Hello Everyone! Anyone good with design/ideas?! This is the front desk at...

Hello Everyone! Anyone good with design/ideas?! This is the front desk at my property that used to be for the concierge which we no longer have. I don’t want this to be a wasted space. Any ideas what we could do with it. (No construction or painting.) thanks for any ideas!

Lilah Poltz

Guest Insider Coffee bar set up Keurig’s with different types of pumps, straws, creamers, napkins cups, etc.

Greg Miller You spelled Tequila wrong. It's a common mistake

Guest Insider Greg Miller oh, I like your idea better

Katie Roncadori Leasing kiosk? iPads or touch screens for people to apply?

Timothy Cox How about renting it to a luxury vending company? Fresh flowers, gourmet food, healthy snacks????

Guest Insider I used to do interior design! This space would absolutely be ideal for coffee bar, snacks, information etc. It has a wall that pops and grabs attention. Also keep business cards, candy, cookies, etc over there. Since it was for concierge, surely it's right by the front and can't be missed. And if it's in budget, add fresh flowers when you can. Really makes an impact

Lilah Poltz I was also going to say a coffee bar. Another idea would be a podcast studio or working space but that would require some construction.

Brent Williams As a side note, I love that blue wall design alongside the wood.

Guest Insider You could set up a business center here if you don’t have one some place else in the community.

Guest Insider Make it a paw bar that has stuff for pets. Extra poop bags, tennis balls, treats, toys, water, wipes for cleaning off their feet, umbrellas if it’s raining, etc. No construction required

Guest Insider One more idea that requires a little more facilitating…a local love pop up. You could invite local business or artisans to have a pop-up store at your community to sell stuff. Bakeries, bagel places, artists, jewelry makers, local stores, etc. Bringing the best of the neighborhood to them.You could do a trade with the business, they come sell to your residents and they post or email your apartment details to their digital network. Or maybe you make a small cut of their sales or charge a fee for the day to rent the space.

Cassie Johnson This is an amazing idea!

Karen Mallinger Internet cafe? Or business center?

Guest Insider Somewhere to leave door dash or food orders?

Donje Putnam Coffee, comfy chair, and a little free library.

Brenadette Day Have it as a snack bar. Coffee bar, popcorn machine, cookies. All the fun stuff

Guest Insider Impulsify micro mart

Guest Insider Coffee Bar & "share space" for people to leave items (in good condition) they aren't using anymore

Guest Insider I was going to say coffee/tea bar but I love Rebecca Ross Gilinsky 's idea of a specialty pop up shop that rotates from month to month.

Guest Insider Business center. Easy transition

Kimberly Price Coworking space?

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I am brand new to MFI and the Multi Family market and have spent a a lot of time recently on properties watching staff do their thing. I am so impressed at how the people I've met deal with what seems to be non-stop problems and a wide range of personalities (generous description). I look forward to becoming a part of this community.

Brent Williams and Lauren Niziol

Brent Williams Welcome to the community, Paul Bodell!

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Hi,

We're planning to explore our marketing efforts by partnering with an external agency. We have a small internal marketing team but we're open to partnering. But are they worth investing? I've checked out Digible but can't find client reviews from them. Do they really walk their talk? Or are...

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Not sure how I would react if I came home to this! Funny to me because it is not my dog or my blinds... wonder what was outside that he desperately needed to see. 😂

Felicia Norman My child is almost that attached to me, I can see her doing that if I were to take out the garbage. LOL (Kidding!! She's not that bad!)

Brent Williams I'm curious about what the standard reaction is on the property management side. Is it replace it now, knowing it will probably just get torn up again? Or just wait until move out and do it once?

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Marketing peeps!! How are you mananging your Facebook listings? Tools? Account types? 3rd party services etc? From what I can tell business accounts can’t list to market place etc. Using a personal account isn’t really great. We have started to create a “fake” personal account to push...

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Amber Bell We use Rentable they post to Facebook and Google for us

Miles Scruggs Amber Bell What do you mean by "posting to Google"??

Amber Bell Miles Scruggs posting Google ads. The more interaction with Google you have, then your property shows up at the top of Google searches

Miles Scruggs Amber Bell Can you send me an example of a "Google Ad"?

Miles Scruggs ahh ok. not exactly what we are looking for. Works great if your business is a single community but quickly gets diluted if there are multiple properties of different classes.

