New property managers often set expectations too early—before they fully understand their competition (or their customers). Establishing rent tiers, planning property upgrades, and getting the marketing strategies down will help you gain valuable insight and be better prepared for the future. You really need to start with a market analysis.

A market analysis allows you to know more about what trends are happening in your area and answer questions like “Am I charging too much? Too little? What do I need to do to make money on my properties? How much new construction is planned or in the works and how will it affect me?”

Here are a few tips on how to do your own market analysis.

Choose a Strategic Approach An analysis can be tricky, as there is a lot of data to sift through. Before you start, know your goals and choose the right approach. There are two distinct, but complementary, strategies for doing an analysis.

The first, demand-based analysis, explores and identifies competition that offers similar housing features consumers expect—amenities, location, access to public transportation and price.

The second, supply-based analysis, identifies rental properties that market options similar to your apartments or single-family homes.

Looking at your competition from both angles will help you determine where you need to invest your resources and dollars to stay competitive. You might not be able to easily address some of these issues, like location and distance to public transportation, but you can make adjustments or plan upgrades to still make your property desirable.

Gather All the Info It’s going to take some time and effort on your part to conduct a comprehensive review. You should start by researching the following information about properties in your area:

• Average vacancy rate
• Number of days on the market, per unit
• Tenant profile: age, occupation, length of tenancy, families or singles
• Proximity to your property
• Established vs. new construction
• Rent in the area (more below on this topic)

Use the Internet Wisely The Internet makes conducting an analysis less time-consuming and exponentially easier than ever before. Social media sites, business directory reviews, and competitor websites all provide you with valuable information about how your competition interacts with consumers and what consumers think about those other property management teams and their properties.

Doing a Rent Comparison Part of a market analysis is determining what is an acceptable rent for your area. Once you’ve looked at other properties in your neighborhood and performed some market research, it’s time to set the price of your rental units. Software solutions like AppFolio offer rent comparison for free as part of the web-based property management software service. Running rent comparisons are extremely important to your profitability, but they can be time-consuming and resource-intensive. They also need to happen often. Rather than spend days gathering information and analyzing numbers, a simple tool does it for you in a few clicks.

Once you’ve accumulated all the pertinent data, you can put together your plan of action. A market analysis gives your team valuable information about your competition and your target base; and using the information you gather will give you a competitive edge.

Appfolio | Company Website | LinkedIn Connect | AppFolio, Inc. develops Property Management Software that helps businesses improve their workflow so they save time and make more money. Appfolio submits articles & blogs including topics of Resident Retention, Improved Owner Communication, Time Management, and more.

DALLAS (AXIOMETRICS) – The San Diego apartment market is stronger than it has been in the past 14 years and, as of July 2015, has the highest rent growth in Southern California, according to Axiometrics, the leader in apartment and student housing research and analytics.

Annual effective rent growth in the San Diego-Carlsbad Metropolitan Statistical Area was 7.3% in July, the highest since Axiometrics began monthly annual reporting in April 2009. From the quarterly metrics before that, July’s rate was the highest since the 10.5% in the second quarter of 2001.

San Diego renters paid an average of $1,818 per month in July, $124 more than they did in July 2014.

“Southern California as a region had an apartment market that was slow to emerge from the Great Recession, and San Diego emerged more slowly than the Los Angeles-area metros,” said Stephanie McCleskey, Axiometrics Vice President of Research. “Job growth (2.8% in June) is slightly higher than LA, and not many new units are coming to market compared to the areas north on Interstate 5.”

• The July rent-growth rate was the strongest in Southern California. The next highest was the Inland Empire at 7.2%. San Diego has the eighth-highest rent-growth rate in the nation in July, among Axiometrics’ top 50 markets based on number of units.
• July’s effective-rent-growth rate was an 86-basis-point (bps) increase from June’s 6.3% and a 1274-bps rise from the 4.6% of July 2014.
• s 95.3%, but 64 bps lower than the 96.3% in July 2014

San Diego’s apartment market strength is demonstrated by the fact that only one of the metro’s 14 submarkets with at least 1,000 units had annual effective rent growth of at least 5.0% in July, with six submarkets above 8.0%.

All except the bottom three submarkets saw rent growth increase from 1 to 8 percentage points in the past year.

The wide-ranging San Diego/Other submarket (All of San Diego County north of Oceanside and Vista and east of Escondido) had the highest rent growth, with the more compact, in-town La Jolla/University City following. The Clairemont/Linda Vista Mission submarket had both the lowest rent growth and the lowest occupancy. Since it also has the most units of any submarket (16.4% of the total San Diego market), it is a major factor in the metro’s overall fundamentals.

