Pets in Apartment Building

Pets are always a point of contention in the confined space of an apartment complex. When you have taken possession of a new apartment building you can either decide to have renters with their pets or avoid having pets in your apartment.

But if you have become the owner of an existing apartment, then you need to continue the prevailing custom as regards keeping pets in the apartment.

When you allow pets in your apartment you can place rules and regulations for the pet owners to follow in the interest of the pets and the other fellow residents.

They may provide for

• The time of the day when the pets can come to the common areas and use them
• The pet owners must always accompany them and take control of them at all times

• The pets should not be kept in such a way that it is disturbing to the fellow residents or cause inconvenience to them

• The pet owner must be made responsible for cleaning their pets and the park and other areas if they defecate or urinate there
• The pets must be kept in strict adherence to the sanitary and other regulations imposed by the local authorities

How to Calculate the Maintenance Charges

The maintenance charge is the amount of money that you collect to meet the normal routine expenses incurred by you for the smooth functioning of the apartment and this will bring down the expenses you have to meet out of your own funds in case of common amenities provided by you.

When you are running a large Apartment complex you need to maintain the common areas and other common amenities for running the apartment complex. Towards this the renters are charged with a periodical maintenance amount usually on a monthly basis for taking care of all these common expenses.

Apart from these service charges towards housekeeping, security, common area upkeep, electricity, and equipment used for the common good of the apartment will be included in the monthly maintenance charges. The lift repair and maintenance charges will also be added to this. In some apartments non- Occupancy charges amounting to 10% of the service charges will also be included in the maintenance charges.

Water charges as per the actual consumption and monthly parking charges based on the number of parking lots occupied will also form part of the maintenance charges. Insurance charges paid for the common equipment can be added to the maintenance charges.

In addition to this there are other charges that can be added to the maintenance charges as decided by the renter’s association or by you as the owner of the apartment.

Landscaping the Right Way to Add Character to Your Apartment

Landscaping is an important way of increasing Occupancy and retention rates for your apartment building. Green long shady trees laced with pretty flower beds always attract people. landscaping is the best way to improve the curb appeal of your apartment. When you have beautiful well-maintained landscaping around your property it tells the potential renters that the managers here take care of the place well.

Some ideas to create the best landscaping appeal include

• Make your apartment entrance inviting, appealing, and give a sense of safety.

• Grow trees and shrubs at the right places to soften the effect of an

• imposing effect of the multi storey building.
• Add color to your front entrance with attractive flower beds and flower shrubs
• Provide a nice well-decorated place to sit and chat together and highlight this area with a fountain or a unique water future.
• In case of an expansive campus breakup the area with good line of flower beds and attractive shrubs lined with well-laid walkways
• Add an attractive common area for your renters to relax and gather with lots of natural shade with a fountain or an artificial pond
• Create well-marked walkways with clear directions so that people using your building avoid walking on the surrounding landscaping features
• To add character to your property plant more trees and take care of them well

Marketing For A Multifamily Business

Marketing is the crux of your business and as an apartment marketer your primary the aim must be to bring in new renters to your apartment. There are many types of marketing methods to market your apartment property but you have to select them based on how you want to reach your marketing goals.

By utilizing outreach marketing as a way to reach your renters, it is very effective in going out to do direct marketing and seeking prospective renters to your building without waiting for them to come to your doorstep.

In this the era of digital marketing social media advertising is one of the most effective and cost-efficient marketing channels for your apartment. You can use the facilities for marketing available on Face book, Instagram, Twitter, etc and target your audience with pinpoint precision.

Word of mouth, a referral is a very effective marketing medium for your apartments. To achieve loyalty and find a sense of belonging conduct events in your property and encourage your tenants to bring the irfriends and relatives to have a sense of your property.

This will help the m understand what you are offering and the word of mouth referrals will bring in new renters to your apartment.

Build relationships with other businesses in your local area like self-storage companies,real estate agents, furniture stores, moving companies, etc. This will help you establish your brand and get new renters with ease.

Why Smart Property Management Is Necessary?

In the present days in addition to a good location, well-maintained units with attractive common areas, and good amenities you need to have a very smart Property Management in place to be successful in the management of your apartment complex. This is the right way to enhance your Occupancy rates and increase the property value for the apartment building you are managing.

Smart Property Management is necessary for taking control of each and every aspect of your apartment management and run it as a full-fledged business. only through right Property Management practices you can bring down the expenses and maintain a high Occupancy rate for getting the best returns on the investment you have made in the apartment.

you have the option of managing your own property or engage an outside Property Management Company. By doing so, you will be taking advantage of their professional training and education in modern ways of Property Management.

If you are building a large portfolio of multi-family properties then it is the right option to engage an outside Property Management Company to take care of all your properties. This will be the right decision in case you are not personally able to take care of the property management of your apartment.