Mike Whaling FB removed the ability for business pages to post to Marketplace, so the only way you can post rentals there is through a personal account. It’s a bit tougher to track, but you’ll still see solid results in certain markets.If I’m reading your follow-up comments right, it sounds like you’re actually trying to reach owners of multifamily properties. If that’s the case, you’re probably going to have better luck participating in groups like this one and the many local apartment groups across the country. Good luck!

Miles Scruggs Mike Whaling We are singularly looking for tips tricks etc to list into facebook marketplace. We are currently using a bogus "personal" account, but seems like a fragile solution.Reaching other owners which we currently do with our existing buisness facebook group is a completely different topic and one that I want to exclude completely from the context of this search.

Guest Insider You can use a broker/real estate agent for marketplace and pay them a locator fee if they lease. However, Id say Google optimization and using a company like social kapture for ads will give you more qualified leads, where marketplace gives you low hanging fruit. Best of luck!

Laura Jordan I created a personal Facebook page for my property, and post to marketplace that way, so they don't go thru my own personal account. Rentable tried to post for a minute but their posts were never correct or accurate, or even timed correctly, because they pull info every week, which as we all know can change in a second, whether it be rents, or availability so we stopped using that company.

Kelly Noble Naturally Engaged helps communities do just that!

Miles Scruggs Kelly Noble that is more geared for driving engagement with the organic platform which we don’t really have that need. We are specifically looking for access into the Facebook market place.

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Multifamily Insiders has always been a small but mighty organization that served a MUCH larger community. Several years ago it was just myself and one other person, and I felt we were simply not progressing. The community was large and passionate, but we spent all of our time with existing programs and never seemed to get a step ahead to grow the community beyond that.It was time for a change.I asked Fel ...

Felicia Norman

Amanda Hill Going to take this opportunity to celebrate Felicia! Can't imagine MFI without her! She has a great work ethic, always figuring out ways to make programs/work more efficient, has helped guide me through these years, is always there when I need help, makes sure I am taken care of and feel appreciated. Just all in all an amazing, caring, capable person to work with. I honestly think she is the oil that keeps the company running smoothly. Such a great boss, co-worker, friend... and if you don't know what to do, just think WWFD?

Lauren Niziol Happy 5 years Felicia Norman! It's always nice to see your face here!

Felicia Norman Woah, when was this posted?? I love my job, my team, and the MFI community! Thank you Brent, for the opportunity you've provided to me, for teaching me so so much, for being an amazing leader, mentor, and above all else, being a sincere compassionate friend. We make an amazing team, small, mighty, and we get it done! (Well most of it... !!) It's been a wild ride this time around, look at how much we've done! Train the Trainer, Demo Day, Webinar Program (#notoiletfur), grown the Community, surpassed 50,000 members to our LinkedIn Group, worked with amazing suppliers, property management professionals, and a million abbreviations that only we understand (SS, LIRec, NL, MM, WW, MFI, DD.....) and we have so many laughs along the way! Sorry to say, but you're probably stuck with me for a while longer!

And Amanda, I'm honored to have you on our team, you are amazing to work with. Not to sound cliché but with all heartfelt sincerity, I could not do it without you, without your reminders,... Show more

Woah, when was this posted??   I love my job, my team, and the MFI community! Thank you Brent, for the opportunity you've provided to me, for teaching me so so much, for being an amazing leader, mentor, and above all else, being a sincere compassionate friend. We make an amazing team, small, mighty, and we get it done! (Well most of it... !!)  It's been a wild ride this time around, look at how much we've done! Train the Trainer, Demo Day, Webinar Program (#notoiletfur), grown the Community, surpassed 50,000 members to our LinkedIn Group, worked with amazing suppliers, property management professionals, and a million abbreviations that only we understand (SS, LIRec, NL, MM, WW, MFI, DD.....) and we have so many laughs along the way! Sorry to say, but you're probably stuck with me for a while longer!

And Amanda, I'm honored to have you on our team, you are amazing to work with. Not to sound cliché but with all heartfelt sincerity, I could not do it without you, without your reminders, your patience, your integrity! We are so lucky to have you too!

Brent Williams I love how #notoiletfur has become a critical part of MFI's story! 😂 Tamela Coval, you'd be thrilled!

Anne Sadovsky I adore Felicia...she is warm, friendly, smart, helpful! She held my hand through the technology
part of working remotely! Congratulations!!!!

