Property management plays a crucial role in the real estate industry, bridging the gap between property owners and tenants. While property management provides peace of mind and hands off cash flow, it’s not without its challenges. Common complaints often include lack of communication, transparency, poor tenant screening, cost management, low collection rates, and inefficient maintenance protocols. We will address these complaints one by one and walk through how Kentuckiana Property Management (KPM) avoids these issues.
1. Poor Communication
The Issue:
A frequently complaint from investors is that no one can get ahold of their property manager. At the end of the day, property management is a customer service-based industry and proper communication standards should be set. Delayed responses, lack of updates, or inadequate information about their properties should not be acceptable when choosing a company to oversee your investment. Tenants may also feel neglected when maintenance requests or concerns go unanswered.
The Solution:
At KPM we pride ourselves on fast response times for both investors and tenants. We have implemented a “24-hour” policy which means that all communication will be responded to within 24 hours of receiving the inquiry. The internal software we use tracks all inbound calls, texts and emails and assigns them directly to the proper staff member with the requirement to respond within the allotted time frame. While our 24-hour policy does not include weekends or holidays, we do have a dedicated 24/7 emergency line available where all calls will be answered even if it is a 2AM maintenance call or an emergency on a holiday.
2. Lack of Transparency
The Issue:
Owners may feel in the dark about how their money is being spent or the decisions being made regarding their properties. This often leads to distrust and dissatisfaction.
The Solution:
Transparency starts with clear contracts and regular reporting. We provide detailed financial statements by the 15th of each month, itemized invoices for maintenance or repairs, and open access to documentation 24/7 through our online portal. Our owner Travis is a CPA, and we also have a director of accounting on staff that is a CPA. We establish a threshold for all maintenance repairs with the owner upon signing the contract. If the scope of work is anticipated to exceed the threshold, we proactively reach out to the owner for their approval prior to any work being started.
3. Poor Screening Standards
The Issue:
A good tenant can be a make or break for your investment, many companies ignore proper screening and rush to secure the first tenant who applies. A tenant who is not screened has a higher likelihood of: unpaid rents, property damage, and quick turnovers.
The Solution:
We have adopted a comprehensive screening process that includes credit checks (we don’t just look at credit score we also assess the contents of the credit history), background checks, rental history verifications, collection of income documents, income verification, debt to income checks, direct employer calls, criminal history reports, eviction and bankruptcy checks, and delinquent utility checks. By implementing clear and consistent screening criteria we can mitigate potential risks of renting to an unqualified individual.
4. High Costs at Turns
The Issue:
Many owners experience price shock once a prior tenant has moved out due to high costs for repairs or renovations in preparation for getting the home or apartment ready to rent and market. Poor planning and lack of a thorough inspection process make this a recurring frustration.
The Solution:
A proactive inspection process can reduce costs of turns by addressing small issues before they grow into costly issues. In addition to inspections, a clear move in report can also reduce the owner’s liability to pay for certain items at move out. At KPM, we conduct a detailed move in report with pictures and videos in addition to having the tenant complete a move in sheet to set a baseline for the property on the day of move in. At move out, we conduct a move out inspection and any damage incurred will be deducted from the security deposit. To go a step further we also perform a mid-lease inspection. All of our inspections come at no additional cost. After the move out, we also have a team of in-house maintenance and contracts with reliable vendors who give us discounted rates for any additional work that needs to be completed. All repairs and make-ready items are clearly documented for transparency.
5. Low Collection Rates
The Issue:
Delinquent or delayed payments not only hurt the owner’s cash flow but also have a poor reflection on the property management’s efficiency.
The Solution:
Our lease agreements have no grace periods which means that all payments must be made on or before the first of each month. Allowing a grace period increases the likelihood of a delayed payment. If we do not receive payment by the first of each month, we will not only implement a fine but will also file the 7-day notice to pay or vacate which is the first step in the eviction process. Strong technology programs can also be a huge benefit to help automate, monitor and track the payment status for each property. We will also begin call, text and email campaigns to send reminders about delinquent payments which helps us to better our collection rates and forecast where collections will be. If necessary, payment arrangements can be set up with prior approval from the owner to help get a tenant back on track and maintain cash flow.
6. Poor Maintenance Protocols
The Issue:
The biggest tenant complaint is that maintenance never shows up or does a subpar job. Owners may also see increased repair costs if the requests are not handled in a timely fashion or in a workmanship manner.
The Solution:
Set up a reliable system for maintenance requests and tracking. KPM not only has in-house maintenance, but we also have a dedicated staff member (maintenance coordinator) who handles and assigns all maintenance requests. The requests operate in a ticket like fashion so no job can fall through the cracks, and we can provide updates in real time. In-house maintenance gives us faster turnaround times and greater control over the maintenance process. We also have skilled vendors in place for specialized trades and they can ensure timely responses to tenant concerns. Tenants can file a maintenance request with ease either by submitting it on the portal, giving us a call or emailing the appropriate address with the issue. The request will then be fielded by our maintenance coordinator who will assign it accordingly depending on scope of work and outstanding schedules by our maintenance team. Serious issues and emergencies will take priority over smaller jobs. All maintenance will be properly documented on the owner’s portal.
Turning Complaints into Opportunities
We take pride in listening to common complaints when speaking with owners who are looking to transition from another company, and we constantly analyze those complaints to implement proper procedures and protocols to avoid them. KPM has a heavy backing with upgraded technology that allows us to stay up to date with each property, track communication, and make management a breeze for our investors. If you are looking for a property manager who values integrity and results, contact us today!