Remodeling In An Apartment Building

As the property manager or owner managing multi-family renovation projects remodeling your apartment complex is a real juggling act of balancing many things at the same time.
You have to watch your budget, minimize the disturbance to the daily lives of those living in the apartment.,

At the same time you have to take all possible steps to keep the expenses within your planned level. During a remodeling project you have to budget for Resident turnover and retain all the steps needed to maintain good returns from the investment you have made on the apartment building.

Planning ahead and working with your contractor closely will help you much remaining full control of the remodeling project. YOU must strive hard to reduce the interference caused to others who are living in the neighborhood and should follow all the safety features necessary for this. You need to have good budgeting and estimates ready even before starting the renovation work.

Delay in remodeling and renovation usually occurs in the product procurement phase, to avoid this decision well in advance what type of products you are going to use in the remodeling and procure them at the earliest point of time. You have to select an experienced contractor to do your remodeling project.

Arrange For the Right Types of Security for Your Apartment Building

When you are managing a big Apartment complex you are required to ensure the security and safety of both the people living in it as well as their property. As the owner of the Apartment complex you have to put in place the right security arrangements to ensure a safe and secure living space for your tenants.

Tenants in apartmentcomplexes prefer living in gated communities due to the high level of
security available for them. So it is your responsibility to ensurethe best possible security inside your apartment building. As the person in charge of the area comprised of your apartment complex youhave to ensure that no illegal or undesirable activities take place inside the premises.

Towards this, you mustappoint a sufficient number of security guards to control and secure apartmentbuilding in such a way that no undesirable activities can take place
inside your complex.

In the present days, theelectronic surveillance systems have advanced much and you can select the rightcombination of surveillance equipment to take charge of the security of
the entire apartment building all through the day. Security and safetyare the two basic factors that are necessary for the life and property of notonly your tenants but also for your safety so take care of the security aspecton priority.

Insurance Coverage for Your Apartment Complex

You need to have the right types of insurance coverage to protect your apartment building as well as against personal liabilities that may arise against you. As a landlord you are vulnerable to risks and only by taking the right insurance covers you can get the required level of protection. Some of the basic types of insurance you must take include:

1. General liability insurance: against liabilities that may arise against you for the loss of property or bodily injury sustained by others while they are in the general common areas of your apartment property
2. Property insurance to protect your property from damage due to Fire, Explosions, Windstorms, Lightning, Damage from smoke, Vehicle and aircraft damage, Vandalism, Riots, etc.
3. Business income or business interruption insurance is necessary to reimburse you for the income loss suffered by you due to various reasons.
4. Umbrella Insurance to help you pay the claims that may arise over and above the general liability policy you are required to pay.

In addition to these, you have to take other insurance like Crime insurance

• Directors and officers insurance
• Employee dishonesty insurance
• Equipment breakdown insurance
• Errors and omissions insurance
• Cyber liability insurance etc.

Use a Good Apartment Management System

If you are the owner of a fairly big apartment complex housing multiple units of residence, then it is necessary for you to use the right apartment management system. There are many types of systems available as self-contained software applications to manage large apartment complexes.

These applications are built with all the necessary features that help even a single person to manage very big apartment complexes having large numbers of apartment units to manage.

They take care of each and every function of the apartment complex and all you need is a single computer system to effectively run your apartment building. You can manage the rent payments and keep track of rent receivables and follow up the receipts easily. With this system you can automate most of the manual works and program the system to conduct most of the routine tasks without your interference.

They also help you in keeping track of various things that take place in your apartment and effectively follow them up for effective management. You can handle all the tenant accounts and overall apartment accounts and easily prepare the tax papers for filing to the Government.

They also have facilities for you to manage various other activities and hence select a good apartment management system and it is a real investment that will add value down the road.

When Can You Evict A Tenant?

As the landlord of a multifamily building you let your residential units or apartments for rent to different persons based on a rental agreement. The tenancy runs based on this document and as long as the tenant conducts himself as per the rental agreement you cannot legally evict him. But there are circumstances when you can evict a tenant and they are as follows:

1. For illegal use of a property that is for conducting any illegal activities in the rented property, or violating the zoning regulations and using the residential building to conduct any business
2. For health or safety violations with due notice to the tenant
3. When you are withdrawing your property out of the rental and for this you need to issue a notice to the tenants in advance and the eviction can be done after the expiry of their current rental agreements
4. When you need the rented unit for your own use or for the use of one of your immediate relatives
5. For violating the rental condition and their refusal to pay rent as per the agreement or not agreeing to pay the rental increase.

Each state their own law relating to the tenant evictions and they must be followed in all cases before the tenant can be evicted legally from your apartment.