| What does a property management company do? |
| There are many, many functions of a property management company. Some of the functions most important to a homeowner, include advertising the property, qualifying tenants, rent collection, payment of rent to owner, property preservation, and coordination of repairs when necessary. |
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| What are your fees? |
| You don’t pay anything until we have secured a qualified tenant. Once the tenants moves in, we retain the first months rent. Thereafter, our management fee is 10% of the gross monthly rent, for the duration of the lease term. |
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| Are there any up-front costs to me? |
| No, we don’t have any up-front costs. |
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| How often are inspections done? |
| All of our properties are inspected on a routine basis. However, if we have reasonable cause to inspect the property, we may do so with a 24 hour notice to tenant. |
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| Do I need to carry insurance on the property? |
| The tenant will be instructed to maintain insurance on their personal belongings. It is the owners responsibility to maintain any structure insurance necessary. |
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| Who will pay for the water, gas and electric? |
| The tenant is responsible for all utilities. If any utility is included in association fees, taxes etc… that utility is typically included in the rental rate. |
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| Who will handle repairs? |
| All repair issues will be directed to our office. Unless the repair is an emergency, the owner will be contacted with the requested repair and an estimate for repair. We will coordinate with the tenant to get the approved repair completed. |
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| Can I use my own repair companies? |
| Yes, provided the repair is done timely and is coordinated through our office. To effectively manage a property, it is important that we maintain a record of all repairs. |
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| What if the tenant doesn’t pay their rent? |
| All rents are due on the 1st of each month, if the tenant has not paid by 15th, our attorney will have already begun the eviction process. |
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| How are tenants qualified? |
| We analyze credit reports, background check reports, state eviction check reports, verify income, contact references and verify any prior landlord information available. The combined monthly income of the tenants must be more than 3 times the monthly rental rate to qualify. |
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| Do I have to allow pets? |
| No, whether or not you allow pets is completely up to you. |
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| What is the minimum lease term? |
| Our minimum lease term is 1 year, unless prior arrangements are made with the owner. |
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| Do I have to include appliances? |
| No, but we highly recommend appliances be included. Most properties available for lease, are offered with appliances. |
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| What is the required security deposit? |
| We require a security deposit equivalent to 1 ½ month rental rate. The security deposit is held by our company until the tenant vacates the property. |
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| What types of maintenance is the tenant responsible for? |
| The tenant is responsible for upkeep of the property, including, lawn maintenance/snow removal, changing of furnace filters, light bulbs, cleaning of gutters, etc… |
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| Can I see the tenant information application and credit report? |
| No, that information is kept confidential with in our office. We will provide you with as much general information as we can, but specifics have to be limited. For example, we can tell you a tenants occupation, but not specifically where they work., we can tell you their children are elementary age but their specific ages, etc… |
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| Will the tenant have my name? |
| No, your information is also kept confidential with in our office. |
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| How long will it take to lease my property? |
| It depends on a lot of factors, time of year, monthly rental rate, condition of property and many other factors. On the whole, due to our extensive advertising, we generally are able to lease a property faster than the marketing times indicated on the MLS system. |
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| How much time do I have to approve a tenant after you present a prospect to me? |
| Usually with in 24 hrs. In our experience, if too much time is wasted a qualified tenant will continue to pursue other properties and be approved elsewhere |
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| Once a tenant is approved, what happens next? |
| We will let you know if the property needs to be cleaned, and/or the carpet needs to be cleaned, if there are any repair issues that need to be resolved, etc.. We can help to coordinate any of these things as well. We will schedule a time to have our lease signed, turn over keys, and take move-in pictures. We will let you know when the lease has been signed. |
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| Can I still rent my property if I am trying to sell it? |
| Yes, but we don’t recommend it. Once a lease has been signed, the lease must be honored by the buyer of the property. |
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| Do I need to file anything with the city to rent my house? |
| Some cities do require a permit be obtained. The cost often under $100 per year, and there is often a city inspection that needs to take place. You can contact your city offices directly for instructions. |
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| How do you find tenants? |
| We do extensive advertising. We advertise on roughly 50 different websites, the MLS system, and local publications such as Suburban Lifestyles and Coffee News. |
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