A New Kind of Discrimination?

Earlier this week, a couple came in to the Leasing Office to talk about their need for a two-bedroom apartment. Actually, one half of the couple came in to ask to look at floorplans. I sat down with him; it appeared he was in a hurry. We talked about what would be available now and next month. He asked if I would show him the two-bedroom I had to use as a Show Unit. Since it was already leased with someone moving in later in the week, he understood he could not rent this one.

I get his ID and walk out with him, only to see his van parked, motor running and people in it waiting. He explains that is his wife and children are waiting. I was curious as to why they didn’t come in, too, but I figured maybe the children were napping or something. Anyway, we go to the apartment and I show it to him and he smiles as soon as he walks in and sees the large, open living room. He almost seems to float through and then turns and asks if his wife can come to look. “Of course,” I say.

I stand at the open door and his wife gets out of the van, hands me her ID and runs inside. It is raining, well, sprinkling. (It hasn’t rained all summer!) She comes in and practically runs through and runs back to the van and I hear her telling her husband the minute she leaves, “I like it! I like this!”

Her husband begins to pull out of the parking space [Normally, we walk to apartments to tour on foot, but it happened that it had been sprinkling off and on, so that day we drove over.] and lowers his window to ask about the Townhouse floorplan.

I think to myself, well, that is not in your stated price range …. But I don’t say it to him. I tell him I will stop and get the key, which I do and we go over to the Townhouse. Now, this unit is available and rent-ready, so I am hopeful that they may like it, but fearful that it is out of their price range. When we get there, the entire family gets out of the van and we go over to tour the townhouse. As soon as I open the door, the parents begin to smile and look at each other and they begin to ask all kinds of questions. They are so excited! After completing the tour and answering their questions, I ask the Money Question, “Would you like to reserve this one? You really seem to love it, and…” I started to continue when he interrupts me and says, “My wife wants this one.”

After making all the disclosures as to rent rate, I notice how the kids are antsy and tired and one is crying. He tells me he will bring his application in and pay the fees in the morning on his way to taking the children to school. Sweet!

Between the time he comes back in and his Application is finally Approved, he calls me at least four times to ask if they will be getting the townhouse I showed them. Each time, I try to reassure him that it will be same one I showed them. They are moving in tomorrow. He came in a few minutes ago and once more I reassured him that the townhouse will be theirs. I feel like giving him a hug so he will believe me (I don’t.)

He turns to me as he is walking out the door. “We have been other places and they show us a nice apartment and we say we will rent that one and they tell us we have to take a different one.” I ask him if that is because they show only a Model.

“No, it is not always that. My wife thinks it is because they don’t like us. They do not want to rent to people who have a boy like ours.”

“This townhouse is yours. Don’t worry! I hope your family will be very happy here!”

Their son is autistic. I wonder to myself, “Is this a new kind of discrimination????”

There's Nothing Wrong With This Apartment, I Promise!

We had a Resident leave the community after five years here to move to a retirement village in Florida. Her unit was actually reserved FOUR months PRIOR to her move out at the end of July. Then … something happened. The person who reserved the lovely two bedroom one-and-a-half bath downstairs apartment decided SHE was moving to Florida, too, and cancelled her planned move in here. Ugggh.

The Maintenance team quickly went ahead and completed the scheduled turn; new carpet was installed and I set about trying to re-rent it again. This apartment is located in such a nice part of the community, on “The Circle” with a Garage. There is a large patio, too, where one can sit and relax and watch the world go by, or, since it is right there adjacent to the Green Space, one could plop a net right there and have a rousing volleyball tournament. I mean, this is a super location and floor plan lay-out!

The apartment was next reserved for a move in date scheduled a couple of weeks later. Application and fees were paid. I no sooner had sent the gentleman his “Welcome to our Community” letter and move in paperwork when he called to cancel. What???? Since his cancelation was within my three-day cancelation period, I refunded his Security Deposit. (He didn't get his expected promotion.)

