Author: NewMedia Denver

How Community Associations Can Regulate Holiday Displays and Lights

Holiday displays are one of the staples of these periods. People dedicate entire days to make their home look as festive during Christmas. Some even like to tour around town to watch these arrangements at play.

While it’s something almost everyone loves, we need to consider what they entail as well. These decorations are usually filled with light patterns. During the night, they might look amazing, yet they can also disrupt neighbors.

We also have other displays, like inflatables, musical displays, and more. Residential management can be a challenge when it comes to the holidays.

The importance of not being too strict

HOA Leader has several tips to help residential management keep things under control without making homeowners angry. That’s important because communities can become hostile if they feel their decorations are being attacked.

Thankfully, it’s not different from what community associations already do. It all boils down to agreements with the individuals and families within your residence.

Be reasonable

After you’ve set your goals for the holiday display regulations, dissect every rule. The goal is to make them as reasonable as possible so that homeowners are more likely to be happy with them. Community reunions and communication are vital to ensure satisfaction.

Agree on what’s acceptable

If you didn’t communicate with your homeowners before, now it’s the time. Make sure that your regulations come from your residents. That means discussing them and gathering feedback to adapt your rules accordingly.

Reserve rights

Keep the right to approve and dismiss specific holiday displays. It’s difficult to find what’s disrupting before someone sets up an overwhelming display. After discussing the rules, make sure you can ask for specific decoration removals.

Keep the holiday spirit

Sure, keeping your association’s image is important for many communities. However, the holidays are an exception in many ways. These displays often do more good than harm, so don’t be too tight with them.

Simple tips you can follow

Additionally, Spectrum also has a helpful piece with tips on how you can tackle residential management during the holidays. Unlike the previous advice, these guidelines translate standard management methods into holiday management.

These recommendations will make it easier to speak with your occupants without coming off as hostile.

Avoid discrimination

Don’t favor some residents over the others. Holidays are religious in their foundation, so avoid religious schemes and decorations if you believe your community might feel uncomfortable with them.

Standard community regulations

You might need to give up some ground during the holidays, but maintain rules about noise, bright lights, and other coexistence-related guidelines. Residents should be free to decorate their homes but not to disturb their neighbors.

Provide display advise

Instead of banning certain decorations directly, you want to approach homeowners politely. Make sure you provide constructive criticism on how their displays might disturb neighbors, and encourage community feedback.

Use schedules

Most importantly, set specific times for turning on the decorations as well as when they can display with all their features. Musical and pattern displays can be beautiful but also overwhelming when turned on for too long.

HOA Horror Stories and How to Avoid Being in One

HOAs in Nashville is the standard for many homeowners – a considerable advantage in
many ways, especially when it comes to residential management. The conveniences include maintaining residences in good shape and streamlining administration.

However, they can be problematic in many ways. Many homeowners detail bad experiences and dissatisfaction with these associations. Bad communication and even legal issues, for instance, can spring from the wrong approach by both parties.

Today, we’ll dissect the most common complaints from HOAs and how you can prevent
them.

What are the most common horror stories?

An HOA in Nashville isn’t rare, and countless people see them as just another aspect of their residences. That’s because maintaining and managing residential properties is a challenge. HOAs come from a real need, but they’re complicated for all parties.

That’s why hearing complaints related to these organizations is common. That said, these
issues aren’t always the HOA’s fault. In fact, we’d go as far as saying that both parties are to blame for the majority of cases.

1. I can’t communicate with my HOA

Bad communication is the best way to make residency terrible, both for homeowners and
lease tenants. Not communicating properly, for instance, leads to misunderstandings that
quickly spiral into costly (and even legal) issues.

2. The installations are deteriorating

HOAs are responsible for hiring and managing property services. These include plumbing, janitors, gardeners, electricians, and more. Failing to notify and monitor these services—and even not hiring them—means your residence will slowly deteriorate over time.

3. My HOA hates me but loves my neighbor

This complaint is one of the most common we get from tenants. Many feel like their HOA is constantly against them, yet they’re always polite and helpful to other homeowners. It’s
frustrating, to say the least, and it can go further than merely attitude problems with your
HOA.

What can you do about it?

Now, residents are just as responsible for nurturing a good relationship as the HOA. While the latter needs to create and nurture the right approach, the former is still accountable for using them correctly.

