Hello everybody. Some 31 years ago in the August 1988 issue of AOA’s magazine, I published my first of what would become many articles concerning problems inherent in laundry leases which were prepared by laundry companies and given to apartment owners to sign.
No qualified renters? A landlord shared a comment I often hear: “Jeffrey, my weakest link here seems to be that there are no qualified renters who currently need a new place to live. I’d love to have a solution to that one. I’m getting very few inquiries. About half are people currently going through a bankruptcy. The other…
Question One: A downstairs tenant, John, bitterly complains about the upstairs tenant due to noise from above. In actuality, the upstairs tenant, Harold, is not doing anything out of the ordinary. John complains about simple television sounds and even if Harold is just walking in his unit. Lately, John has been banging on his ceiling…
A decision by the California Supreme Court this past year has created significant uncertainty in California about whom employers can legitimately classify as an “independent contractor” and whom they must treat as an employee. The ramifications of this decision for people in the property management industry – while still largely up in the air –…
Property managers wear many different hats The job requires them to deal with many different kinds of people and situations that, at times, may seem bizarre or even hilarious. Flexibility, the ability to maintain a cool head, and a sense of humor not only make property managers more successful but also make the job less stressful.
1. Security Deposit Refunds I have lost count of how many times I’ve heard the phrase, “We left the home in better condition than we received it” from a tenant who is being charged for damages. It is imperative as a landlord to conduct a thorough move-in inspection complete with lots of pictures. Set the standard…
Currently, no organization is legally recognized for registering service or assistance animals. Any organization making that claim is misleading its audience. One of the most common accommodation requests multifamily housing providers get is for a resident to have an animal that would otherwise be restricted by a community’s rules. But in the past few years,…
Charles and Lizzie are some of the smartest people I’ll never close with. Both were the brightest and hardest working kids in the class. This true story is not told to impress you; it is to impress upon you that wise expectations and appropriate behavior can bring superior results.
It’s one of the most frequent complaints amongCaliforniatenants, and for a while there was little they could do about potentially hazardous mold in their units. Mold is hazardous and has potential for creating numerous health issues. Exposure to molds can cause symptoms such as nasal stuffiness, eye irritation, or wheezing. Some people with serious allergies…
One of the main reasons people invest in real estate is for the beneficial tax break it provides. The tax breaks are most substantial for middle-income investors who are their own property managers. The value of tax relief depends on your annual income and what type of job you have. Even though the breaks are…