Sacramento Property Management

We have experienced hackers taking our ads and posting them on their sites claiming to be the owner.

To combat this we have included a watermark on our ads with our name.

Verify the web site, address, of the one displaying the ad.

There are cases where people are breaking into vacant houses and changing the locks. Then claiming to be the landlord ask for rent for keys without taking an application. The fact that they are not doing a background check is the red flag warning.

Be careful out there.

MANDATORY SACRAMENTO COUNTY INSPECTIONS

This self certification program requires the inspector to be certified with County of Sacramento. We  and other property managers hold the necessary certifications. The owner may perform this service themselves without certification.

This inspection is more labor intensive since the county does not provide an inspector. We are required to follow the county instructions and maintain a report for audit at anytime by the county.

Every unit must have this inspection done before  tenant move-in. This program will become law January 1, 2010.

Properties that are exempt are:

1.  The property has been issued a certificate of occupancy or passed final inspection by Sacramento County within the last five (5) years.

2.  The property is subject to routine interior and exterior periodic inspection by another government agency as listed as SHRA.

3.  The property is not a rental housing unit as defined by section 16.20 of the Sacramento County code.

4.  You no longer own the property

The cost by the County is $14 per unit per year.

The inspection must be done annually and subsequent inspections should require less time than the initial inspection.

UPDATES

Slow leasing beginning of the month. Picking up last week of the month. Same as last month. There are lots of rentals out there. However, we are still renting.

Shortage of REO properties. My opinion is that banks are holding back releases to stabilize the market. Perhaps the Government has influence with this strategy. To unload all at one time would depress values. There is a strong demand for these properties and wanabe home owners are competing with investors large and small for REO properties.  Unless you can offer cash I think you may be wasting time.

One of our biggest headaches is chasing after unpaid utility charges. For some reason tenants that pay their rent on time don’t pay the utilities on time. Water, sewer, and garbage collecting when not included in the rent are major collection problem. We find out about the delinquency when the owner’s property is liened.

Some water companies don’t shut off the water, the just lien the owner. If they would shut off the water then we wouldn’t have this collection problem.

To solve this problem you can apply the unpaid charges against the security deposit, but the problem is that depleting the deposit may cause a shortage for move-out damages.

Another way to solve is to apply funds received from the tenant for rent to charges first and rent last. This way it will cause a delinquency for rent. However, the lease must state this will be the procedure. You can then serve a 3 day pay or quit notice.

Anyone with suggestions on how to handle this problem are welcome.

You have read the one page ads in the newspaper or watched an infomercial on TV. The message is the same only the package is different.

The message is similar to what follows: Now is the time to buy real estate with low prices and low interest rates.

This is all true, probably won’t see an opportunity to buy affordable real estate with rates the lowest I have seen in my lifetime.

But before you run out and buy please listen to a veteran real estate guy who has developed, brokered, syndicated, exchanged, and managed real estate for 44 years. DON’T BUY UNTIL YOU TALK TO ME OR ANOTHER PROPERTY MANAGER. The reason we know the local markets, we know the current rents, we know the neighborhoods, and we know the properties that rent well.

I get new investors all the time that have already bought and then they come to me to manage their property. When I tell them what they can receive in rent they are shocked. They say so and so said it would rent for such and such. Who is so and so? They tell me and my response is they are not in the trenches with us and are only guessing.

I welcome investors to ask me about the market conditions at no charge.

Lambert Munz MPM RMP is a property manager in Sacramento CA. for 27 years. Has written a book HOUSE INVESTORS’ MANUAL to be published later this year. It reveals information that has been ignored, unknown, or untold regarding house rental investment. Read chapter one at www.arbourpm.com click on NEW. Phone 888-551-5114 x 84 email propertymanager@arbourpm.com

This message is for investors and renters. A new law will become effective November 1, 2009. It is called the Red Flagg laws.

It requires anyone granting credit or approving credit for services ( E.g. As a  property manager  approving of a renter for a rental) to have a written I.D. security plan in place.

We are happy to announce that our company has such a plan. We caution you that you ask before divulging private information to anyone by asking if they have such a plan.

More details will forthcoming in future blogs

Beginning January 2010 the county is requiring that every rental be inspected. They will furnish a checklist and detailed procedure. Everyone other than owners that performs the inspection must be certified. We have been certified. Owners can do their own inspections with out certification. We will have to charge a fee for this service since it is extensive and we must maintain a file. Every year we will have to re-inspect.

This may be coming in your world some day soon.

The number one reason is that we are working with two opposing interests. One wants service with the lowest possible rent and the other doesn’t want to spend money and wants the highest rent they can get.

If we represented one community, such as a large apartment house, we would have one consistent image to offer our tenants. However, we represent hundreds of owners of different cultures and personalities. We unfortunately offer inconsistent policies to our tenants. What is agreeable to one owner is not agreeable to another.

Some owners want their properties maintained while others if it means spending money rather ignore maintenance.

This makes it very difficult to manage and keep the customers happy. Tenant retention is so important such as offering a gift or dinner out for renewing their lease and paying their rent on time.

TIPS…
Charges Other Than Rent Are Difficult To Collect
Tenants seem to know that non-payment of rent will lead to eviction, while other charges can wait–especially maintenance charges that are the fault of the tenant. Utility charges are also a headache to collect. Unpaid rent can lead to the tenant being served a 3 Day Notice to Pay or Quit. However, a landlord can’t give a 3 day notice for charges other than rent. Our leases help with this problem. They state that any money received will be applied to outstanding charges first, and the remainder will apply to rent. For example, if the tenant pays the current rental amount, the funds will automatically apply to outstanding charges, with the remainder going toward rent. This results in any outstanding balance being unpaid rent. Then, at this point, we can file a 3 day notice for unpaid rent. However, watch out for this tactic, if a tenant writes on the check “for rent only”, this plan will not work.

Kitchen Cosmetics
Install new handles and drawer pulls and it will bring a touch of class to the kitchen. Add a new strainer in the sink drain. Give new life to kitchen cabinets with Liquid Gold. Buy Dishwasher Magic to remove lime scale and rust buildup in dishwashers.