Here are a few tips to ensure you can capitalize on the end of leasing season.

Give Them Everything To Make a Decision

Make sure your website provides all the information required to assist a prospective apartment or condo applicant in the decision making process. This includes apartment floor plans, pictures of the amenities and, if possible, a virtual tour. Where possible weave resident testimonials throughout your website.

Sell Them on a Lifestyle

Prospective residents aren’t just looking for a “unit” – they are looking for a home. Use your target audience demographics to create a community profile by listing lifestyle elements that are important to them. For example, young families will want to know about nearby schools, parks, sports facilities, shopping, attractions and events. Help them envision themselves living in the area.

Sell Them on Service

From a renter’s point of view, if two apartments are very similar in terms of number of bedrooms and location, then the decision can come down to your unique selling proposition. So, be sure to showcase things like a tenant portal that allows them to communicate 24/7 with property management about any issues. As well, mention your commitment to customer service and satisfaction. Showing that you care about their experience can be the difference between an application or not.

Eliminate any Rental Barriers

Having an online application is fundamental to capturing interested prospective residents and turning them into tenants. At the end of the leasing season, many people are in a hurry to find a place to live. Make it as easy as possible to apply then and there. (Whenever then and there may be!) Use a leasing module – like Property Vista’s – that guides prospective residents and co-signers through the application process, quickly and easily, which dramatically reduces the time from resident application to resident approval.

Provide Multiple Payment Options

Sometimes the difference all boils down to convenience of payment. Many prospective renters are put off by the idea of writing out cheques. The ability to offer online payments via credit cards, debit and other methods may be the tipping point for prospective residents looking for modern convenience.

Leverage Word-of-Mouth Advertising

Enlist your current residents to get the word out about your multi-family building and available units to their friends, family and coworkers. Use an incentive program that provides the referring resident with a gift certificate, a free month of parking or gym membership or other attractive bonus.

Learn more about Property Vista’s leasing solutions here or sign up for your free account today to learn more about how your property management company can leverage easy online payments, communication portals and other property management tools.

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Property managers face the dilemma of how to best communicate with residents the importance of on-time payments while still managing costs and customer goodwill.

The rapid growth of mobile devices and advances in as-a-service web-based technologies have opened new avenues for property managers and their Accounts Receivable departments to quickly and efficiently contact delinquent and even “pre-delinquent” residents with a history of late payments.

These new automated systems leverage multi-channel communication methods like SMS (text messaging), email and interactive voice response (IVR) notifications. Here is an overview of how each can help you improve revenues and reduce late rent payments.

SMS

SMS is one of the least expensive and most effective resident communication tools. Unlike traditional mail – which can take days to arrive, be expensive, and has the potential to get lost amidst a pile of junk mail – it is fast, economic and, according to research, 90% of all text messages are read within 3 minutes. Also, when using an as-a-service web-based platform, your Accounts Receivable team can reach overdue renters with little or no administration time required. Payment reminders and overdue notices can be fully automated.

Email

Digital email costs a fraction of traditional snail mail. This low-cost method reduces the amount of time that property managers must spend on the phone or in person contacting residents about past due rent amounts. Using a fully CAN-SPAM/CASL third-party option ensure that your company stays on the right side of spam laws that could incur thousands of dollars of debt. Property management companies can easily send an automated email alert to remind tenants prior to rent being due, ensuring on-time payment and potentially decreasing the number of late payments outstanding.

IVR

Outbound IVR technology helps advance your residents’ ability to pay their rent whether your offices are open or closed. Administrators can program the telephone reminders to be sent at 6:00-8:30 when residents are more likely to be home. Renters can use the IVR system to make payments on their own or connect to an in-house Accounts Receivable staff member if they wish. IVR technology also allows property management companies to automatically place payment reminder calls, reducing overdue accounts and increasing your collections rate.

Do More With Less

By leveraging multi-channel proactive rent reminders, you can actively have a positive impact on collections, revenue and customer life cycle. These new technologies can be used to remind your residents of rent payment dates.

To help reduce rent outstanding or late payments, property management companies can take a “message early and often” approach. Using automation driven by business rules, property management companies can escalate reminders as required. For example, 5 days prior to due date, the due day, 7 days past due, etc.

And, perhaps the best part is that the collections process can be fully automated using existing technology. Because Property Vista is a web-based as-a-service software, property management companies do not have to invest in any special hardware or software. They simply take advantage of the “plug and play” nature of the solution.