I placed an ad on Craigslist in addition to my other paid ILS listings. I received a few calls and set up showing appointments. They came; they saw; I somehow did not conquer. What is wrong with this unit???? Maybe it's not "it"; maybe it's me?

I next have a “Walk-In” who looked at the apartment, loved it, put in his Application and reserved it for an end-of-the-week move in (due to a marital separation.) This time I insisted on separate Application Fee and Security Deposit – just in case – and Good Grief! Is this apartment cursed or what? He canceled, too. Reconciled over the weekend and moved back in with his estranged wife. Okay – well, good for them. I’m not going to hold that against him. On to the next viable candidate.

This unit has seen so much action, a hooker would be jealous.

A nice lady came in yesterday, went to several other communities, called and reserved it with a credit card and faxed her Application to me late last night. Credit worthy – check! I am almost afraid to commit her to my computer accounting system until she actually signs her lease!

Not a Fan of Craigslist, Are You?

I am not a fan of Craigslist in this market. I am not a fan of Craigslist in my Indiana market either. In fact, I am just plain old not a fan at all for using it to rent apartments for a long term lease. Maybe it works in larger metropolitan areas, but in small towns, I am not happy with it – not for generating good traffic. I am sure there are going to people who will tell me I am just not creating “quality ads,” “good ads,” or catchy enough titles for our ads. While I don’t necessarily disagree, I don’t think the ads are unprofessional, bad, or even lame.

We always get calls on the ads, and we have gotten a few rentals from them, but somehow, it never fails to disappoint in some way. My biggest complaint is that:

People just do NOT SHOW UP for their appointments!

Leasing Consultants base their entire schedule around appointments: talking on the phone trying to book an appointment, setting up the tour each day, sprucing up vacant apartments and/or Models to show, and getting the deal done – you know, closing the lease. What a time waster it is for them to have to deal with NO SHOWS. When I hear them lament about this, it makes me want to pick up the phone and call and ask those Callers why they have no common manners. Isn’t it just polite to call and let someone know you have gone elsewhere, had something else come up – you know, the “It’s not you, it’s me” speech?

Prospects Say the Darnedest Things

The other day I received a phone call from a Prospect wanting to know about availability at our community. Since I had just gotten a cancelation (Boo Hiss!) on a two-bedroom unit, obviously I was happy for the opportunity to re-lease it quickly. Right off the bat, though, this person’s phone demeanor was … honestly, not pleasant. She made an appointment to come in, which she did yesterday.

She was early for the appointment, which is one hundred times better than being late! She brought an accordion file folder with her and placed everything on the table in the Leasing Office. With what I now know to be her typical “directness” she began interrogating me about policy and procedure. Immediately, it put me off – not necessarily making me defensive, but I thought, WT*? You aren’t even a Resident and you are questioning every possible scenario that could come up in a lease situation. I wondered if she’d had some terrible issues somewhere else, so I asked her, but she said she had not.

I asked for her ID and went to tour the community and the available apartment. (I admit, it was kind of hard not to think ugly thoughts about the person who was a perfectly wonderful elderly woman who had had to cancel her lease! Were it not for her, I would not have to be with this mean person.)

On the way to the unit, Ms. Prospect asks me, “Are there any children here?”

I asked, “Why do you ask that?”

“I don’t like kids. I don’t want to live anywhere near kids. They’re loud and where we live now, they have a kid and when they play, they make all kinds of noise. I think they let the kid ride his tricycle all over the place.”

“Well, there are some children here. I don’t control that,” I said. “I do understand your concern though.”

“Oh, I know you can’t answer this question because of Fair Housing, but I just want you to know I don’t want to live around kids,” she said.

“If you understand that my renting to families is a Fair Housing question, then you know there is nothing I can do – or want to do – about families living here. I do know there are people who don’t really enjoy children. I get that. I really do. ”

After that little exchange, I was ready to say something else entirely, but we continued to the apartment. She loved it and made another appointment to bring her husband back over the weekend. I hope her husband, as a police officer, will be more respectful or at least open minded.