Luckily, avoiding these horror stories with HOAs in Nashville isn’t as difficult as it might
seem. You need to understand their rules and conditions. From there, it’s easier to approach them correctly while defending your rights as a resident.

Understand the rules

HOAs work with contracts and community clauses. The first step to build a good relationship is to go through these rules until you memorize them. Complying with them ensures your HOA doesn’t have reasons to cause any conflict with you.

Know when to argue

You must raise your voice when you feel treated unfairly. However, not all cases are
debatable, and that’s the key. Knowing when you can argue comes from understanding HOA rules, so pick your fights correctly.

Stay calm

HOAs are still people, and they’re under the same stress (and probably more) than you.
Make sure you keep that in mind when approaching them. Good attitudes are more helpful than antagonism.

 

Resident Retention Ideas For Property Managers Seeking Improvement

Resident retention is a common goal for many landlords and property managers in general. Essentially, it refers to ensuring that your renters remain with you for the long-term.

It’s also a great goal that can improve your rentals’ returns significantly. It’s also a challenge for several people, but you can do a few things to help your property management in Florida.

Why you should care about resident retention

Forbes argues that resident retention is critical, especially with the current health crisis. With vacancies peaking, keeping occupancy healthy is a priority for both landlords and renters.

Resident retention ensures a constant income. However, that’s far from the only advantage. From staying away from marketing costs and vacancy, it’s easy to see why retention matters for property management in Florida and everywhere else.

Retaining long-time residents

RealPage’s blog states that long-time residents are often perceived as less important than new residents. As we already mentioned, that’s a costly mindset, and renewals are a lot more beneficial than replacing renters.

That’s why learning how to keep existing residents can be a lifesaver.

Relationships are vital

With that in mind, the most effective way to boost resident retention is to nurture honest relationships. You want to incentivize your tenants to renew their contracts.

Common practices include reserved parking, renovations, and promoting community projects and events.

Keeping everyone happy

Zillow also has several recommendations to ensure positive retention. These are more general than our previous section. However, they also pinpoint the foundation of keeping occupancy: healthy relationships.

Communities

You can create a sense of community to strengthen the relationships of all residents with you and each other. You can use common areas to host events for holidays and celebrations.

With today’s health concerns, you don’t really need to forego this approach. You can use social media and similar platforms to interact with your residents.

Maintenance

CAM (common area maintenance) is vital for property management in Florida overall. That’s just as true (if not more) for resident retention.

Make sure to keep all common areas clean and in good shape. That includes responding quickly to repair and maintenance requests to make your residents’ lives easier.

Adapting to your renters

Finally, you want to make sure you tailor your spaces to your renters. You should consider adding amenities, like a sports court or a kid’s park. You can even run community polls to gather feedback.

What Is Capital Expenditure?

Capital expenditure – CapEx, for short -refers to all payments that are then capitalized when registered on the balance sheet. These expenditures go into business expansion rather than revenue.

It’s important to note that CapEx, and expenditure in general, isn’t the same as expenses. Expenses are usually regular investments made to generate revenue. Capital expenditure is less common, and it signifies a more prominent benefit for the company.

Expenses include salaries, production costs, rent, and similarly recurring spending. On the other hand, capital expenditure is both more costly (upfront) and significant. Examples of capital expenditure include land, equipment and machinery, new software, and even paying out big loans.

CapEx and capital improvement

CapEx and capital improvement are very similar processes. In fact, many can argue that capital expenditure usually results in capital improvement. That’s because capital improvement refers to structural change and improvements for property.

However, we must understand they’re not the same. Capital improvement affects the value of the property by itself. Companies and individuals can make capital improvements, and it’s not always for commercial purposes. Common examples of capital improvement include kitchen renovations or adding rooms to a building.

Not being the same doesn’t mean they’re not related. Building parking lots and building expansions count as capital expenditures resulting in capital improvement.

Calculating CapEx

There’s a plethora of methods and formulas to calculate your capital expenditure, You can also calculate your CapEx indirectly, calculating your asset value along with their depreciation.

However, the most straightforward approach is to add up the amounts spent on said assets. The approach then compares this total against the value the company received for sold assets.

This formula’s result is your net CapEx.

How does depreciation interact with CapEx?

Capitalizing on expenditures counts as assets when recorded on your balance sheet. You also need to expense said asset, moving it on your income statement, if you wish to move it off your balance.

