Members from BMG Rentals and Jacob Grant PM attend the NARPM Broker/Owner conference

The National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM) held its first annual Broker/Owner Conference in Las Vegas. Over 250 property management company owners got together to discuss national issues and the property management industry.

Here is a sample of the topics that were covered:

• Marketing your company outside the box
• Forms procedure and processes that may be new or that you may not be aware of
• Smart Growth of your business in today’s market while keeping it profitable
• How to motivate others within your company while you are growing your business
• Mobile technology and how it can improve time and efficiency
• In-depth discussion on overall office operations and purchasing management companies
• Ideas for increasing customer satisfaction throughout your organization
• How to protect yourself against unfounded lawsuits by tenants
• Real life application of technology that you can use in your office

Jake, Clint, and Wyatt take a break for a picture at the Bellagio

 "What a great opportunity to gather all the best property management practices from around the nation and bring them back to our operation." 

                                   -Wyatt Wetsel

Best $2 way to clear a clogged drain!

You might lose your appetite but this gadget can save you hundreds in plumbing costs!!

Renting is the new owning . . .

Some statistics to consider:

BMG Rentals as a property management company has seen record growth in Idaho Falls and Salt Lake due to positive factors affecting the rental industry.

 

In previous years, it was embarrassing to say you rent. Today, in some cases, it is embarrassing to say you own. According to the US Census Bureau, the U.S. home ownership rate has fallen about 1.5% over the past year (from 66.9% to 65.9%). For every 1% drop in the home ownership rate, it represents approximately 1 million new renters entering the rental market.
 

In some cases, home-ownership rates have fallen below some European countries. Italy for example, has an 84% home-ownership rate. Along with Spain with a 78% home-ownership rate.
High unemployment rates, difficulty in getting financing, changing demographics and increased foreclosure rates are adding to the deceleration of home-ownership. In 2011, there was a 4% increase in the amount of renting households compared to 2010.
 
In the United States, home-ownership is the least in states like California (56%), New York (54%) and Washington at (64%). States with the highest home-ownership rates are Michigan (75%), Mississippi (75%), South Carolina (75%) and West Virginia at (79%).
 

Rental vacancy rates dropped to 5.6 percent in the third quarter of 2011, down from their record high of 8 percent in 2009, according to Reis Inc. This increase in rental demand is putting upward pressure on rental prices throughout the United States.  As more foreclosures and new apartment buildings enter the market, the rental rates should stabilize and reach equilibrium.

Renting is the new buying and this trend doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.

Managed Property and Rental Housing Trends

2012 has started with relatively good news for both investors and property managers of rental residential real estate. The most relevant breaking story came on Thursday, January 12th when we learned that foreclosure filings and repossessions have fallen to their lowest level since 2007 last year. Total filings, including default notices and bank repossessions were down 33% for 2011 to 2.7 million, according to RealtyTrac, the online marketer of foreclosed real estate. They informed us that 1 out of every 69 homes had at least one foreclosure filing during the year, while 804,000 homes were repossessed. That’s a significant improvement from the peaks reached in 2010. In that year 1.05 million homes were repossessed. So the numbers for 2011 are the lowest since 2007.

This apparently is the beginning of a nationwide trend, according to CNNMoney.com. They also reported that more than 4 million homes have been lost to foreclosure over the past five years. That’s a big inventory to add to the existing numbers of unsold homes, and that foreshadows a trend that will be more like a bottoming-out process on home pricing. While the declines in foreclosure filings and repos sounds like good news for the housing market, where a torrent of foreclosed homes has depressed home prices, “… much of it is due to processing delays caused by fall-out from the “robo-signing” scandal that broke in late 2010,”  according to the CNNMoney.com report. “During the year, banks spent more time making sure paperwork was legal and proper, creating a backlog in the foreclosure pipeline. As a result, the average time it took to process a foreclosure climbed to 348 days during the fourth quarter, up from 305 days a year earlier” they pointed out. “Foreclosures were in full delay mode in 2011, resulting in a dramatic drop in foreclosure activity for the year,” said Brandon Moore, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac.
When I went to their web site I also learned that the average sale price of a foreclosed home actually went up 8.53% in December 2011 (nationwide average price–$183,393) from them November average price of $168,984. This gives a sense of urgency to your owner-clients who want to leverage what they own by looking for foreclosed houses that they can buy at greatly reduced pricing and rent to future residents. Remember, be the source of good ideas and news to your clients and they’ll not only stay with you, they’ll refer others to you!

