Property Management

I’m always keeping my eyes and ears open to see what’s happening in the world of work all around us to understand how it impacts multifamily’s little corner of the business world. Here are seven workplace trends I’m noticing. All have to do with hiring and retaining employees, which are the biggest challenges businesses are facing right now. When it comes down to it, what I’m seeing all adds up to the need for employers to develop a compelling employee value proposition to entice employees to stay or attract new recruits to your company. Let’s look at some of the factors that contribute to that compelling value proposition, as well as some employee behaviors. Job hopping on the rise, especially for younger employees There are abundant employment opportunities out there and team members are in high demand, so many employees are making the move to greener pastures. According to Harvard Business Review, millennials are most at risk for quitting. Resignation rates for employees between the ages of 30-45 increased 20 percent between 2020 and 2021 – more than for any other age group. Lesson to leaders: These days, it’s safe to consider all team members are at high risk of quitting but pay special attention to your millennials who are most likely to head for the exit. Salaries are up – but so is inflation As of Q3 2021, wages and salaries are up 4.2% year-over-year according to US Department of Labor. Wages have been growing the fastest in low-paying service sector jobs. The ......

Social Media Superstars – SatisFacts Power Panel – January 21, 2021 Ways in which you have had success creating engagement. I find that utilizing social media, as just that, SOCIAL, provides the ability to be more engaged. In my own experience, when you begin using your social media as a direct sales tool, posting floor plans, pricing, options to lease, it takes away from the intent of the platform….to be social. That in and of itself provides the engagement portion you need and want.Don’t ignore comments on your posts or messages. Creating and remaining engaged means staying consistent with your own level of engagement! (Side note, not every comment requires you to comment, but at least like the comment….this isn’t a place for an entire conversation) REMEMBER: Your active engagement on the social media platform plays into many algorithms meaning that as you engage, comment and like, your posts will also start appearing more actively in other’s feeds! Activity = engagement = exposure Where do you find the content to post (How do you come up with the content to post?) It’s a moment of inspiration really….is the dog that came to visit you in the office so adorable, post about it.Did you get a new sign? Post about (i.e. some funny post about “I saw the sign…and it opened up my eyes…I saw the sign”).New coffee flavor in the coffee machine, post about it in a fun and informative way.You or one of your team members go to the new _____(restaurant, coffee ......

Automation has become a hot topic within multifamily. As its functionality has proven to be an asset to modern leasing strategies, its use is only going to ramp up. After all, automation technology simplifies and maximizes the leasing process for both customers and onsite teams. It has not only enhanced, but future-proofed apartment leasing and is now a key integration within CRMs. As more and more consumers have been making big-ticket purchases online, like new cars and homes, virtual content and automated communication with customers has helped apartment operators streamline the entire leasing process from the very first touchpoint. This has also made a customer’s decision to sign a lease easier than ever before. In the age of virtual and self-service leasing, operators have been trying to utilize multiple tools and technologies to efficiently convert an influx in online leads to leases. Automation coupled with CRMs has been one of the most influential tech combinations when it comes to attracting, engaging and retaining new residents. Using CRMs with an integrated automation solution allows onsite teams to leverage valuable customer information and preferences to develop specific, personalized follow ups. Automating time-consuming tasks, like initial requests for information on pricing, availability and tour scheduling, engages customers earlier in the leasing process, alleviates onsite burden and helps convert more leads to leases.  Leasing teams can get the most out of a CRM by operationalizing it with automation. Automation performs tasks that provide necessary information for customers and responds to their requests for more information. I......

When I first got into C.R.E., we were told to pick an asset class and focus strictly on that asset class. Typically, most companies frown upon it, and many forbid agents to conduct business outside of their chosen asset class. Understanding other markets was a lot harder back then because we did not have the tools that we currently have at our fingertips. When we chose an asset class, we cold called all the owners and tenants or walked/canvassed the communities we wanted to work in and build our business. With today’s technology, we can get access to owner/tenant information at the click of a button from our office (I do recommend you still cold call and walk the communities you want to work in) as well as most currently available properties and save hours of time. Even more importantly, analytics of the market and asset types are readily available, allowing you to understand multiple markets much more easily. With this evolution in our business, agents can adapt their business and now proficiently take on more than one asset class, which opens the door for us to diversify. There are many benefits to diversification, not least of which is reducing risk to the agent’s business during an economic downturn or, in some cases, when the market has been so robust. The ability to reduce risk in our business, as in any business, is key to our long-term success. If you are working in one asset class and that class gets saturated by ......

“Call if you have any questions,” is often the closing comment for an onboard experience for a new employee. This short phrase, six little words could be the first step to failure for a newly hired or recently promoted individual. As the supervisor, the team leader, it appears that we are always available; “just call,” “call anytime, day or night,” “I always have my phone with me.” Time goes by, critical deadlines are missed or errors develop in work product.  The leader is faced with correcting mistakes and missed deadlines the question hangs in the air, “Why don’t they call?” If we consider the psychology in this situation, we have created an environment where our new employee must ask for help.  Essentially, they are admitting a frustration or a failure.  We have created a win lose proposition.  The employee has lost, they must ask for help.  Call the supervisor, admit the short coming and the answer will be given to you.  A win for the supervisor, they’ve “helped.”  As leaders if we anticipate deadlines and scheduled completion dates, offering help and assistance in advance, we build confidence for our new employee. The key is in the quality or content of the question.   Asking yes and no questions, will not provide much information.  With an open ended question, “How can I assist you?”  We can learn more about the situation. What To Ask A new employee might not know what help to request. They could become concerned that asking questions or requesting assistance indicates they are s......