Your Pets Are Residents, Too!

Our community is “pet friendly” meaning that we gladly welcome most canines and felines. Don’t get me wrong, we charge for this privilege, but being pet welcoming is rewarding regardless. For about two years I was absent as a full time manager here and when I returned I was greeted by Gus one morning. He was accompanied by his Humans, Joe and Carol. I noticed right away, he was very happy and grateful to stand by your feet and let you rub behind his ears. His tail would just wag and wag. Joe said Gus would stand there all day letting you pet him if you wanted.

As time moved on, I would be greeted by Gus every morning on his AM constitutional. He never seemed to be in a hurry and there was always time to sniff a leaf, a tree, or something interesting on the sidewalk. Joe and I laughed about how much Gus loved to slow down and smell the roses. Of course, like most Basset Hounds who did not move too fast, Gus was a tad overweight.

One day, I noticed Gus limping and he had a “pouch” like swelling on his hind leg. When it did not resolve itself quickly, Joe and Carol took him to the Vet for an examination. The Vet put him on antibiotics; however, the infection never really went away. There were days when Gus would limp and days when he really wasn’t up to long walks. But then there were still days he would run, happily chasing a rabbit and it didn’t seem to affect him.

Inevitably though, there were more bad, pain filled days than healthier, good ones. Joe and Carol made the difficult decision to release Gus from his misery and arrangements were made. One Saturday morning, I received an email from Carol that Gus was gone and to please understand their request to not be charged Pet Rent. Tears immediately filled my eyes and I was momentarily overcome. Quickly I sent my condolences via email and began a journey down Memory Lane, not just of Gus, but also of my beloved Chow mix, Viann, whom I lost on a winter morning during a blizzard just the December prior.

Time moves on though. It was nice to be greeted by other Residents’ dogs: Jack, a black lab; Lucy, a mix breed Dalmatian/Lab; Mya, a small, energetic Service Dog; Maggie, the Collie and my next door neighbor, Sam, a Maltese. And then, a few weeks ago there was a new little Beagle in the mix named Otis, Joe and Carol’s newly adopted Rescue. I guess a new journey begins and I am glad that we are Pet Friendly!

All In a Day's Work For a Property Manager

A friend of mine posted the statement on her facebook page that she had been working for the past couple of days at the elementary school where she teaches setting up her classroom and making copies of these little booklets she uses with her kindergarteners. May I be honest with you? When she included the statement that most parents don’t realize that she has worked these two days – UNPAID – I took pause. It really irked me, I have to say.

Friend, I want to say, you use this same little booklet EVERY year. Why don’t you proactively make them before the end of the last school year so you don’t have to waste your time doing it prior to the first paid work day of the new school year? 

As a teacher, you have now obtained tenure, which means, basically you can screw up any number of ways and still keep your job, which pays you about $65K per year. Your work day, by contract, does not start a minute before 8:00 AM or last a minute past 3:30 PM. You never have recess or lunch coverage duty. Your contract makes it impossible for a parent to contact you outside of those hours except by email, but you are under no obligation to answer it. You have a huge number of sick days (because they accrue from one year to the next and can be banked.) You also have personal days. If you cannot be at work, there is a qualified substitute available at a moment’s notice. Your students are dropped off for art class, music class and PE class each week, which I know lessens your actual instructional time.

I understand this. I worked in the same school you teach in and I know the culture there is wonderful, welcoming, nurturing, very relaxed and friendly. You may have to submit lesson plans to your Principal but they are pretty much rubber-stamped with his approval. You are not obligated to attend PTA meetings, sponsor any extra curricular activities, or cheer on your Sixth Grade football or basketball teams. You do not have to attend the Spell Bowl meets or put together the Yearbook.

