Fortify the Relationship With Your Landlord

Generally having anyone show up on a Saturday looking for an apartment is a great thing. However, this past Saturday I must have had the most diverse group of Prospects as I have ever had in my life. But my “favorite” was a couple where one half of the couple came in to “scope” out what I would say to their rental dilemma. Apparently, she said she and her family arrived from out of state, went to the Leasing Office to sign the lease and pick up their keys. They had visited the property once before and had seen a different style of two bedroom, but when it came time to reserve one, they chose a completely different floor plan from the one previously viewed.

She proceeded to tell me every little thing she was dissatisfied with and ask me how I would handle that if it had occurred here. I answered, “It doesn’t really matter how I would handle it. The question is, how did they handle it? You must still be upset since you are here today.”

“Oh, they gave us a $75 Gift Card but I would rather not have had it happen in the first place.” She then listed several things that occurred and I agree, it was not an ideal situation.

“Are you planning on breaking the lease,” I asked.

“Yeah, maybe. But I don’t want to go somewhere and have my appliances not work, my toilet leak and flood the bathroom and all this other stuff!”

I do understand her frustration. However, the team at the other community fixed things as they occurred and gave them a Gift Card. They apologized as well. But then the Prospect added this, “I just don’t trust them any more.”

I have said it before and I will say it again, trust is the key ingredient in all relationships. I told her that trust is a two-way street, too. This person, while the experience has been less than satisfactory, should not be threatening to bale on the lease obligation at the first sign of trouble. Both parties need to fortify the relationship.

“Give them the benefit of the doubt,” I said. “Tell them you are unhappy and you think you have made a mistake. Ask them what they plan to do to restore your confidence. Then, tell them you love the community and the gym and all the reasons you chose them in the first place. Wait a bit before you dump them and start shopping again. You are, in fact, legally obligated to do so.”

I am still wondering why people leap to the conclusion that life sucks at the first sign of a problem?

Let This Be My Mantra

I feel like a blade of grass. It doesn’t matter if you limit my intake of nutrients, cut me down to the size you want me to be or stomp all over me, I will still grow. I will still find a way to thrive in harsh, challenging conditions. I may have to lie dormant for a while, if I have to, to survive long term. I’m in it for the long haul. So, go ahead, walk all over me; I will eventually rise to meet a new day, bright, glowing, and green!

Let this be my Mantra.

This property management business can be tough. There are rough situations over which we may have no control. There are rude people; there are pleasant people. There are chronic complainers we’ve learned to see the charm in. There are Residents who don’t clean up after their pets, Residents who litter the property with their Taco Bell wrappers, Residents who drive past you and never wave or smile. There are bosses who expect too much and some who never give you the time of day or a moment of their time or a word of encouragement. But I decided long ago to be that blade of grass that chooses to dig deep and plant roots and learn to thrive through harsh conditions and wait for the rain. My day will come.

Learn Some Life Skills, Why Don'tcha?

When I was teaching kindergarten, there was a small portion of the curriculum devoted to teaching our youngest students emotional intelligence. It was based on Christian concepts and centered on introducing actual skills children will need as they grow up in this big, complicated world. Later, when I “graduated” to grades K-6, the overall concept in the public schools labeled these skills Life Skills. There were several of these, including Responsibility, Integrity, Honesty, Trust, Flexibility, Cooperation, Perseverance, Sense of Humor, Empathy, and about five others. I always thought trying to instill these values in children was a worthwhile cause as, sadly, many do not learn these values in their homes. 

It is safe to say these Life Skills are also very important in property management. Clearly, I was thinking as I headed off to Court the other day, it would have been nice had a couple of my new Residents learned them before they came to my property. This couple rented an apartment and moved in as recent as May 19, 2012. And here I was heading to Court to testify at their REQUESTED Eviction Trial. Apparently during the initial Hearing they objected to the charges of non-payment of rent and sought a trial.

As the trial progressed and the Resident was called to testify, it became very apparent to me that he was just plain old lying. I mean, he was telling bald, right to your face, lies, even though he had been sworn to tell the truth. I sat there incredulous, although a bit fascinated, at his boldness and stupidity. For me, when a Resident comes to me with a problem, I try to resolve it any way possible. However, right then and there I began thinking, I don’t want anything more to do with you and I can’t wait to get you off the property. Apparently, I have to wait to officially do this, as here in Ohio, the Judge does not make an immediate ruling. In the meantime, I will discreetly place some moving boxes at their door. Hint, hint!

