis.  These owners generally defer to our decisions, believe in our process, and most importantly trust us to manage an important part of their investment portfolio.  In our experience we have found a common theme that runs along with most of these clients.  Ground rules and expectations were properly set at the beginning of those business relationships.  Although there are always ups and downs involved in managing any relationship when you are playing with someone else’s money, those hurdles can often be overcome if guidelines were properly established at the beginning of the relationship.  If those guidelines are not set up properly and early we are asking for trouble.  If we wait until a problem arises to set up those expectations the business relationship is ultimately doomed.