Turning Foreclosures into Rentals

As I recently reported on propertymanager.com, 2011 will go down in history as the year when the rental housing and multifamily apartment rental markets began to tip in favor of owners and landlords. Now comes the exciting news that Federal officials are planning to launch a pilot program in early 2012 to convert government-owned foreclosures into rental properties. The program, which was recently mentioned by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke as one way to address the housing crisis, would sell foreclosed homes now owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to investors who want to buy in bulk.
Converting foreclosures to rentals will help many neighborhoods, relieve the shortage of rental housing and minimize losses to Fannie, Freddie and the FHA. These three Government-Sponsored Enterprises (GSE) hold about 250,000 properties, Bernanke told lawmakers in January 2012. He urged lawmakers to strengthen their efforts to improve the housing market. Dr. Bernanke is placing particular emphasis on the large number of vacant homes on the market. “Restoring the health of the housing market is a necessary part of a broader strategy for economic recovery,” he stated emphatically.
For more details about turning foreclosures into rentals you may want to check this out for yourself. This may be a once-in-a-generation chance for your clients to increase their rental property income and for property managers to expand their businesses at the same time.

 Posted: by Propertymanager.com

How Rental Housing is Being Advertised for 2012

How Rental Housing is Being Advertised and Vacancies Filled

2012 will see the expansion of rental housing being advertised online or via sites that correlate to the explosive growth in the usage of Smart Phones and tablets such as the Apple’s iPad. Property managers are also finding that social networking sites, like Facebook and Twitter, can be another great channel to market vacancies. Specialty websites like RentVine.com have been used by an increasing number of owners and property managers to expand their advertising of vacancies online. That trend should continue and grow in 2012. The number of houses going into foreclosure increased exponentially in 2011. As a result, the number of displaced former homeowners looking for rentals increased to record levels. The good news is that the year 2012 looks very bright and promising for the property management industry and for both single and multifamily rental housing owners.

The Tipping Point

The year 2011 will go down in history as the year when the rental housing and multifamily apartment rental markets began to tip in favor of owners and landlords. In many areas in the U.S. like Los Angeles, Dallas, Phoenix, Chicago and Miami, the vacancy rates lowered compared to 2010.
Other areas like Cleveland, Ohio, Denver, Colorado, Houston, Texas, Atlanta, Georgia as well as the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Areas of California saw vacancy rates flatten out or improve somewhat during 2011, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

The 2012 Forecast for Multifamily Rental Markets

The apartment rental market (aka multifamily rental housing) is expected to see vacancy rates drop from a nationwide average of 5.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 to 4.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012, again according to the NAR. Multifamily vacancy rates below 5 percent generally are considered a landlord’s market with demand-supply factors usually leading to higher rents and higher capitalization rates for owners.

Areas in the U.S. with the lowest multifamily vacancy rates currently are Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2.4 percent; New York City, 2.7 percent; and Portland, Oregon, at 2.8 percent. According to the NAR, the average apartment rent was projected to rise 2.5 percent by the end of 2011 and another 3.5 percent in 2012. That’s an amazing 40% increase year-over-year! Multifamily net absorption is likely to be around 238,400 units all tolled for 2011 and 126,600 in 2012. The number apparently drops in 2012 because of a considerable reduction in supply. The true measure of change in total demand is net absorption. Gross absorption is often an inappropriate and potentially misleading indicator in terms of understanding and evaluating changes in total demand for rental units.


 Posted by Marc Courtenay in Real Estate

The Importance of Property Maintenance, Part 2

Last time I talked about the importance of property maintenance. If you find yourself neglecting the small items, you’ll soon be on the hot seat for more expensive repairs. Building managers can find themselves with a run-down, in-desperate-need-of-repair building a lot sooner that they think. I’ve included a list of areas that should be inspected and repaired on a regular basis. This list does not include items such as stoves, refrigerators, dishwashers, and the like, that should be scheduled for inspection on a regular basis.

Hers are some areas you should add to your inspection list if they’re not already on there:

Roofs – Many property managers take the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” approach when it comes to roofs. Roof leaks don’t just happen; they’re a result of worn shingles, or other weak spots on the roof, something a routine inspection can usually catch. It’s certainly worth the time and money spent to do an annual roof inspection rather than waiting until a resident has a serious leak to contend with, where you’ll not only be paying for roof repairs, you’ll also be paying for any personal items damaged in their apartment or home, as well as the cost of providing housing while the roofing is repaired. Inspect the roof.