Annual submarket effective rent growth rates and July 2015 occupancy rates were:

Source: Axiometrics Inc.

About Axiometrics

By Ross Coulter

Axiometrics’ specialty is monitoring the apartment and student housing markets, providing an in-depth view of volatile market trends. Axiometrics’ granular data-collection methods and enlightening analysis help clients make profitable – and intelligent – decisions. To learn more visit www.axiometrics.com, follow @Axiometrics or on LinkedIn, or call 214-953-2242.

As a property manager, you don’t want a “bad” renter—someone who is late on payments, tears up the floorboards, or has bad credit. This type of renter can lead to increased turnover, costly maintenance repairs, and eviction headaches. You want “good” renters, and this is where the important tenant screening process comes into play. But the process can be a daunting and time-consuming one, and if you’re not careful, a problem renter can slip through the cracks.

Here are three simple tips for identifying and selecting only the highest-quality renters:

Know the difference between a “good” and “bad” renter.

In general, there are inherent qualities that a high-quality renter possesses and ones that a troublemaking renter exhibits. Once you have completed a thorough credit and background check and contacted previous employers, landlords, and references, take a detailed look at the results. Ask yourself questions like:

• Did he or she have issues making payments at prior residences?
• Was he or she ever in trouble with the law?
• Does the prospective renter have a history of tardiness at work?
• Does the person have a history of being irresponsible?
• Why did they leave their prior residence?

You have a duty to your other residents and your business to be aware of any potential issues. Know what you’re getting into with people who have a spotty history, questionable credit, or a criminal record.

Trust your gut.

During the interview process, what is the first impression you get? If an applicant is rude or disrespectful, chances are the person will be an issue for you down the road. A renter who can’t respect his or her property manager will, most likely, have trouble respecting the property. Ask a lot of questions during the initial meeting, and see if his or her answers match up with the answers you get during the references and background check. If he or she is dishonest, you might be taking a risk.

It’s important to remember that when you are selecting renters, be consistent in your decision-making process.

Consider technology to help. The entire screening process can be time consuming, especially when you’re managing a lot of turnover. Consider an online tenant screening service. It can be as simple as clicking a “screen now” button for your renter and having screening results displayed in a clean report. Sometimes information is difficult to get or resources are scarce, so property management software with built-in screening helps ease the burden. If you can cut down on the time it takes to screen your applicants, you can spend more time on marketing your property.

It can be tough to find great residents, but it’s even tougher to deal with problem renters later on, so taking the extra steps for thorough tenant screening is worth it. In the end, you’ll decrease turnover with quality renters and build a respectable reputation for your property.

Appfolio | Company Website | LinkedIn Connect | AppFolio, Inc. develops Property Management Software that helps businesses improve their workflow so they save time and make more money. Appfolio submits articles & blogs including topics of Resident Retention, Improved Owner Communication, Time Management, and more.

Your property management website is one of the most important tools in this digital age for bringing in prospective residents. But is it doing its job? Here is a quick checklist to help assess if your website is working as hard as it should be.

Is your website fast? Research shows that consumers will abandon a website if it takes more than four seconds to load. And, some studies show that consumer patience is shrinking. According to stats reported by search experts at Moz, 50% of Internet websites load in less than 3 seconds (2.9) and 6% load almost instantly (.8 seconds). Where does your website’s speed land?

Are you providing valuable, shareable content? Creating high-quality, unique website and blog content builds rapport. Promoting your blog posts via multiple social networks, email campaigns, paid online ads, and word of mouth builds awareness. Are you writing a mix of property-specific and location-based content and encouraging your current residents to share it?

Are you highlighting your reviews? Reputation, values, and authenticity matter. If people are saying good things, be sure to showcase them. Do you have a page dedicated to happy renters, or are you sprinkling the positive comments throughout the website? A second important piece to this is social media; are your social profiles integrated so people can share these reviews?

Can someone quickly apply for a vacancy? Having online applications is essential to capturing interested residents and turning them into paying residents. Some people might be in a hurry to find a place to live and want to apply right then and there. It’s really beneficial when the online applications are integrated with your property management software, so when they are ready to sign a lease the renter’s information is already stored in the system and available. How long does it currently take you to turn around a unit?

Is your website mobile-friendly? This concept isn’t going away anytime soon; in fact, the demand for mobile and responsive websites is growing. With Google favoring mobile-optimized sites and mobile search overtaking desktop in 2014, it’s imperative that your site works on phones and tablets. Visit your own site on your phone—what’s the experience like? If you’re frustrated, you can bet your prospects are, too.