Guest Insider Felicia Happy anniversary! This community would not be the same without you. Every Friday night workshop session and random text brings me such joy and always delivers great results. You are a goddess and we are so lucky to have you in this fam!

Guest Insider Felicia is one of the most SUPERFANTASTIC people that I know. MFI is elevated to another level because she is part of it. As a presenter and host, I have had the opportunity to be the recipient of her kindness, support, and encouragement. And as a guest on my video-podcast show, the SUPERFANTASTIC Exchange, she championed MFI and shared incredible stories and gold nuggets of wisdom.
Blessed that Felicia is part of my virtual world and in my network.

CONGRATS on 5 years with MFI!

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Are there any Flex users here? How has your experience been?

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Guest Insider Not good. Terrible communicators and not very helpful.

Guest Insider Hate it

Guest Insider It would be great if it worked how it’s supposed to. But it doesn’t. Issues all the time with residents payments and the worst part is you can’t speak to anyone at customer service on the phone. You have to email and it takes so long to fix the issue via email. I just want to talk to a real person And as a manager you have no way of helping the resident with their issue, you just have to refer them back to flex. I wish it was better.

Guest Insider Terrible

Lauren Tagliatela Why??

Brooke Frederickson Lauren Tagliatela the biggest complaint about Flex that I've seen is that their customer service is awful. They don't have phone customer service and if you send an email you may or may not get a reply several days later. With that being said, when it works, it works great.

Guest Insider Lauren Tagliatela I second this . I’ve had maybe 5 tenants use it and only one was able to use it a full lease term with no issues . The rest either the payment would not come through or they could not get to speak with someone to answer questions

Kathy Chaney Lauren Tagliatela same when there's an issue customer service is terrible

Lauren Tagliatela Is it the tenant's that are typically delinquent that are actually using it?

Malinda Wheeler Lauren Tagliatela a resident cannot be delinquent and use Flex. Once they get caught up they can use the service.

Kelley Agnew Negative. Bad experience.

Katie Roncadori Yes, we have had very minimal issues and most of them have been user error on the resident's part. We love having it as an option for our renters who need flexibility.

Brooke Frederickson Lauren Tagliatela for many residents this would be cheaper than late fees.

Katie Roncadori The integration and set up (we use Yardi) was super quick and straightforward too.

Shannon Clark Abort mission.

Grace Howard Flex is great until your residents need to actually speak with someone.

Guest Insider Flex has definitely helped my residents! I highly recommend them!

Jennifer Trick I’m a bit leery referring residents to use it. Multiple residents have had issues with the payment transferring to our system and they can never get a hold of anyone at Flex. It seems like it could be beneficial but they have some things to work on. Multiple communities within my company have had similar issues.

Guest Insider Yes, so far it’s working out well.

Judy Rossington My residents are using it, and I have no complaints yet. They seem to like it.

Guest Insider We have been using it for over a year now and love it. Giving the residents another option for how to pay their rent. It integrates well with Onesite . We have had very few issues and our reps are very responsive if we do have any. Love it.

Guest Insider I have Flex and love this option. The customer service is via email, but they’ve always gotten back right away or my Rep is very responsive. My residents like the flexibility of splitting rent payments.

Don Wilson Works good for our residents.

Guest Insider We offer Flex, but I'd like to know if theirs another comparable option.

Guest Insider My residents are digging it!

Guest Insider I have it and it really helps my residents.

Karen Mallinger We have a lot of residents who use it and find it beneficial. We’ve had a few hiccups, but nothing major and the number of them has been small.

Guest Insider I have them on my entire portfolio and have not received any negative feedbacks with the exception of the resident being cut off from being able to use however that is usually due to them not keeping their end of the bargain.I have about 18% of portfolio that is using the service , it is a great option for the residents to have.Plus I get a nice maint in the bank account before begin of month.

Guest Insider OMG! I love flex! They have been a lifesaver for my residents this last 12 months. Especially coming out of Covid who doesn’t want to give our renters options to stay current with their rent and yet give them flexibility? My client loves it too because he’s seeing more income come in on the first of the month and it is at no cost to him. I hope you revisit this product, it’s been a lifesaver for my sites!

Guest Insider We’ve been using it about a year now, and it’s working very well. We have a lot of residents who have taken advantage of it, and it seems to be working well for them.

Joshua Hinton Recently started using it and no problems so far.

eric rivera What is Flex?

