Spring is in the air!
After a long, cold winter, the snow has finally melted, the birds are singing, and the flowers are starting to bloom. As a property management company, spring is an important time of year for us. It's a time to freshen up your property and get ready for the busy season ahead. So, let's dive into some tips to help make the most of spring!
Clean, clean, clean
Spring cleaning isn't just for homes – it's for properties too! Now is the time for a deep clean, both inside and out. Sweep the sidewalks, power wash the building exteriors, and wash the windows. Inside, dust and vacuum thoroughly, and don't forget to sanitize high-touch surfaces like doorknobs and light switches. A clean property not only looks better, but it also promotes good health and safety for residents and guests.
Get landscaping in order
Spring is the perfect time to get the landscaping in order. Whether you have a small courtyard or a large lawn, a little bit of maintenance can go a long way. Trim back overgrown bushes and trees, plant new flowers, and lay fresh mulch. A well-kept landscape can boost curb appeal and make your property more attractive to potential residents.
Check for winter damage
Winter weather can be harsh on buildings and outdoor structures. Take a walk around your property and check for any damage caused by snow, ice, or freezing temperatures. Look for cracks in pavement or concrete, damage to roofs or gutters, and broken outdoor fixtures like lights or benches. Addressing these issues early can prevent further damage and keep your property looking its best.
Prep for outdoor amenities
As the weather warms up, residents will want to take advantage of outdoor amenities like patios, decks, and grilling areas. Make sure these areas are clean, safe, and ready for use. Clean the grills, add fresh cushions to outdoor furniture, and ensure that any safety features like railings or fencing are in good condition.
Update marketing materials
Finally, spring is a great time to update your marketing materials. Take new photos of your property in its springtime glory, and update your website and social media accounts with fresh content. Consider creating a spring-themed marketing campaign to attract new residents and highlight the benefits of living in your property during this beautiful time of year.
Spring is a time of renewal and growth, and it's the perfect opportunity to freshen up your properties and attract new residents. By following these tips, you'll be well on your way to a successful spring season!
Spring is here and so is moving day for many people. It’s a time of transition for those seeking a new place to call home, and our communities need to be ready. That means starting with the basics.
This may seem obvious, but sometimes taken for granted and even failing to correctly apply or utilize the basic tools available to us to ensure a great experience, a well-maintained community and a solid housing inventory that reflects well on our community.
Sure, the pandemic has challenged all of our assumptions, but I urge you not to let your move-in process slide. It is critical to maintain a proper perspective and be diligent when it comes to our move-in checklists.
Most experts in our field, like those at Multifamily Insiders – the largest networking group for multifamily housing professionals – remind us that these checklists for move-ins are essential no matter the circumstances surrounding national emergencies like the pandemic. They are also important for move-out procedures as well, but that’s another story.
For now, let’s focus on creating and deploying move-in checklists. This ensures a happy resident while also assuring the community that things in any individual housing unit get taken care of quickly and efficiently.
Why should I have a move-in checklist?
Frankly, I think I have to answer that in no uncertain terms. It helps protect your community, satisfy new residents, and creates a pattern of procedures and processes that will guide how you run your community in an effective and thoughtful manner.
Recently a Multifamily Insiders article noted that “The move-in and move-out checklist is a convenient, all-inclusive and reliable way to document the property’s condition.”
The logic, according to the author Joe Killinger, is that residents benefit from a move-in checklist because any existing conditions will be predated to their occupancy. More important, he noted that the checklist “helps the property manager by reducing liability risks due to disagreements related to security deposit reimbursement; thus, protecting the value of the property.”
What should be documented, when and how
So, let’s look at some of the mechanics of a move-in checklist. First of all, this is not rocket science. A simple list will do, one that looks at every element of a unit or apartment. It can be a created electronically or simply on a form created on your computer. Sure, it needs to be thorough – cover all aspects of the unit, from floor to ceiling, wall to wall, room to room – but it does not need to be overly complex.
The idea here is to describe the condition of the apartment and make sure to identity any issues, both for your management or maintenance teams as well as potential residents.
An important consideration is when you should document the condition of the apartment. The simple answer is the best – do it when a resident moves out and when a new resident is about to move in. This creates a compare and contrast approach that will make it easier to identify and resolve potential issues.
In terms of how the checklist works, besides using a form or electronic document, it’s not a bad idea to make a visual record of the property through simple photographs.
We all know that proof is often in the eyes of the beholder, so make sure you have a good visual record to go along with any checklist you develop. In fact, they can easily work in tandem. As you review a kitchen, for example, if there is a deep gouge in the countertop, besides noting it, a photo can show the extent of the damage and help resolve the level of repair or replacement needed.
A universal system, applied individually
Each apartment and community is unique and different. So there certainly needs to be some consideration in how you customize your move-in form, your checklist, your walk-through and your photograph records.