Also, within the first three months of implementing Property Vista’s solution, typically our customers experience a:

• 45% increase in collections
• 75% increase in online payments

To explore how you can reduce late rent payments, sign up for your free account today or give us a call to learn more.

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In today’s modern world, where most residents carry smartphones everywhere and favour the quickest payment methods possible, the answer is simple: move away from cheques, and embrace online payments.

But many online payment options, such as credit or debit cards, come with hefty bank processing fees. To offset those costs, many property managers charge convenience fees.

Do Convenience Fees Live Up to Their Name?

According to Merchant Council, convenience fees are “a charge in addition to the original transaction amount for the convenience of being able to use an alternate payment method.”

It seems simple enough. But be careful; convenience fees aren’t the same thing as a surcharge – at least not according to VISA – and surcharging customers for paying with a credit card can be considered discriminatory. A convenience fee can only be applied to payment methods that fall outside your standard payment options.

When looking to find the perfect balance between customer convenience and cost-efficiency, property management companies adopt several payment models:

• Free e-transfers. Many property managers prefer to offer renters the option to pay rent online for free with their chequing or savings accounts, and not to accept credit or debit cards. Residents gain a no-cost online payment option, and property managers can eliminate credit card interchange fees. However, this doesn’t meet all renters’ requirements; many prefer to have the option to pay via credit card.
• Free e-transfers and credit card payments. Some property managers opt to offer e-transfers and credit/debit card payments at no cost to renters. This offers maximum convenience and choice to residents, but keeps property managers on the hook for card interchange rates.
• Free recurring payments. To strike a better balance between selection and cost reduction, property managers offer no-charge payments for recurring credit/debit card transactions, but may charge a convenience fee for one-time credit card payments. This encourages renters to make a habit of paying online, and helps property managers recoup some of their losses for residents who go back and forth between online and paper payments.

Taking a Toll

There are many ways to handle the issue of convenience fees. The question is, do those fees really pay off? Yes, they help offset credit/debit card charges, but at what cost?

Customers resent convenience fees. Even when faced with only a small charge for paying online – say, $2-$5 – many renters will choose to pay by cheque.

But cheques take valuable time and money to process. At the end of the day, typically the total cost of accepting paper rent payments exceeds the cost of credit card interchange fees.

It may be time for a new approach – one that encourages renters to pay online and discourages them from using paper cheques.

Consider adopting free online payments as the standard for your property management company and charging a convenience fee for renters who pay by cheque. Providing incentives for residents to pay digitally will not only save them the cost of the online convenience fee, but will save you a lot of time and money by cutting back on the number of cheques you have to process each month.

That alone is well worth the cost of absorbing credit card interchange fees.

Property Vista offers the option to charge convenience fees. We can also direct you to the best approach for your business, ensuring customer satisfaction while cutting costs.

To discover which payment model is best for you, and how to best embrace online payments, sign up for your free account today or give us a call to learn more.

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New survey results reveal that credentialed residential property managers have some key diverging priorities from their peers in the commercial sector, despite the many similarities in their job functions. Data recently collected from more than 1,400 Canadian and American property and asset managers with certification from the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) underscores the importance of marketing and leasing skills in the rental apartment sector and the relative lesser weight given to sustainability issues.

“For office buildings, the primary people responsible for marketing and leasing are brokers rather than the property manager,” the executive summary of the survey results explains. “It is also something that is likely to come up less often for office buildings since office leases can be five, 10 or even 20 years in length rather than the 12 months or less for conventional apartments.”

The job analysis survey, which is central to IREM’s ongoing scrutiny of required competencies and criteria for certification, asked respondents to rate the importance of job-related tasks and knowledge areas that support the fulfillment of those responsibilities. Questions fell broadly into six categories: maintenance and property operations; financial operations and asset management; legal and risk management; leasing and marketing; human resources; and client/owner relations. A seventh category, cross-functional skills, was added for consideration of knowledge areas.

Overall, enforcing operating policies and procedures emerged as the most important task, with 88 per cent of managers considering it important or very important. Communications was seen as the most important knowledge, deemed important or very important by more than 95 per cent of managers.