Let me tell what a property manager deals with whether she wants to or not. There is no choice to not participate. Property Managers are on call 24/7. That’s twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. They have to handle irate Residents who show up unexpectedly, out of the blue, often for no really good reason. They have to deal with emails from Prospective Residents, Current Residents, other Managers requesting verifications on past and current tenants whom they had no idea were considering moving leaving the property with a potential vacancy to be filled. They deal with scheduling painting contractors, carpet cleaners, landscapers, carpet installers and other contractors for special projects or emergencies. They create newsletters, marketing materials, Goodie Baskets for Move-Ins, perform Outreach Marketing, usually weekly and they must update websites, ILS services with the new rents and other property info. They must be Team Leaders to all the Maintenance Techs, Assistant Managers and Leasing professionals. They have complete responsibility for the total financial health and outcome of the asset they manage, including preparing and submitting a detailed, line item budget every year. A large majority of these professionals have no health insurance, very few sick or personal days, and cannot schedule time off if it is “inconvenient for the property.” They have to mediate between all conflicting parties and if the parties want to, they can take their complaints over the Manager’s head, up the corporate ladder and usually “win” and eventually get their issue resolved, whether it should be in their favor or not. They must decorate mini models and Model Units, show apartments and sell the property so that occupancy does not drop. They must submit daily, weekly and monthly property reports even though no one usually reads them and then calls to ask about the information directly because they “don’t have time to go through all that.” They walk the property whether the thermometer reads 105 degrees or -5 degrees below zero.

I know I haven’t listed all that a teacher does in the course of a day. Nor, have I listed everything a Property Manager does either. Both professions require continuing education, dedication, a passion and desire to educate and help others become and create. Teachers may be more concerned with developing an individual and a Property Manager may be more interested in helping others create homes, but come on, putting two “free” days in is really nothing to complain about in the long scheme of life. 

Does Your Apartment Community Feel Like Home?

Saturday was a Hot Leasing Day. I mean, as in, lots of leases got – not just that it was blazing hot outside (as this apparently has become the norm this summer.) One of those leasing with us is a former Resident. She first moved here – alone – and lived in a one bedroom apartment. She then found Mr. Right and he moved in, too. They got married and lived there in their first apartment together for about four years.

Then I started noticing she seemed, well, a bit different. Yep, there was soon to be a little one to add to their family. They began looking for a larger place. They toured other apartment complexes but found it hard to commit. I was curious since at that time, almost everybody and his brother had specials running and deals were being wheeled all over the Dayton market. This community, however, was doing fine without the specials.

One day I received a phone call and they wanted to come and look at one of our two-bedrooms. “Great,” I said. Really I was thinking, “What took you so long? Why didn’t you come here first anyway?” They come in and I explain that although I have a few of this style available and would love them to reserve one, if they like the floor plan they have to let me know today. It’s generally acceptable to transfer a couple when they are over-occupied at the end of their lease without charging a hefty Transfer Fee.

Several days go by and I don’t hear from them. I call. I leave messages. Did something happen? What happened???? Of course they call on a busy Saturday and I tell them NOW THERE IS ONLY ONE AVAILABLE! Tell me right this minute if you want it! The morning goes by and I had three Prospects who all seem happy with the possibility of living here. One reserves an upcoming one bedroom; one applies and is approved for the available one-bedroom leaving the two bedroom still available. BUT … I have a good feeling that one of the other couples will want to apply as well. Good problem to have, right?

Around three in the afternoon a Be Back from that morning comes in and fills out the Application for the two bedroom and pays the Security Deposit. It’s a steady stream that afternoon, when at the last minute before closing, in walks this couple wanting to take the two bedroom and I DON’T HAVE ANY LEFT.

Were they upset? You bet – he lost his temper in the Leasing Office and eventually after yelling at me and every Prospect in the Leasing Office they walk out. I pretty much don’t skip a beat and get everyone else taken care of. I close the Office for the day and call Mr. Right (and his wife) and explain that this is how the world of real estate works. Take it when it’s available or leave it for someone else. I invite them back to the Office and they come, but he’s still angry, but we work through it and I put them on my “Wait List”. They fill out a new Application, pay the new Security Deposit and we move on. Eventually they do move into a nice two bedroom apartment and all is well for a while.