Hot Water Heaters – An inspection of a typical hot water heater only takes a qualified professional a few moments, but can save managers a lot of heartache. Leaks can usually be detected prior to bursting, with repairs or replacement completed and flooding prevented.

Outdoor balconies – This is a danger area that is frequently overlooked. While most apartment balconies are now reinforced with concrete flooring, there are still quite a few older units that have wood flooring. The wood can be become dry from extreme temperatures or warped from excessive rain. Either condition makes the balcony ripe for potential collapse, with the property manager responsible. Wood balconies should be inspected at least twice a year. The same advice goes for wood stairs as well.

Light Fixtures – Proper lighting is a major safety issue for property managers. It’s essential that any property you manage have all outdoor and safety lighting working at all times. Not only can injuries occur due to a lack of sufficient lighting, but a dimly lighted property is a magnet for criminal activity. It’s a minor thing to inspect, the fix takes only minutes, and it protects both you and your tenants.

While there are so many things that should be inspected regularly, the items above are essentials that need to be on every maintenance manager’s list of things to inspect.

 Posted by Mary Girsch-Bock in Resident Retention

The Importance of Routine Maintenance, Part 1

With marketing activity being ramped up in a tough rental market, property managers are sometimes guilty of neglecting property maintenance. Warning: you do so at your own risk. While the majority of property managers are very responsive to routine maintenance requests, sometimes we forget that performing some routine maintenance at regularly scheduled intervals can reduce and in some cases eliminate the need for that emergency maintenance call.
If you find yourself more times than not running around frantically, trying to respond to these maintenance requests, it might be time for a refresher course in Property Maintenance.
There are five separate types of maintenance that property managers should be aware of and on top of. They are:

1. Routine Maintenance – This area is usually the cause of least concern for property managers. They simply assign maintenance personnel a series of jobs that are to be undertaken at a scheduled time; typically daily, weekly, or monthly. These include items such as regular landscaping, cleaning, and vacuuming of common areas.
2. Preventive Maintenance – Preventive maintenance can be easily neglected, so it’s important for managers to keep their maintenance staff on their toes when it comes to scheduling preventive maintenance. Changing an air filter or inspecting a water heater on a regular basis keeps maintenance personnel on top of any smaller problems that can be taken care of before they become big problems.
3. Corrective Maintenance – Most property managers and maintenance personnel spend the majority of their time responding to calls to fix a problem. While a necessary part of property management, and one that will never be eliminated, many problems can be prevented with the proper preventive maintenance.
4. Cosmetic Maintenance – Cosmetic maintenance is most often performed during the make-ready process. New carpeting, fresh paint, and new light fixtures are often part of the maintenance that will need to be performed between tenant rental periods.
5. Deferred Maintenance – Deferred maintenance is often found in properties with little to no funds available for needed repairs. While deferred maintenance can provide property managers with a little breathing room, it’s important that repairs be initiated in the near future, or the value of the property can be negatively impacted.

While using good property management software with a solid maintenance module can make scheduling and tracking maintenance work easier, remember that it’s only as good as the person putting the information into the system. Make sure your maintenance staff knows what to look for and what needs to be tracked.

 Posted by Mary Girsch-Bock in Resident Retention

BMG Opens New Property Management Office in St. George, UT

Property Owners in St. George can now choose 5 star rated BMG Rentals Property Management!

The great property management service that owners have appreciated in Salt Lake City and Idaho Falls are now available in St. George, UT.  After doing some market research in the area, it was determined that a service oriented property management company was in high demand in the St. George area. "This location will focus on residential property management for single family homes and apartments," says branch manager Trent Collins. BMG Rentals has a unique property management system that ranks in the top of customer service websites, such as a 5-star customer rating on Google places and the Better Business Bureau gives them an "A" ranking on their website. "We are excited to offer our simple, investor friendly, fee structure to the property owners of St. George and surrounding areas. BMG provides a level of service and customer satisfaction that is hard to find in the property management industry."

BMG Rentals Property Management St. George Location

Trent has over 10 years experience in real estate and property management. He currently manages a portfolio in the St. George area and is adding more rental properties every week. For information on vacancies and property management services go to BMG Rentals main website.

For property management services in Southern Utah contact Trent at 435-256-6260 or email trent@BMGrent.com. The new office is located at 1173 S. 250 W. #502-C, St. George, UT 84791.

New video explaining our property management services

 New website coming soon!

Check out the new video that will be featured on the all new BMGrent.com. The new website will launch before March 1st. You can see some images from the new website during this video.