Regardless of the method you use to depreciate, your total depreciation will equate your net CapEx over time. That means that you can compare your CapEx with your depreciation to know your company’s asset growth.

CapEx and valuation

The effects of CapEx on valuation vary depending on how you use your CapEx. Certain capital expenditure categories, like annual maintenance, rarely contribute to a business’ profitability.

That being said, growth-oriented capital expenditures can also contribute to a company’s value.

The Top Property Management Essentials

Did you know that the U.S. property management industry generates over $88 billion USD in revenue every year? 

Atlanta property management isn’t simple. You need to monitor every property, answer every request, and more. Being a good property manager is a prominent challenge but understanding where to start is a huge advantage.

Whether you’re starting out or want to improve, understanding the essentials of property management is key. Today, we’ll explain what you must keep in mind if you want to make your—and your tenants’—live easier.

What exactly is a good property manager?

Not all property managers are good, and that’s easy to expect. There are too many variables in the field. Properties, spaces, tenants, and commodities are filled with factors that could go wrong in any moment.

The best property managers aren’t born. They come from experience and preparation. That takes time—maybe even years. Understanding these three characteristics of the best Atlanta property management today can help you become a good property manager.

Knows their properties

You can’t be a good property manager if you don’t know what you’re managing. Every property presents a plethora of variables that you need to track.

The easiest way to become a better manager is to invest in modern software. You can monitor maintenance, requests, and other management realities.

Is certified

Good Atlanta property management requires certifications. You’ll learn indispensable knowledge and techniques while having a certificate that shows your preparation.

Good certifications include property management, construction- and utility-related certificates, and similar skills. The same is true for renovations, administration, and more.

Understands marketing

Finally, any property manager needs to generate profits from their assets. That’s the entire point of the field, and marketing is how you attract this income.

For property management, listing websites are the most common approach. However, you can also market your management services on social media and similar platforms.

What Is The Difference Between A Condo And An Apartment?

Condos and apartments are two of the best assets for building management firms. Whether you’re renting or selling, demand for both has always been high.

According to Stayfi’s 2020 compilation of vacation rental statistics, the majority of Gen-Z travelers prefer condos for rental. Last year was also a milestone for apartment demand, according to The Real Deal.

You can find countless articles about living in them. That’s why our focus for today is the building management side of things.

How are condos and apartments different for a property manager?

Building management differences

In terms of attributes, they’re actually very similar. The main difference actually comes from ownership.

Building management for apartments usually goes for the entire building instead of per apartment. Everyone looking to rent or buy an apartment has to speak to the same entity. It’s why apartment management is a lot more centralized than condo management.

Speaking of condo management, condos are more “individualistic” than apartments. Homeowner Associations typically manage condos. This management centers around common area maintenance instead of the entire space.

In other words, building management often includes complete ownership of the apartment buildings. For condos, building management is mostly that: management instead of ownership.

Renting

For condos, rent is quite different from apartments. The HoA manages common amenities, like concierges and general security. Homeowners and tenants pay fees every month for these benefits. However, utilities are mostly every tenant’s responsibility.

For apartments, building management companies are responsible for all bills and maintenance. Therefore, the company will charge for security, cleaning, and most utilities. That’s because the same public services go into the entire building instead of every apartment individually.

Maintaining

Maintenance for condos is the responsibility of every owner. If the owner fails to pay his utility bills, they can lose the corresponding service. However, all other condos won’t face any consequence for their own utilities. HoAs fees are solely for amenities benefiting all owners.

On the other hand, building management for apartments is more involved with maintenance. That’s because everything outside every apartment space is basically “common areas.”

Regulations

The condo’s HoA is in charge of creating community rules for everyone. That’s often a communal agreement on what’s acceptable within the areas. That said, individual owners can create their own rules within the condo.

Apartment rules begin and end with the owning building management firm. The building’s owner can decide what’s allowed and what isn’t, even within the apartments.

Affordable Housing in Nashville

Affordable housing is among real estate’s most demanded markets. It provides a lifesaving solution to many people. Amid COVID-19, affordable housing saw one of the largest increases in demand as well.

However, it’s a common headache for property management in Nashville—and everywhere else. It’s still a solid business investment for any company, but that’s not the problem. It requires managers to track multiple variables, factors, and compliances.

What does affordable housing mean for management companies? What can you do to make your life easier? That’s today’s topic.

What does affordable housing mean for property management?

