What are the advantages of contracting with a professional Property Manager in comparison to Self-Management?

A professional Property Manager offers you Objectivity combined with Market Knowledge and Professional Experience. Managing your rentals is usually your SECOND Occupation. It is your Property Manager’s Primary Occupation. Your Property Manager must be AVAILABLE AND TRAINED in Marketing, Management, Fair Housing, Landlord/Tenant Law and of course Rent Collection, Troubleshooting and, sadly, Meth Lab Awareness and Eviction Procedures.

How does one attract and keep good tenants?

It is imperative that vacancies be presented in the most Competitive Manner to the Most Qualified Prospects WHEN the most qualified prospects are available.  When vacancies are higher, qualified applicants have many choices.  Having the rental property completely repaired and ready to occupy is most important.  Having a cordial, yet informed person showing the unit, presenting the application, then making sure someone qualified wishes to select your property.  A vacancy must wait until a qualified applicant is available.  If one loses one’s objectivity and rents to someone who is not qualified, then the unit is not available when someone fully qualified wishes to occupy.

How does one qualify and approve potential tenants?

All applicants must be treated in the same manner to comply with Fair Housing Guidelines.  In order to do that, procedures must be established in advance, and followed strictly.  At WRE/RMI Inc., we immediately disclose our rental criteria:

1.       Verifiable Income Source

2.       Acceptable Credit Rating

3.       Good Landlord History

4.       No Negative Public Records

When Self-Managing, when should a professional Property Manager be contacted for services?

The best time to contract with a Property Manager is before you have expensive problems with your tenants. In reality, many new investors wish to manage their property themselves for a while.  Coming into place as Property Manager to solve problems is where we as a Property Managers have obtained most of my experience in “Troubleshooting.”  While a professional Property Manager is never a substitute for proper Legal Advice, Professional Management is a good choice when even one of the following occurs:

1.       You cannot seem to find qualified applicants.

2.       Your tenants begin to make a habit of late payments.

3.       Your tenants acquire unauthorized occupants.

4.       You rent to roommates and the “best one” moves.

5.       Your tenants do not comply with legal notice to enter.

6.       In multi-family properties, your tenants cannot get along with other residents..

7.       Your tenants begin to damage your property.

8.       Your Tenants make false or increasingly demanding requests for service.

What laws govern Landlords and Tenants?  Do they really favor the Tenant?

Many property owners truly believe that the Landlord/Tenant Laws favor the Tenant.  A lesser known fact about Landlord/Tenant law is that in the State of Washington, Municipalities have the right to make their own additions to Landlord/Tenant Law. That is what happened in the City of Seattle with the Seattle Tenant’s Union.

In our experience, these situations are ones that create Tenant-directed Law.  To date, there are several updates to Landlord/Tenant Law that appear “Tenant Oriented.”

Among these changes: 

As of March, 2004:  A Landlord “may not terminate a tenancy, fail to renew a tenancy, or refuse to enter into a rental agreement based on the tenant’s or applicants or household members status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, or based on the tenant or applicant having terminated a rental agreement under RCW 59.18.575 which is the new legislation.

If a tenant notifies the landlord in writing that he or she or a household member was a victim of an act that constitutes a crime of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, and has reported the same to a qualified third party who has provided a written record signed by the qualified third party, the Tenant may terminate the rental agreement without penalty. (This report and written notice must occur within 90 days of the reported act, event or circumstance.

Rental Agreement vs. Lease Agreement:  For many years, one of our most effective tools was the “12-Month Minimum-Term Rental Agreement.”  We used this agreement instead of a “One Year Lease.”  The difference was that when using a “Lease” one had to prove an infraction in the course of terminating a tenancy.  The “Minimum Term Rental Agreement” did not require proof of infraction and further, allowed an owner to terminate a tenancy for personal reasons such as placing the property for sale or moving into it personally.  Due to changes in interpretation by the courts, Rental agreements are month to month only and a “Minimum term Rental Agreement” bears all the requirements of a Lease.

Burden of Proof:  This is a requirement of the above described change.  It is best to describe this situation by example:  Both Snohomish County and City of Everett Law Enforcement officials will tell you that two of the biggest challenges for landlords involve Unauthorized Occupants and Unauthorized Pets ( Dangerous Dogs)  Unless the Landlord uses a Month-to-Month Agreement, the Landlord must prove to the court that these conditions exist. 

Again, this can be most time consuming situation, especially if a Landlord has contracted with a tenant for One Year.  In response to this situation, we recommend a Lease not to exceed 6 months.  If all terms and agreements are kept, the Lease Agreement can be renewed for an additional 6 months.  Our company does not charge a renewal fee!

Isn’t it almost impossible to evict a bad tenant?

This is our most frequently asked question. In reality, understanding Landlord/Tenant Law, keeping abreast on the changes, and applying it consistently is one’s best protection.  Those horrific stories one hears about it taking months and months to evict bad Tenants are really due to incomplete (or non-existent) record, oral agreements, or lengthy Leases.  When a judge believes that the record is incomplete or unclear or believes that an unfair situation has occurred, the case is set for trial at the hearing. Waiting for a trial date can take months.

In our professional experience, it does not take an unreasonable amount of time to terminate a tenancy under the following conditions:

The file is complete, including qualified application

 All agreements are in Writing and signed by all parties and do not exceed 6 months in length

Each file contains signed condition report and written Maintenance Requests

An accurate ledger card is kept for each Tenant

Receipts are always given for cash payment

Any and all notices are in writing and legally served

The Judge at the Hearing rather than a trial signs the Writ of Restitution.   The Writ of Restitution is then forwarded to the Sheriff for the Physical Eviction.  It is when any of these steps are omitted due to a wish to save time or a lack of knowledge, that removing a troublesome tenant becomes a lengthy, costly, and stressful process.

What about Maintenance?  Isn’t it easy for a Property Manager to just pick up the phone and spend my money?

This is our second most frequently asked question.  Part of the value of a Professional Property Manager is the ability to determine the necessity of a request for maintenance or repair.  Again, Landlord/Tenant Law is specific about its requirements.  “A landlord must commence repairs as soon as possible after receipt of written notice but not later than:

 24 hours to restore hot/cold water or heat or fix a life-threatening situation

72 hours to fix a refrigerator, range/oven or major plumbing fixture

 10 days in all other cases.

A large portion of our working day involves working through verbal maintenance requests with residents.  First we work with the resident to determine the whether there actually is a problem. Next, the resident must realize the need to request maintenance in writing.  Then the resident needs to realize it is their responsibility to be available when the Maintenance person is available.  Last, we use a licensed, bonded Vendor that is known to us as reliable and cost effective.

Can I do my own Maintenance work?

If a Property Owner is able to be available according to the time requirements of Landlord/Tenant law and comfortable and capable of doing the actual repair work, we will forward the Maintenance Request to the Owner.  If, however, an Owner cannot fit the work into their schedule then, we must use a licensed, bonded professional.

Thank for this opportunity to provide answers to your questions!