Las Vegas Property Management Las Vegas Real Estate Rentals and Realty - Atlas Group
MAINTENANCE ISSUES
All maintenance problems are
not equal:
Many Owners have a problem with maintenance issues, especially
if they were just residing in the property prior to a tenant
moving in. The thing you need to keep in mind is that no two
people live the same way. That squeaky door in the third bedroom
that you never used, is now the babies room. Squeaky doors or
drafty rooms as an example, and babies, don't go well together.
In other words, the stuff you learned to live with might well
be a big problem for a tenant. Consequently, it is not unusual
to get several maintenance requests when a new tenant moves
into a property... be prepared.
Avoiding the tenant doesn't
fix the problem:
One of the fastest ways to anger a tenant is to ignore their
legitimate maintenance requests. It's not like you're going
to avoid the repair after they've moved... it still needs to
be done. Except now you have no income and you still have to
pay to get the work completed. You need to plan for repairs.
Set aside money every month for anticipated repairs.
THE BIDS YOU GOT ARE TO HIGH,
CAN'T I JUST HAVE MY FRIEND OR THE TENANTS DO THE WORK IF THEY
WANT? - You can have anyone you choose do the
work you want on your property. However, if they are not insured
you always stand the chance that they could get injured and
then they will end up owning your building. We have found that
about 95% of the time, using friends or anyone else that is
not in the construction/repair business, full-time, is a huge
mistake. The work is almost always lacking and rarely is it
completed in a timely manner. If you insist on using someone
like this, you will be the one ordering the work, inspecting
the work, and paying for the work. We will not get involved
since we will want to keep an arms length distance from the
transaction just in case there is a problem.
We had a situation once where the owner insisted on using the
tenant to replace the landing on the second story of a four
plex. We warned him of the huge liability he was putting himself
in. Sure enough, the tenant had a friend over to help him. The
friend ended up losing his footing and stepping between the
flooring joist, and then falling through a plate glass window.
He of course ended up in the hospital without insurance and
they expected the owner to step forward.
When the City gets involved:
The last thing you want to do is to have the city cite you for
repairs: I RECEIVED A NOTICE FROM
THE CITY TO MAKE A BUNCH OF REPAIRS, WHAT CAN I DO? - The obvious answer is... make them. The city, in conjunction
with the mayors office, is trying to 'clean up' downtown, or
older areas of the city. Their methods include using inspectors
from the Neighborhood Services Department to inspect and cite
properties for code violations. They also work hand in hand
with the Fire Department to achieve the same results. If you
do not comply with their requests they have the power to shut
down your building and eventually demolish it. You of course
have legal recourse and there is a system in place where you
can take your case before the city council. This is a lengthy
process. Keep in mind it is the city that is backing these people.
Old things, including us, break
more easily and more often:
Maintenance problems can eat you alive. It usually becomes a
huge issue on older properties. Owners of course want to buy
as cheaply as possible. When they do, especially older buildings,
they usually are forced to pay for more frequent repairs. Things
break more frequently as a property ages... kind of like people.
Just understand where you are in the investment scheme of things
and plan accordingly. Usually with older buildings your are
initially paying less per square foot. However, that price savings
can eventually be made up in repair costs.
Paying For Repairs
On single family homes, condos, and townhomes you are required to
keep a minimum of $300.00 in the trust account for unanticipated
repairs. Sometimes, that isn't enough to cover an emergency situation
like a water heater or air conditioner replacement. Usually,
these items need immediate attention. Here, if you want, you can get
the funds into your account electronically in order to avoid delays
and hopefully avoid any legal issues.
Online (Electronic) Payments
Owners are not required to make deposits electronically. We realize that in today's world, at times the convenience of making electronic deposits out weighs the additional cost. Currently deposits may be made through PayPal with certain restrictions. The funds deposited through PayPal initially sit in a separate PayPal account and are NOT accepted or applied to your trust account until the funds are transferred into the Trust Account as per your management agreement.
