“Sanitation and cleanliness are among the humblest of the civic virtues, and it is easy to underestimate their significance.” Ram Nath Kovind

A recent article in the Apartment Owners Association magazine lists the “Top 10 Multifamily complaints by J Turner Research” They list the 10 things tenants don’t like about their housing and ourselves as housing providers. We want to make our units most desirable to prospective tenants as we compete with other similar properties. Here are the items and suggestions:

1) Rental Rates. With rent control it is essential to raise rents once a year based on the percentage allowed (8.9% last year) They will never like them, but we can be consistent.

2) Poor grounds /common area upkeep. Whether you do your own or have a gardener, make sure the grounds look presentable. If not you may need to change gardeners.

3) Disorganized staff/lack of communication with staff. If this is your property manager, it may be time for a change. If it is you personally, give tenants an easy way to reach you, be it by phone, text or email. Always respond to tenants ASAP. This costs nothing and improves attitudes.

4) Quality of response to maintenance requests I always try to get back to the tenant within 24 hours, sooner if it is an emergency. Tenants appreciate this and it assists in maintaining your building along with averting potential problems.

5) Overall customer service of management staff. If you are the manager, remember your rentals are a business so be businesslike, while enforcing all the house rules.

6) Quality of parking/parking availability. This should be handled at the time of the lease- designated spaces, or a clause in the lease stating where tenants can NOT park.

7) Concerns over safety security. Be clear to any prospective tenant about what you have and do not have in your building, and put it in the lease.

8) Lack of upgraded amenities. Again, this should be spelled out in the lease. This may be an issue requiring the tenant to find another apartment in another building. You only can provide what you have available.

9) Pets not on leashes/poor pet waste removal. This should be in the lease agreement along with a requirement to have pet insurance. Not cleaning up after a pet should be a lease violation. Be sure to take pictures.

10) General lack of preventative maintenance. The better you take care of your building, the better the tenants will respect it.

Maintaining your building, responding to requests from tenants quickly and requiring all tenants to adhere to the rules in the lease will improve everyone’s experience.

“Nobody who gave his best ever regretted it.” George Halas

What we at PRS PROPERTIES CAN DO. We can give you a good idea of the current value of your building. We can suggest changes you might want to make before sale to give you an idea what type of building you would be able to exchange into. You may decide to stay in the rental business or you may want to move into a more passive real estate investment, such as a triple net or a DSL.. We are always available to chat. We can give you referrals for professionals, such as lenders, contractors, and engineers, so that you can decide who you feel best with. We can supply you with rent and sale comparable in the area of your properties, so that you know what rental values are in your area. It is important that you know the true value of your rental units, so that you can get them rented right away at market value, or at least as much as possible with rent control restrictions. We can look at potential purchases that you may be interested in to make the property more desirable, and maybe look at potential issues that an insurer might require you to repair.

If you should decide to sell your building, we can help you exchange into a larger or smaller properties. We can even help you move into something with less management responsibilities. We can also help with getting the paperwork together for a refinance if that is your desire. We can also recommend experienced licensed contractors who can perform any repairs or installations you may need prior to selling. We can also look at your building for other easy and inexpensive changes that might allow you to get a higher value. We can help you to get the maximum value for your property, should you decide to sell, or the maximum return if you are planning to keep your building.

We are currently looking for “as-is” properties and are willing to purchase with low rents, deferred maintenance or even with a problem tenant in place. We can offer a 7 day escrow and all cash at closing. Give us a call. We have also put together numerous transactions over the years which involve properties that are not listed for sale. Many investors are currently in 1031 exchanges and need to identify a replacement property before their 45 day identification period runs out.

Should you decide to put your property on the market, we will put together an aggressive, targeted and professional campaign to get your property sold fast. We have been doing this for over 40 years, and we will use all the tools available to bring you the most dollars at closing. If you are thinking of selling or are just curious about the value of your property, don’t hesitate to give us a call.