Move-in checklist will differ for apartments that are fully furnished from those that are furnished by the new residents. While I won’t get into that much now, just remember that in those cases documenting the furniture itself becomes as important as any ceiling tile, carpeting or entry door.
I realize that may sound obvious, but again, it may be easy to neglect the basics, especially during an influx of new residents.
No one system will work for everyone. It’s more about following a consistent procedure with a focus on timing, information gathering and planning resolutions that are satisfactory to the management team and the potential of future residents.
At FOURMIDABLE, finding the right combination of tools allows us to work closely with the management teams at our properties. We partner with them, as they partner with their current residents in developing a well-oiled system that looks toward the future care and maintenance of the community.
Besides being a time for celebrating the end of winter and admiring flowers, green lawns and sunny skies, this time of year is perfect for what homeowner's call “spring cleaning.”
For us at FOURMIDABLE, spring cleaning is a much broader idea focused on what our property managers and owners do to spruce up their communities, whether outside or inside, all while working through plans for routine maintenance.
There’s no doubt that the pandemic has caused many things to stall or be simply put on a back burner as we focused on personal health, medical safety and a commitment to a whole other kind of cleaning.
With things slowly improving across the nation, now is a perfect time to begin or complete projects that need to be taken care of around our communities. So, let’s take a look at some practical ideas for ensuring we use spring as an effective time to refocus on beautification, cleaning, upgrades and improvements.
Start with the outside
No matter the size and shape of your community, spring is a key time to pay attention to the grounds of your property, ramping up fertilizing, trimming, weeding, and, of course, grass-cutting. More importantly, we need to see landscaping as an integral part of our overall beautification, and the desirability of our communities. A well-groomed hedge row, the removal of dead or dying trees, the seeding bare patches of grass and the planting of flowers goes a long way to improving the look and feel of a community for all concerned.
As you work outside, I’d even go so far as to suggest organizing an outdoor activity in your community – if you plan such events during the year. This could be a flower planting day or clean-up day for everyone around the community, maybe even bringing in an extra dumpster and encouraging residents to do a bit of their own interior spring cleaning.
You’ll need to share the information on the date, as well as what people can expect and the resources you might make available to help them get in a cleaning mood. And social distancing may still be the norm, so any event has to be well considered.
Stay focused on exterior needs
So much of the look and feel of our communities begins with first impressions. Staying focused on the outside even after initial work is critical.
If you need to work with rubbish companies for new or refreshed dumpsters or secure a contractor for some simple asphalt work on the roads or sidewalks, now is the time to begin that process. As more construction and renovation work increases with the shadow of COVID-19 slowly falling behind us, landing a good contractor may become a bigger challenge. So, don’t hesitate, especially if you have the budget.
Other outside areas to focus on should include the trees, shrubs and the flower beds, as mentioned before. But don’t forget about your signage in and around the community, lighting and other aspects that bring the grounds to life. If these need cleaning, a new paint job, or even replacing, spring is a good time to figure that out.
Clearly, some of this relates directly to your maintenance budgets and the kind of advance planning that we should all practice not only in our personal homes but in our communities, where each year’s budget should include something for annual upkeep as well as larger maintenance projects.
Structures, infrastructure and getting proposals
There is a fine line between simply cleaning and more intensive maintenance, especially when we’re talking buildings or structures. But it is certainly possible to clean building siding or bricks, especially if they don’t require further work.
Simple things in these areas might mean bringing in streetsweepers to wash your roadways or having your maintenance team pressure wash sidewalks, sides of buildings or other areas that need attention.
Yes, building repairs – new gutters or roofs, for example – also have to be front of mind during the warmer months of spring and summer as well. This goes back to your major maintenance plans and budgets.
Whatever you decide, I urge you to begin gathering and reviewing proposals, whether for landscaping projects like mulching or planting flowers or trees, or for major maintenance such as cracked sidewalks or failing asphalt.
Doing something inside
When it comes to a focus on the interior, I’d suggest things like smoke detector replacements, checking or changing air filters, air conditioners (wall mounted ones) and furnace filters. Painting is another key way to liven up a building.
Getting vacant apartments ready for spring leasing is a regular task of any good management team, so not much needs to be said further about it. Just remember with many leasing experiences still being done remotely, the look and feel of an apartment is more critical than ever in showcasing just how much a property team cares about its community and living spaces.
Share the excitement
There’s always a sense of excitement with the coming of spring. New flowers sprout, our lawns turn from brown to green, we can hear the birds sing again and everyone is ready to get back outside after the drab and cold of winter.
So, create some buzz. Communicate with your entire community. Tell them of your plans and what you are doing in terms of cleanups. Send out e-messages, post flyers, share in your newsletter and get everyone excited about what is in the air.
Remember, expectations are part of perceptions, and if your residents know what to expect, their impressions of your care and concern for them will certainly engage them, make them feel part of the community and allow you to be a good manager at a time of year when everyone feels just a little bit more relaxed – thanks to spring having sprung.
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