Lauren Tagliatela Eric Rivera, it’s a way for residents to pay rent in two payments but the company flex pays the housing providers on the 1st of the month in full.

Guest Insider We offer that to our residence and have for the last couple of months but we’ve had no takers. It’s not very popular at my community.

Liz Clement Lauren Tagliatela I use it at my property and for the most part it has been great. Yes they don’t have a phone number you can call if there is an issue, however, I’ve used it for nearly three years and I’ve had MAYBE 6 issues. It’s a great program that cuts down on delinquency. My best recommendation is to ADVERTISE IT EVERYWHERE. Social media, email blasts, door to door. Even discuss it upon move in. If talked about correctly, you can get a lot of residents to use it!

Guest Insider Horrible…more of a headache than it is worth

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Nikki Hodges is friends with Gerry Hunt

Mek is friends with Gerry Hunt

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Success in leadership is heavily dependent on good communication. During our state conference last month (time flies!), Tammy Longo and I talked about Leading from the Pack: Developing leadership skills while working for someone else. In addition to being the loudest presenters who definitely had too much fun, we shared some thoughts on improving your communication, no matter what your role in the organization is.Some leade ...

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Guys the NAA lease agreement states there is no charge for access to the building & amenities. Does either of your properties provide fobs and if so, how do you label it on the move-in sheet etc?

Guest Insider You can charge a $45 “deposit”, then charge for replacements when lost or not turned in at move out

Jam Modeste This May be the solution! Thanks, checking with our local attorneys for guidance.

Guest Insider Jam Modeste with most key fob software you can also just issue them their private code to use as well if they don’t want the convenience of the fob. With this system you will always know who’s entered and what time etc. so if their is vandalizing it’s easier to pin point who all was in during the timeframe the issue was reported

Guest Insider There should be a fob addendum where you can charge is they lose the amenity key or fobs. We only charge if they aren’t returned.

Chris Finetto The NAA isn’t responsible for your NOI. There’s addendums for that stuff, you can also delete or strike irrelevant info.

Guest Insider They are listed in the key section.

Jam Modeste Thanks everyone! We charge for lost keys etc. But also would like to charge for a key fob. However, I don’t think we can add an addendum to charge a fob, if the paragraph states we cannot charge for access. Checking with our attorney for guidance.

Guest Insider Jam Modeste charging for a lost or unreturned fob isn’t charging for access. We add the replacement fees where it discusses fob and key fees.

Megan Goodmundson Charge for lost fob. But getting a fob issued at move in is included. Replacement is a fee.

Judy Green We do not charge for fobs and it is considered a key or other on the TAA lease. We do charge if lost or damaged.

Patty Peterson Upon move-in we have the NAA lease/addendums and we include a separate addendum that is from the system we use in Rent Manager that is called Apartment Damage Charges and there is a line item for lost or not returned keys

Guest Insider Edit to add on the special provisions

Guest Insider My last community list fobs on the lease in open section of lease and it states if not returned there is a charge

Guest Insider Even though it’s an NAA lease each state slightly varies. Special provisions mentioned about is always a great solution for lacking content if your version doesn’t offer a fob charge area.

Carletta Richardson-Cheeseboro In student housing we would charge $50 for a lost FOB.

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Question for everyone! Do you have any success stories of residents who have provided valuable feedback or suggestions that led to improvements in the apartment community or its amenities?

Brent Williams, Amanda Hill and 1 other

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Lauren Niziol is friends with Eric Franco

In uncertain financial times, with inflation and expensive labor costs, protecting your investment and ROI can be challenging. However, for multifamily property owners and managers, focusing on existing residents is one of the most effective ways to achieve this. Retention is much more cost-effective than acquiring new ones. Satisfied residents are also more likely to renew their leases, which means a more stable income for your property.Here are ...

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The company I work for is going through major changes because a partner pulled out unexpectedly.Because of that there was a decrease in budget resulting in some of the higher up corporate workers being terminated or laid off.These "upper management" positions at the main office were basically self...

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Lauren Niziol I'm so sorry you are dealing with this! There is a lot to pick apart here. If I were to help resolve this conflict or try to get to the bottom of the abrupt change in culture the first question I would ask is this:
Were these corporate employees involved in directly managing or communicating with property-level staff before the lay-offs?
Or was the job of acting as liaison between the property level employees and corporate the role of the individuals that were laid off?

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