Q & A for Investors and Owners
Q: What do you charge?
A: 10% of monthly rent. This fee may be reduced depending on rental rate or quantity of rentals. There is also a $500 leasing fee upon signing a new lease.
Q: What is involved with management?
A: In a nutshell, we advertise and show the rental, verify and qualify tenants, collect rents, facilitate service contracts, dispatch maintenance, tenant relations, financials for owner.
Q: Is there a rental permits required?
A: Yes, if the rental is inside the limits of the City of Bloomington.
Q: Is the owner involved with the leasing process?
A: No. The office follows a set process and all city, county, state and federal laws. Having an owner involved in the leasing piece can create difficulties and slows down the process.
Q: Does the owner pay for maintenance?
A: Yes, all maintenance is billed to the owner for payment. If the maintenance can be easily proven to be a tenant-caused problem, PM will bill the tenant for reimbursement to owner.
Q: What if the tenant doesn’t pay rent?
A: We have a collections process to follow, but we cannot guarantee rent payment. If we can’t collect, then we contact the owner about options. An attorney must handle any court action including evictions. The owner may have a vacancy in a slow leasing time.
Q: I don’t have any savings, what happens if there are expenses?
A: If an owner does not have at least 3 months of reserves, we do not recommend having an investment property. In addition to most likely having maintenance repairs, there are also turnover expenses and not at all turnover maintenance can be charged to tenants.
Q: What type of turnover expenses should be expected?
A: Normal wear and tear cannot be charged to tenants. At turnover, we clean carpets, touch up paint (full paint every 2-3 yrs), change locks, and do any miscellaneous maintenance, such as adjust cabinets, doors, replace smoke detector batteries, change light bulbs, repair toilets and any plumbing leaks, etc.
Q: If something breaks, do I have to fix it (ex. Washer)?
A: Yes!! The rental is to be maintained throughout the lease as to the same condition when the tenant took possession and conducted the move-in inspection.
Q: Is there a limit to maintenance repair expenses?
A: Yes. We have a maximum of $500 for any repair. If the cost is expected to exceed that and it is not an emergency situation, we will contact the owner for approval, instruction, discussion.
Q: Will I be contacted for all expenses?
A: No, we only contact owners if a single repair is over $500 AND if it is not already listed on the maintenance checklist of items that is expected to be maintained.
Q: What about lawn care, landscaping and snow removal?
A: We mow and clear snow off driveways and sidewalks on all properties and charge to owners. Many owners do not want a mowing expense, but it is cheaper in the long run to have this taken care of lawn mowing and landscape maintenance on a regular basis pace. Many tenants do not have lawn equipment or want to do lawn care, a reason for renting.
Q: What is your biggest struggle with a rental property?
A: Owners being willing to spend funds to maintain the property. Our Company reputation is at risk with tenants when owners do not cooperate with the rental process.
Q: When will I get my funds?
A: Assuming rent payments are made, we process all financials monthly between the 10th & 15th.