Can people find your website? There are thousands of professionals who make a living at search engine optimization (SEO). It’s a complex subject, with both technical and content considerations. One of the easiest ways for anyone to check if a website is optimized is searching for it in Google. On what page does your site show up? If you can’t find it, there are a lot of reasons it could be low down in the rankings and you might need to have a professional perform a deep dive.

If you’re generating sufficient interest from your website, but conversion rates are still low, it could mean a much larger process inefficiency. If your website isn’t bringing in the number of prospective renters you expect or need to meet your business goals, consider having someone help with your website. It might be missing some key elements to be a successful lead generation engine for your company, anything from design to SEO optimization.

Appfolio | Company Website | LinkedIn Connect | AppFolio, Inc. develops Property Management Software that helps businesses improve their workflow so they save time and make more money. Appfolio submits articles & blogs including topics of Resident Retention, Improved Owner Communication, Time Management, and more.

DALLAS (AXIOMETRICS) –  Annual effective rent growth in the Los Angeles apartment market reached a record level at 6.4% in July 2015, according to Axiometrics, the leader in apartment and student housing research and analysis.

That means renters are paying much more than they were a year ago. The average apartment in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale Metropolitan Division cost $2,138 per month in July, $130 more than the $2,008 average rent in July 2014.

“LA rent growth was the highest it has been since Axiometrics began monthly reporting of annual effective rent growth in April 2009,” said Stephanie McCleskey, Axiometrics Vice President of Research. “Job growth was 2.5% in June, above the national average, and new supply is moderate, so there is no risk of oversupply with all the jobs being added (116,500 in the 12 months ended June 2015.”

Some 2,997 new units were delivered in the first half of 2015, with 4,416 more identified for delivery in the second half of this year. Construction is expected to boom next year, with 10,730 units expected to come to market.

“Because Southern California emerged from the recession more slowly than did other areas of the country, the aparment market is still playing catch-up in terms of new construction,” McCleskey said. “However, Axiometrics’ Supply/Demand Model shows supply overtaking demand this quarter, so rent growth may start to moderate.”

Some other highlights from the Los Angeles metro division:

• Annual effective rent growth in July ticked up 15 basis points (bps) from June’s 6.3%. The July rate was 154 bps higher than the 4.9% recorded in July 2014.
• The LA metro’s occupancy rate of 95.9% was a 5-bps decrease from June and a 3-bps decrease from July 2014.

The annual effective rent growth rate declined in the other three LA-Area metros, while the occupancy rate declined in the entire area:

• The Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA’s rent growth continued to moderate, though its 7.2% rate in July was the highest in the area. Rent growth decreased 40 bps from June’s 7.6% but represented a 171-bps rise from the 5.4% of July 2014. Inland Empire occupancy was 95.1%, 63 bps lower than June and 66 bps lower than July 2014.
• Inland Empire average rents are still the lowest in the LA area: $1,370 in July. That monthly figure represents a $91 increase from the $1,278 of July 2014.
• The Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) still sported the highest occupancy rate (96.6%) among the four LA-area metros in July, though occupancy declined from June’s 96.8%, though it increased from the 96.2% of July 2014.
• Oxnard’s annual effective rent growth rate of 7.0% represented an 85-bps decrease from June’s 7.9% but a 19-bps increase from the 6.9% of July 2014.
• Average monthly rent in the Oxnard MSA was $1,897, some $124 more than the $1,773 of June 2014.
• The annual rate of Orange County effective rent growth decreased for the fourth straight month, to 5.0% in July, a 34-bps decline from June’s 5.4%. Still, July’s figure was 190 bps higher than the 3.1% of July 2014.
• The average rent in the Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine Metropolitan Division was $1,920, a $92 increase from the $1,828 of July 2014.
• Orange County occupancy was 95.6%, down from the June’s 95.9% and July 2014’s 96.2%.

About Axiometrics

By Ross Coulter for Axiometrics. Axiometrics’ specialty is monitoring the apartment and student housing markets, providing an in-depth view of volatile market trends. Axiometrics’ granular data-collection methods and enlightening analysis help clients make profitable – and intelligent – decisions. To learn more visit www.axiometrics.com, follow @Axiometrics or on LinkedIn, or call 214-953-2242.

In a perfect world, anytime a tenant moved out, a new and equally perfect tenant would be waiting to move in. A brief chat would suffice as assurance that the new tenant would be ideal for the community, a handshake and keys would be exchanged.

Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world. In the real world, poor decisions are made and mistakes happen. Perhaps the applicant’s actions in the past affected his or her credit, criminal or even employment history. Perhaps the landlord or property manager has mistakenly “shaken hands” with the wrong tenant, resulting in a stressful and costly experience for everyone involved.

A prospective tenant completes an application specifically granting permission to pull a credit report and background history, which is then screened to generate a consumer report. The resulting consumer report is then compared to your written rental criteria, allowing for a consistent decision to be properly implemented. If the applicant proves to be the perfect candidate, the move-in process begins.

However, not everyone is perfect. Sometimes, the applicant falls short of your criteria such as with a low risk score, a low income to rent ratio, or too many collection accounts. So you decide to offer the rental under modified terms with an increased security deposit, pre-paid rent requirements or a co-signer. Other times, an eviction hit or violent criminal conviction results in a denial.

In either cases, denied or conditional (modified terms) decision, you are to provide the applicant in writing (1) an Adverse Action Notice explaining why the decision was made, (2) a Summary of Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and (3) any additional forms required in your state.

There are the instances when the conditional or denied applicants disagree with the decision and would like to dispute the completeness or accuracy of the consumer report. At a minimum, the Adverse Action Notice must include:

• The name, address, telephone and website of the agency that provided the report.
• A statement that the agency did not make the decision to take the adverse action and cannot give the specific reason for it.
• A notice of the applicant’s right to dispute the accuracy of the information provided by the agency and the applicant’s right to receive a free report from the agency upon request within 60 days.

Your reporting agency should be able to provide a compliant Adverse Action template to use. For your protection, store a copy denoting the date the notice was delivered to the applicant.

When the consumer disagrees with the decision based on information provided by the agency, he or she may initiate a consumer dispute to correct any inaccuracies thus in turn improving the tenant screening reports that landlords rely on.

For more information on the FCRA and Adverse Action Notices, visit the Federal Trade Commission website.

By Caryn Bennett

ApplyConnect | Company Website | ApplyConnect seeks to provide landlords and agents with the comprehensive tenant screening service you need, when you need it. Move qualified renters into their dream homes, faster than ever and have peace of mind knowing that ApplyConnect tenant screening reports are backed by nearly 30 years of experience! Active industry involvement includes positions of leadership in the National Association of Professional Background Screeners and the National Consumer Reporting Association.

As our rivers, lakes and reservoirs recede before our very eyes, it is becoming increasingly important to find ways to save water. Fortunately, there are dozens of ways to save this precious natural resource that require little or no monetary investment.

Try these 10 Water Saving Tips to save water in the kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, pool area and lawn. With a few simple lifestyle changes, you can save up to 28,000 gallons a year.

1. A point-of-use tankless water heater can save thousands of gallons of water by cutting down on “warm up” time. Savings: 1,000s gallons / year
2. Use a low flow shower head to save 15 gallons of water during a 10 minute shower. Savings: Over 5,000 gallons / year
3. Upgrade to a high-efficiency WaterSense® toilet and save 1,200 gallons of water a year. Savings: Up to 1,200 gallons / year
4. Install low flow aerators on your faucets and cut your water usage by 40%! Savings: Up to 40%
5. Save 5,000 gallons of water a year by using Energy Star dishwashers rather than washing dishes by hand. Savings: 5,000 gallons / year
6. Fix leaks under your home, in your kitchen, and in your bathroom to save up to 2,500 gallons. Savings: Up to 2,500 gallons / year
7. When doing laundry, make sure you match the settings on your machine to match the size of the load to save 1,300 gallons a year. Savings: Up to 1,300 gallons / year
8. Use a sponge and a bucket to wash your car rather than a running hose. Savings: Average 840 gallons / year
9. Replace your lawn’s grass with drought resistant plants. Check to see if you are eligible for rebates at dwp.lacounty.gov and sandiego.gov. Savings: 2,500 gallons / year
10. Install a pool cover to prevent losing as much as a quarter inch of water a day to evaporation. Savings: 8,000 gallons / year

Brendan Gill is a writer and blogger for SERVIZ with 10 years marketing experience. He has written extensively about home improvement products and services, as well as the California Drought.

Read more: http://www.houselogic.com/home-advice/repair-tips/solutions-for-home-maintenance/#ixzz3j5zv2UnC Follow us:@HouseLogic on Twitter | HouseLogic on Facebook

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American Apartment Owners Association | Company Website | At the American Apartment Owners Association (AAOA), our mission is to serve the interests of landlords, real estate brokers, property managers, real estate owners and apartment building owners nationally. Visit www.AAOA.com for more information about membership details!