In essence, affordable housing is a program aiming to provide low-income populations with a place to live. While it’s often seen as part of Section 8 clauses, they’re not the same. In essence, affordable housing is a tax incentive for real estate firms.

It strives to motivate cheaper rental prices that people with lower salaries can afford. Property management in this sector isn’t too different to other markets, but you need to keep several issues in mind.

Certification

You can’t give a property tour and have residents move in the next day. You must be sure that your applicant is a low-income resident. Therefore, you have to request their employer’s payment information, lack of child support, and more.

Re-certification

The same certification process will repeat itself after your initial lease completes. You’ll have to go through the same steps to assess whether or not your tenant still qualifies for affordable housing. Make sure to start at least three months and study self-certification possibilities.

Compliance

It’s vital to comply with every rule within your program. Failing to do so yields costly consequences to the tax credit holder. Keep in mind that too many mistakes can result in the government revoking your credit claim.

Insight for affordable housing management

NeighborWorks America published a detailed research paper on affordable housing. We highly recommend you to read it if you’re interested in the implications behind the program. However, it’s an extensive document that goes through several topics not related to our focus.

The most curious section for our current concerns is the implications they point out for property management. Of course, you need to research and educate yourself on all the nuances we mentioned already, but these three tips can make a huge difference for your company.

Communicating with nonprofits

Engage with nonprofits you work with during annual budgeting. You want to assess their goals and the criteria they care about for the property’s long-term success. Therefore, you can focus on the most important issues for owners.

Remembering it’s still a business

Property management in Nashville should still care about operating budgets and the property’s returns. Economic inviability nullifies any contributions your company can make to a community, especially when the necessary resources can’t be allocated due to budget constraints.

Proper staffing

Finally, make sure you work with high-quality personnel. That’s one of the main challenges because of how it’s difficult to offer competitive salaries when working with affordable housing. Therefore, invest in constant training and create reward programs for employees.

 

5 Best Practices For A Buyer To Seller Letter

Finding the house of your dreams can be bittersweet. On one hand, buying it is a major achievement, and the peace it brings is equal to none. However, losing the bid on that house can feel like your soul gets crushed.

That’s why prospective buyers often do everything they can to get that house. A buyer letter to seller is an excellent way to tip the balance in your favor. However, you need to know how to write it properly.

What exactly is a buyer letter to seller?

In competitive housing markets, which many states across the country are experiencing right now, it can be hard to find the right edge over other buyers. So many buyers are exhausted with finding a house they love, putting in an offer, only for another offer to be accepted. Clever has a great article explaining what these letters are. It’s essentially a complimentary letter for your offer directed to the seller. The goal behind it is to create a more personal connection with your seller.

So, these letters to the seller focus on triggering an emotional response. You want them to prefer you for more than your bid. The best letters can convince sellers to accept your offer, even if they have larger bids from other buyers.

Why should you care?

A buyer letter is a significant leverage if you write them correctly. You can add more weight to your offer after creating an emotional connection with a seller. Therefore, you don’t need to rely solely on your capital.

If no one uses these letters, the decision is a lot simpler for the seller. They just need to go for the highest bid. Therefore, this strategy can help you curb a significant disadvantage, especially if you’re somewhat low on funds.

The 5 keys for a good letter

Anyone can write a buyer letter to seller, but writing the perfect letter can be a challenge. You need to know which words you should use as well as which emotions you want to target.

Luckily, Investopedia has several tips you can use to craft a great letter. We’ll summarize them into the 5 main practices you want to implement.

Before diving into it, keep in mind that every seller is different. Not all of them will respond to the same triggers in the same way. It’s your responsibility to understand them and proceed accordingly.

Connections

Find something relating you and the seller together. Focus on these aspects to help them empathize with you. Universities, hometowns, and hobbies are a great start.

Conciseness

You want to cover all the aspects you need, but don’t make it too long. Keep the letter straight to the point. You don’t want the seller to feel bored reading it,

Positiveness

Don’t bring up uncomfortable topics. That includes previous lost offers. You don’t want to come off as dramatic or desperate.

Be engaging

Avoid generic sentences, like “I like your house.” Explain why you like it and how it fits your life goals. However, do avoid mentioning remodeling or any changes to it.

Proofread!

Before sending it, read everything you just wrote. You want to spot errors, sure, but your main focus should be on whether or not you’re sending the right message.