Familiar themes have emerged over the past few years as apartment operators have begun to shed antiquated pet policies. Among them: Easing breed and weight restrictions increases pet-friendliness and creates a revenue stream by appealing to more renters. Property teams should use tech resources to better track the onsite pet population. Outscoring assistance animal requests creates better accuracy and eases the burden on the onsite team. While these well-documented concepts have been supported by an abundance of data and industry studies, many are wondering what's coming next on the pet-tech front—and for apartment pet trends, in general.  While some of the 2022 pet scene pertains to new concepts and evolving renter demands, the idea of how to responsibly implement some of the existing trends also figures to be a prominent theme. Here is a look at some of the primary storylines as the year begins: Utilizing tech to expand the capabilities of associates Even when excluding the pet portion of multifamily, the industry is constantly clamoring for ways to improve efficiencies. Automation is playing a huge role as leasing teams aim to automate as many mundane tasks as possible, and self-tour options are easing the onsite burden. Additionally, artificial intelligence innovations such as chatbots are greatly assisting in the front end of the leasing process. In addition to providing value, pet-related technology should have the same objective in a hypercompetitive, low-unemployment-rate environment. That’s why pet-tech innovations will be most successful if they are rooted in function and convenience, such as platforms wit......

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I introduce to you the Worry Nap.

https://becauseisaidiwould.org/worrynap/

Now, I don’t know about you but my mind races as soon as I lay down. Did I do this? Did I schedule that? Did I follow up with Don? You get it…

What dos my brain/body do when this happens? Complete paralysis. I stare at the wall trying to go to sleep while my mind races.

Then, the countdown begins. “If I go to sleep now, ill get 6 hours. (Insert an hour of worrying) Well, If I go to bed now, I’ll get 5 hours.”

I have lists. I have flagged emails. I have CRM.

It still happens.

I’m going to give the Worry Nap a shot!

Shout out to https://becauseisaidiwould.org/ for the content.




 

 

As multifamily operators resume evictions post-moratorium, they are seeking a streamlined process that returns operations to normal as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, they are still hampered by the pre-pandemic way of doing things. While eviction filing can be an intricate process, these three basic procedural mistakes cause the most delays:Lack of consistent practicesMost operators have clearly defined policies that state when notices to quit should be sent and delinquent residents should be sent to eviction. How closely those policies are followed is a different story. Best practices suggest serving the required legal notice as early into delinquency as possible and filing for possession promptly when the notice grace period ends, which usually ends by the 10th of the month. Yet, on average, many operators do not file until the third or fourth week of the month, with some waiting a full month or more to initiate the process. Some companies impose arbitrary grace periods in the hopes that a resident will come with the missing funds. Residents will often claim that they only need a few more days to make full rent payment. But a few extra days turn into weeks. Weeks turn into months. And when delinquency gets to two or three months, it becomes an incentive not to pay. At that point, residents may opt to save their money and move elsewhere. Without strict adherence to optimal  filing timelines, operators risk unnecessary delays in the eviction process, not to mention unrecoverable debt.Errors in the notice to quitEven when operators......

It’s a new year and the perfect time to review your company’s fair housing policies and procedures. Laws and best practices are constantly changing so you need to be sure that you are up to date and fair housing compliant. In this article, we will review why all property management companies need fair housing policies and procedures, helpful resources that are available, and why ongoing training is so important. Policies and Procedures - Not Just For Large Companies Whether you have five or five thousand properties you need to have a written fair housing policy as well as a reference list of your procedures. Given that we do see a high employee turnover in our industry these become even more of a crucial resource and training tool. Each new employee needs to be familiar and have full access if they are going to be effective in their position. Having these policies and procedures ensure that everyone is consistent in their behavior. Along with that, a regular review to ensure that everything is up to date will provide a strong basis for a defense in the event a fair housing violation is claimed.  Resources To Create/Up Date Your Fair Housing Policies/Procedures Believe it or not, your policies and procedure do not need to be lengthy or complicated. In fact just the opposite. They need to be clear, concise, and easy to understand. A good place to start is with your company’s fair housing attorney. They can help build one specific to your compa......

Creating community doesn’t happen overnight. However, with the right intention and strategy, the payoff can be huge in terms of retention and referrals. We’re pretty lucky in that we work with some pretty big names in apartment biz as part of our jobs…which is to help communities create community. So, we’re sharing three best practices the industry top dogs use to create community…and drive retention and referrals. 1) They pay attention to the impact in resident programs.Resident events are the go-to for retention. But it’s not the number of attendees that the top companies track. Rather, the impact the event had on the residents is what will lead to higher retention rates and more referrals. We have seen properties excel with this philosophy by offering residents unique, recurring programs with consistent participants rather than solely one-off events.While everyone loves a taco truck, or a grab and go lunch, how impactful is that for your residents? Will this help them form relationships or experiences that will attach them to the community? Compare that to a murder mystery party, or a Yoga + Journaling workshop. Events that will impact the residents’ life or are so unique that they can’t help but talk about it with their friends and coworkers. This is the factor to pay attention to. If you focus on hosting events  and programs that cultivate resident relationships rather than giving away free food to 100 residents, you are on the right track.2) They outsourceWhether you are outsourcing single events or programs, outsourcing allows communities to offer really......