Several bills that would affect the rental housing industry are a vote or two away from heading to the governor’s desk.

After the state Legislature returns Monday from its summer recess, they’ll likely take about two weeks to hold final hearings on the following CAA priority bills:

ON THE SENATE FLOOR

AB 447 (R-Maienschein) Insurance Discrimination – This bill would prohibit insurers from discriminating against a property owner who offers housing for tenants with Section 8 vouchers or who are in other low-income programs. The Senate floor vote is one of two final stops for this bill. If passed by the Senators on the floor, it will go to the Assembly floor for final confirmation.

AB 551 (D-Nazarian) – Bed Bugs – This bill specifies the duties of tenants and landlords with respect to bed bugs in residential rental property. CAA is working on a number of amendments that will be made to the bill prior to a vote. If approved in the Senate, the bill will need to go back to the Assembly floor for a final vote prior to going to the governor.

SB 761 (D-Hall) – Short Term Rentals – This CAA sponsored legislation requires short-term vacation rental websites such as Airbnb to provide disclosures to tenants. This is the last stop for this bill. If approved in the Senate, it will go to the governor’s desk for his consideration.

ON THE ASSEMBLY FLOOR

SB 328 (D-Hueso) – Pesticide Use – This bill requires a landlord or authorized agent who applies any pesticide without a licensed pest control operator to provide an affected tenant with written notice. As requested by CAA, this bill was amended to add clarification about the specific notice content, service methods, and tenants to be notified based on location of application and types of pesticides that will trigger the notice. This is the final vote for this bill prior to going to the governor.

Original Post From: California Apartment Assiciation

Managing resident requests (and in many cases demands) is a common challenge every property manager faces. The reality is that community managers, leasing staff, and office personnel are human, subject to the same time and space constraints residents are. And while you won’t always agree with a resident’s point of view, it’s important to at least consider it.

As you read through the following tips for managing disputes and requests for special privileges, remember to keep your cool. Train your staff to stay focused on resolving a tense situation and not trying to win the argument.

Saying “no” isn’t a conflict resolution strategy. It may be appealing to immediately tell a resident he or she can’t have a rent extension, replace his car’s brakes in the parking lot, or bring a pet into his home temporarily. But, simply saying “no” is not an effective way to resolve an issue. When a renter comes to you with a special request, it’s critical to understand what he wants or needs from you before you respond with haste. Ask for more information; you might be surprised to learn that allowing the resident to explain why he has the need will take far less time and energy than listening to the demands and complaints that follow an immediate “no.”

Make it clear you want to help resolve the issue, within your limits. Reassuring your resident that you understand his needs goes a long way toward defusing a tense, frustrating situation. Never over promise or build false hope. Definitely don’t apologize for something that isn’t your fault, as this creates an “I’m right and you’re wrong” scenario that is difficult to overcome as the conversation progresses.

If there are medical, legal, or policy impediments to carving out an exception for your resident, explain them calmly. Phrases such as, “Our owner’s won’t allow . . .” or “Our company-wide policy states. . .” isn’t enough for most people. Your staff should know why you have the policy in place, not just that it exists. Site safety issues, local regulations, or legal responsibility. These are more difficult for renters to create an argument against.

Develop standard responses to the most common requests. A well-documented, written protocol covering common requests helps staff members prepare for the inevitable. The key benefit is that your staff can navigate these challenging times with less disruption to the normal workflow. This will also avoid renters receiving conflicting messages from two different staff members. Make a plan, write it down, and train your staff. It’s also a good idea to identify special circumstances where they should refer a resident to the final authority to discuss the matter.

Offer alternative solutions. Here’s an example of where spending a few extra minutes helping a renter, rather than saying “no” and that’s the end of it, could be beneficial. Maybe your property can’t, or chooses not to, allow pets. In a case where a renter wants permission to provide temporary care for a relative’s pet due to a medical emergency, your staff may have a list of boarding facilities or vets in the neighborhood that may have solutions. Is there a pet rescue center in the area? Can you consider a 24-hour waiver as long as the animal is kept in a kennel at all times? Your answer may still be “no,” but working through alternatives will demonstrate your desire to help and make your resident feel heard.

Many times, the actual request isn’t the real issue; emotions may rule and create hostility and unrealistic expectations. Emphasize compassion, but maintain boundaries. And always respect your renter, even if he has outrageous demands.

Appfolio | Company Website | LinkedIn Connect |AppFolio, Inc. develops Property Management Software that helps businesses improve their workflow so they save time and make more money. Appfolio submits articles & blogs including topics of Resident Retention, Improved Owner Communication, Time Management, and more.