Our Philosophy and Objectives for Success
Our philosophy is to provide “GOOD HOMES FOR GOOD PEOPLE” this is our company’s tenet on successful property investment. Our goal is to make the lives we touch better thru the implementation of our philosophy in our daily business. As a result of accomplishing our primary goal we are able to positively influence the lives of owners and tenants. In our opinion there is no other way to be in the business of property investment.
Our key to success has been to first and foremost be a Property Management company. Properties offered to our investors are hand selected from the best of the inventory, located in the best neighborhoods, and priced to yield the highest returns for the investors. The economy in Michigan has caused an unheard rate of foreclosures. There are a large number of tenants who are excellent tenants that have been and continue to be displaced because property owners losing their property to foreclosure. The Southeast Michigan real estate market continues to become an expanding tenant-driven population. This culmination of events; first low home prices, and second, a high demand for rental property has provided the optimal economic conditions for investors to see record profits.
Property Rehab
A good tenant will settle for nothing less than a good house. We typically have multiple tenants vying for one of our properties. A COMPLETE REHAB is key to success in obtaining optimal profits for owners. Our contractors are experts in the rehab business; they understand the goals and parameters to achieve a quality product while controlling costs within an established project budget. Our ability to do this translates into higher profits for our owners in several ways. First, maintenance costs are kept to a minimum. Second, a poor rehab leads to unhappy tenants who become frustrated and angry with the problems of a sub standard property. Just because something was not done in a rehab doesn’t mean it goes away, it becomes amplified by the discontent of the tenant who is living in the house. Our style of property management is to foster happy tenants that have no reason not to pay their rent. Maintenance requests are attended to within 24 hours or less if there is a tenant emergency. Communication with our clients is of utmost importance. And, third, our eviction rate on our rehabbed properties is less than 5%. We fill these “Turn Key Select Propertys” typically in less than 30 days and in most cases before the rehab is completed.
We are successful because our goals are to have happy owners and tenants. Tenants happily pay their rent because they are provided a good house where they can live and be content. Owners are happy because they have good people who pay their rent, take good care of the property and want to stay in the house for multiple leasing terms.
Marketing
Vacant properties don't pay well..... We analyze market trends through the use of the Multiple Listing Service, Property Management Forums, internet sources and daily management involvement. Maximizing an owner’s cash flow is accomplished by marketing the property at fair market value. Areas and general economics are constantly changing and consequently so are rental prices. If a property has not rented quickly, usually it is better to lower the rental price for the short term in order to fill a vacancy and then raise the rent after the tenant has a psychological bind established with the unit. Effective advertising strategies: You need to have as many potential renters as possible know about your property. Below is a list of advertising methods we employ that given the right pricing.... work very well.
- Signs - Place a sign on the property. Signs are one of our most successful forms of advertising. People who live in the area spread a new listing to friends and family who may be looking for a property.
- Internet - More and more people are using the Internet to locate their goods and services, including rental properties. Tenants can find your property through this web site using strategic search engine optimization and ad strategies. As well as many others, like the Craig’s List website, and the hundreds of other web sites that we are linked to.
- Newspapers - the old fashioned print advertising still has its place in the market and is very effective in attracting tenants. Actually, the print advertising has moved to a web based marketing tool as the newspaper post there classifieds on a website that is heavily used. Many of our clients do not have access to computers and still like the newspaper as a method of finding rentals.
- Govt. Agencies (HUD Sect 8) - When the properties qualify and the owner is interested to renting to tenants that receive government support, then we contact all agencies so they can post the available property in their respective agencies. Approximately 25% of our inventory is comprised of Section 8 tenants. This can be a gold mine for many owners. The rental payments are government paid directly to the landlord, in some cases the tenant may have a small portion to pay.
- Tenant Referrals - A large portion of our tenants come through our referral network of current and past tenants. A “Turn Key Select Property” is known in the market place as a property of high quality and attracts superior tenants.
- Referral Agents – We work with several agents who have become aware of our company in the Detroit market because of our strong reputation for having a quality inventory of property. They look to us to place their good tenants who have an urgency to move and need to find a good house quickly.
Leasing & Tenant Retention: Screen, Interview and Select New Tenants: We do the best we can through the interview process and accumulation of rental history to make a judgment as to the character of the tenant. Probably the single most important asset we bring to an owner, when it comes to selecting a tenant is experience. Yes, we do credit and background checks, verify their employment, and check with their previous landlord. But, what's more important, is instinct and experience on how to read and interpret all the information you have received from completing this process to determine a renters character.
Set Rents To Maximize Cash Flow While Ensuring High Occupancy: Sensible pricing and realistic owner expectations go a long way in helping create a good cash flow. We use internet based Rentlinks and the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) to "run comps" for the property. We attempt to find properties of the same type and size in the same subdivision in making our rental price determinations.
Eviction and Cash for Keys: Our delinquency policy is a simple one..... They Don't Pay....They Don't Stay. There is rarely a reason to make any type of rent concession that is going to be of benefit to the owner. Eviction proceedings are started on the 6th of the month with late rent notices sent to all outstanding balances. Tenants with a bad history will on occasion be offered cash for keys to move on a certain date and leave the property in good condition.
Maintenance and Operations
Update and Select Service Contractors: We use our available venders based upon the service needed and the expertise involved. We do not send a handyman to replace or repair an electrical circuit panel. We also, do not send an electrical contractor to replace light bulbs or standard interior grounded fixtures. We attempt to place the best person for the job to do the work. We require anyone that we send out to do work at your property to be licensed and insured.
General Maintenance: We encourage owners to make all necessary repairs as soon as possible and to set aside funds for unforeseen maintenance issues. Keep good tenants happy by making the necessary repairs. It will make owning your investment much more enjoyable. Happy tenants are tenants that stay longer, pay higher rent, put their own money into your building, and even will help refer other good tenants to your property.
Improvements: Make improvements when they will provide a solid platform from which to raise rents. Here is an easy example... air conditioning. Air conditioning is an improvement, it's an expensive one, and it demands higher rent when compared to similar properties that do not have air conditioning. On the other hand, painting after the third tenant vacated would not necessarily be considered an improvement. This is more of a maintenance issue.