Sooner Or Later, Something Shocks You

If you stay in the property management field long, you are bound to run across something that shocks you. This happened to the on-call maintenance tech during the recent Fourth of July holiday weekend. Apparently, he received a page from the Resident in apartment X reporting the air conditioning was not working. He received two different calls, as a matter of fact, and because he couldn’t make out the phone number of the second call he called me to decipher it. I have an excellent track record of doing this.

We confer and I figure out whose number it is and think nothing more about it. I call the Resident and tell him the on-call Tech will be there in about an hour. It was a Saturday night. At 11:02 P.M. I receive the first distress call, followed by another a couple minutes later. Suffice it to say it was not a good time for me… we’ll let it go at that. Two words: Food Poisoning. Use your imagination. Anyway, I call him to find out what the matter is.

Apparently, the first call went fine and he went to attend to the second page. When he reached this unit, he was greeted by an aggressive female, baring breasts and asking him for a little sexual escapade. Really, I’ll tell you, most Maintenance Techs at one time or another encounters this very thing. However, what my Maintenance Tech soon discovered was the female, who was not on the Lease, was staging the encounter to be “filmed” and broadcast over the internet by the actual Resident on the Lease. He was horrified. No kidding. I was horrified but not shocked. My Maintenance Tech was shocked. I worked a Section 8 property once where a couple was making pornographic “shorts” (no pun intended) to be viewed by paying customers on the internet. I caught a little discrepancy in their reported income when it came time for their annual recertification. <grin> They no longer live there.

The Tech kept asking me what I was going to do about this. I told him to report it to the police department and I’d take care of it on Monday.

On Monday I served the “Guest” a Trespass Notice with a police officer. In fact, we escorted her into a cab and sent her to the bus station. Once I had police reports in hand dating back to incidents from the previous month (Month!) I gave the Resident a Notice of Non-Renewal. It took him more than a week to call me to discuss the letter and ask if he could stay. “No,” I told him. “This is now an issue where I have an employee who feels as though he cannot do his job properly. He feels threatened. So, no, I can’t allow you to stay when your lease ends. You will need to find a new residence.”

“Okay,” he replied. He is now looking for a new home. I don’t feel bad about it either.

Testimonials

Some days you just need a tea party and today was one of those. Lucky for me, I had the sweetest Aunt with her Great Niece available to do just that with this afternoon. What a pleasant surprise when a Resident happens to stroll into the Office accompanied by the loveliest of all little girls, a bright, happy, five-year old enjoying a beautiful summer day before the start of her first year in school. We drew pictures with my array of Sharpie Markers and she drew a picture for me and I drew a landscape for her and we sang songs. And laughed! And shared secrets as only girls do.

I showed her how the table lifted up and we ate cookies and drank "tea". We braided each other's hair and I enjoyed the company of a new found friend. Suddenly, the door opened and a couple came in who were looking for a new home and my new small friend told them confidentally, "If you live here, I can be your friend!"

What better testimony does anyone need?

Yep, She Renewed ...

A year ago I wrote about the first BAD move in experience I have had to deal with "on my watch" so to speak. I was not happy about the situation but instinct led me to a reasonable solution to this rare situation. I also wrote about how that same Resident still would not speak to me, or smile, or wave when we passed on the property. I was pretty much convinced she would move when it came to renwal time. However, I also saw this as a challenge for me and the team to really rise above and prove this is a great community to call home. First of all, I truly feel this way, and second, the whole concept of what home is means a lot to me. It is my passion to create a warm, comfortable, safe haven for me and our Residents. So, we continued to wave to her, speak to her little boy when he got off the bus, and deliver excellent service to her. I sent out her renewal letter and held my breath. She came in the other day and renewed her lease for 2012-13. Never said anything positive or negative, but she seemed relaxed and comfortable and it went smoothly. Never underestimate the power of smiling and being friendly to your Residents and being there to correct a less than perfect move in experience.