It turns out that Mr. Right was indeed Mr. Wrong and the couple divorce with both parties eventually moving when their lease was up. He to a new place; she to her mother’s. Now she is financially sound, happy and came to me to re-apply because she says, “This is our home.” I had taken them to see a townhouse (Occupied) and I look over to see her daughter sitting in the Resident’s rocking chair happily rocking back and forth singing as only four year olds can. “Yes, this is your home!” That message was written all over their faces and it made me smile. I expect that they will be at home in this community for a long, long time.

Does Your Boss Value You and What You Do?

Today's horoscope states the following: "This is one of those days when your head and your heart aren't reading from the same adventure novel." (Uh oh?) "You may be feeling softer and more compassionate than you are acting as your cavalier behavior masks your vulnerability. Thankfully, you can regain your focus by looking within and exploring your motives for not sharing what's in your heart." (Hummm. Maybe I feel this way because my boss blew into town on Tuesday and during the course of the visit I attempted to have a heart-to-heart discussion about my goals, etc. and he just Did.Not.Get It.) "There's no need to hide behind a false sense of bravado; just be yourself," continues my horoscope.

Okay, so being the very understanding and patient person I am, I knew he was distracted by several important phone calls from his staff at the other Management Company of which he is President. So, I just 'finished' the conversation and wished him safe travels and easy flight when he left. I tried not to feel ignored.

The next morning he calls and starts in with he didn't understand my statement that "I don't feel like I have any value any more." He asks me why I would say that. He says I should approach every day as "Business as usual." I already so this, I tell him.

Then I hear his cell phone ring in the background, which he anwers. I hear him tell the party on the other end he will call them right back. He turns to our conversation and says, "I have to take that call. I will call you back in a few minutes." Today is Friday .... I have yet to hear from him. So, Dear Horoscope, why should I try to explain how I feel if the other person is not interested in hearing what I have to say?

Here's To The Maintenance Techs!

Our Maintenance Tech, who has been in this position since 2005, came into the Office yesterday morning pretty upset. When I asked what had gotten him to riled up, he asked me if I get alerts to one of the apartment ratings sites.

"No, why do you ask?"

"I got on last night! I can't believe what someone wrote on there. I'm gonna write back and tell them what I think of them!"

I looked at him and told him I did read it last night, too (wondering how we were on the same page at the same time!!!) and I wasn't concerned about it. I asked him who he thought it was and then I asked him if we could have handled their issue better. Apparently, this particular person has had a couple of issues with the air conditioner and was not happy about it. They complained that they pay a higher rent and - this is what upset him the most - they wondered how the Maintenance Guy could afford to live here, too. It was a pretty rude kind of observation to make let alone to post it was not very nice, and it apparently hurt his feelings. It actually hurt my feelings, too, because of its condescending tone.

I told my Maintenance Tech that I was planning on writing a reply that morning, which I did. I posted a reply explaining how we handle work orders, etc. and I supplied my email address and telephone number for follow up contact purposes and thanked them for the opportunity to understand their concerns and address them. He read my reply and agreed that it was probably a better public response than what he would have posted. :-) Of course for the next twenty minutes we discussed which Resident we thought had written the original post and could not agree on any one person. And I told him I guess it doesn't matter who wrote it, but it does matter how we respond to all the work order requests. We must be proactive; we must be efficient and prompt. We must continue to provide excellent customer service every day to all our Residents.

So, I was thinking that it is time to TOAST the Maintenance Team here! I think for the entire month of August, I will have a Treat-of-the-Week for them,  some special little surprises sprinkled throughout the month, too, and publicize it to all our community Residents, vendors and the whole city itself. It is time to celebrate our unsung heroes in a big way. They do work hard and they all deserve more appreciation.