Time To Spruce Up Your Yards!

 Landscaping can be one of the hardest things for a tenant to maintain, although it is easy to do. By spending twenty minutes a week on landscaping, you can dramatically change the look of your home.

          Just mowing your grass can freshen up and add some curb appeal; just yank that pull-cord, blow on your hands to keep warm and get started (often the hardest part!).

          Looking at your mowed lawn, you might think that your place looks good. But wait! You’re not finished yet! Your flowerbeds demand attention, too!

          What your flowerbeds need the most is ten minutes of weed killing, whether that be by pulling or spraying. Both get the job done, but pulling them sure makes it look nice a lot sooner.

 Another thing that you can do is weed-whacking. It might be a dirty and boring job, but you can chop down a lot of weeds in such a short amount of time.

          Around October the trees on your property start dropping leaves, the same ones you had enjoyed for shade. Picking up leaves isn’t the most gratifying work, but raking them out of the flowerbeds and blowing them off the driveway does sharpen things up quite a bit. The nice thing about leaves is that once the tree is finished dropping them, you’re finished cleaning up after them for the year.

          Following this regimen once a week, or even twice a month, is all your yard needs to look great.      

This has been a guest post from Empire's Chief Landscaper, Timothy Waggoner

Tenant Screening

One of the secrets to Empire's success has been our great tenants.  We have taken care to set our screening guidelines high, and to maintain this level even when the property is sitting vacant. To screen tenants thoroughly, you must perform the following checks at a minimum:

• credit check
• criminal background check
• employment/ income verification
• rental history check
• eviction cross check
•  reference check

The application can be denied at anytime during the screening process, but do not approve an application until you are satisfied that this is the tenant you want living in possibly your biggest investment. Empire Property Management LLC has a wide variety of services. Call or email for details.

Setting Rental Rates

    Setting rental rates can be a challenge. We know that the best tenants are usually very price conscious, and are looking to get the best mileage for their rental dollar. However, nothing comes without a price in this world and to deliver the service that quality tenants demand, you must charge as much as you can get. This has been the landlord's dilemma.  If you charge too little, there will not be enough in the budget to maintain the building. Charge too much and the property sits vacant. There are a lot of websites that claim to have your rental rate solution through their secret formula, but anyone who has been in the business knows that there is no substitute for experience. Tenants make decisions based on their personal housing needs, and your needs are not their needs. Rental rates are an important factor in a well run investment. Empire Property Management has been listening to the needs of their tenants and owners for almost 15 years. If you would like to set your rental rates or re-evaluate the rates you have, call James 541-913-8451.

Maintenance and Inspections

Maintenance and Inspections

The heart of our success is customer service, and no management company can effectively oversee their properties without knowing the details.  Even though inspections are a tremendous amount of work, and an occasional inconvenience to our tenants, we cannot effectively serve either our owners or tenants without seeing the property and hearing from each how we can serve them better. At  Empire we drive by every property once per month. This give us a surface idea of what is going on. We notice illegal tenants, pets, vehicles, and if the lawn is not being taken care of. Furthermore, we inspect the entire property 1-2 times per year. This is an in-depth inspection revealing many problems that are otherwise overlooked. Deferring the repairs will only mean disgruntled tenants and more turnover which results in lost revenues for our owners.   Over the next few months Empire will be conducting inspections and the maintenance that follows. If you want to experience just how great our management system is call or email for details.

Evictions and How to Avoid Them

In the property management world, evictions are the end of a long and expensive journey. A journey that has probably ended for the landlord with lost rents, renovation expenses, and a feeling of hopelessness. For the tenant it means possible homelessness and ruined credit and rental references. In the end there are no winners, but only losers on both sides. This circumstance can and should  be avoided by property managers and landlords, and with a little vigilance it mostly can be.

Firstly, as a property manager you have a fiduciary responsibility to attain the best tenants you possibly can. This involves setting strict but reasonable screening guidelines, and then sticking to them even if it involves an extended vacancy. Good tenants shop for the best value in housing. If your rental is not renting the issue probably resides in the price or condition of the property. Do not lower your guidelines to get a property rented. This course of action will lead to your financial ruin. Good tenants pay rent on time, take good care of the property, and spend a little time cultivating a working business relationship with their landlord or management company.

Secondly, once you have approved your applicant your job is not over. As with most customers, your tenants need your interest in their continued purchase. Tenants want to see if you truly care about the condition and maintenance of the property. When they call with a maintenance request try to take care of the issue within 24hrs. This is the support after the sale that every customer/tenant needs. This requires your effort, but the reward, in our experience, is well worth it. Tenants will see that you are serious about maintaining the condition of the property and will generally follow suit.

Lastly, do not let your tenants fall behind in the rent. This is the biggest mistake landlords make. When a tenant falls behind in the rent for an extended period of time generally they have lost a source of revenue, and their condition is not going to change any time soon. Do not be Mr. Niceguy and allow them to stay in the property and accrue delinquent rent and late payments. The tenant only ends up putting off what they need to do and digs themselves into a deeper hole they cannot dig out of. The only recourse at that point is resorting to the law. Early on in the process if the property manager takes action the tenants still have options available to them. Eviction is generally an indication that the landlord/manager was not being diligent in their work and let the situation get out of hand.

Although we perform eviction services, to date Empire Property Management LLC has not had to evict even one of our own tenants. If you, or anyone you know, need help resolving a tenant related issue we would be glad to help.

Empire Property Management, LLC
541-913-8451
541-935-0346

Ideas for Getting (And Keeping) Good Tenants, Part Two

Do you remember the last time you moved? Packing all your things, changing your utility companies, finding friends who can help you move, unpacking everything, and trying to make your new home feel like home? STRESS!! A nice thought for your new tenants would be a Welcome Basket. It could consist of a gift card to the local pizza parlor, a bag of popcorn, a coupon for a free movie rental, and a bottle of soda. Or maybe they'd like a bag of bath salts, nice body wash, and some gourmet soaps? How about a bottle of champagne and two glasses to celebrate? After screening your tenants you've learned a little about them and can pick the appropriate basket to help them feel welcomed. Another idea to show your tenants you care about them would be to send them a card on their birthday or an anniversary card commemorating when they moved into your rental. You can even include a gift card as a special way of saying thank you. Doing a little something special for your tenants will set you apart from other landlords and help your tenants appreciate you and their home.

Ideas For Getting (And Keeping) Good Tenants, Part One

Good tenants are a commodity worth investing in. Not only are they hard to find but once you find them you need to give them good reason to stay in your unit. As a rental owner it is...a good idea to not charge too high of rent. If you keep your rents just slightly below market value it helps your tenants WANT to rent your unit and take an active interest in pleasing you as the property owner, thus retaining your interest in them. Lower the rent $25 a month and for $300 a year you're almost guaranteed full occupancy and tenants that care. That's a third a months rent for most rentals. When you have a vacancy it commonly lasts two weeks to a month. Taking into account advertising and cleaning expenses (just to name a few of the expenses you may encounter) the slight reduction in monthly revenue can feel more like money in your pocket.