Comparing the responses of residential and commercial property managers, seven of each group’s top 10 tasks are the same. However, more than 80 per cent of apartment community managers ranked “marketing leasable space” as important or very important, while only 40 per cent of office building property managers gave it that prominence. An even smaller percentage of commercial managers deemed “implement a leasing plan for the property” as an important or very important task, in contrast to more than 80 per cent of residential property managers who viewed it that way.

Meanwhile, more than 50 per cent of office building property managers ranked sustainability issues as important or very important, while less than half of the total respondents felt that way. “Sustainability generally doesn’t register high on tasks for multi-family managers, but site managers at residential communities do believe that it is important for them to educate residents on the role they play in sustainable practices, e.g. energy and water conservation,” the survey’s executive summary states.

Credits to REMI NETWORK. Read the original article here

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Read the whole article in the Huffington Post here

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In spite of this growing trend away from paper payment, property management companies continue to favour accepting cheques for rent payment. Many property managers believe that cheques are the most cost-effective and reliable payment solution.

They are mistaken.

The Cold, Hard Truth About Cheques (and the Benefits of Online Payment)

The truth is, there are too many costs and risks associated with cheques to keep pushing paper. Here are five important points to keep in mind:

1. Cheques cost you – both time and money. From administrative and clerical fees, to the time it takes to get to the bank, processing each cheque can cost between $13 and $19. Multiply that by all your units, month after month, and the numbers add up quite quickly.
2. Cheques aren’t secure. With any cheque, you run the risk of incurring NSF charges. But the risk doesn’t end there. CIBC reports that Canadian cheque fraud costs North American business more than $20 billion every year. Because property management accepts more cheques than most modern businesses, the risk of being defrauded is quite high for property managers. It can take weeks for banks to clear a cheque; by the time it’s identified as fraudulent, not only would you be on the hook for bank charges, but you’d also be out on that month’s rent from the tenant in question, putting a serious strain on cash flow.
3. Digital demand is on the rise. With the rising popularity of mobile devices across Canada, that demand will only continue to grow. Renters want online payment options, and cheques are holding them back. If residents aren’t able to use their preferred method of payment, they’re less likely to stay on as your tenant, or to recommend your property to other renters.
4. Online payment is flexible, and convenient and transparent. With digital payment, you can offer renters a variety of options. They can set up pre-authorized payments every month. If that doesn’t appeal, renters can authorize one-time payments each month through a secure resident portal. They can use online banking at any time of day, seven days a week, so they have greater control and accessibility. Digital payments also translate to improved transparency, offering residents real-time payment information, automated receipts, SMS payment reminders and more.
5. Going digital saves you time and money. Because all payment information is digitized and centralized, electronic payment systems are more efficient and effective than paper-based processes. Payments are settled much faster than depositing paper cheques, and funds flow directly into the property manager’s account. Electronic rent payment systems allow property managers to spend less time pushing paper and more time improving the property itself. As an added bonus, there is no risk of bounced cheques, so you can save time and money while benefiting from increased protection.

Processing the Future: Digital Payment for Property Management

For businesses and organizations across Canada, cheques are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Property management has lagged behind in adapting online payment processes. But the time has come move away from outdated methods.

Forward-thinking property managers should consider adopting an electronic rent payment system for their properties. It offers a secure, reliable and efficient way to collect rent payments.

Online payment also meets the current demands of modern renters. In today’s tech-savvy world, property managers can’t afford not to stay current; they must provide electronic payment options for their residents.

To discover how Property Vista can help you move away from cheques and toward online payments, sign up for your free account today or give us a call to learn more.

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According to The Canadian Bankers Association, the Internet is now the main means of banking for 55% of Canadians, and use of the Internet as the primary banking choice is increasing among all age groups. And, more than three-quarters of Canadians (77%) reported using online banking in the last year. As well, 43% of Canadians expect to be conducting their banking using mobile devices in the near future.

In many ways, mobile phones and ubiquitous connectivity have changed the way we bank, the way we work and how companies do business.

Online Rent Payments: Here to Stay

Your residents are no different. Renters want to pay their rent through their mobile device, tablet or computer.

Sadly, 70% of renters are still paying by paper cheque. Yet –mark my words and no crystal ball required– this statistic will significantly change over the next five years.

Why?

The technology exists – Mobile phones, Internet, and resident payment portal solutions (like Property Vista’s!) aren’t going anyway. Online payments and paying through our preferred technology solution (desktop, tablet, phone) are the new normal. Residents expect to be able to use technology in all aspects of their life.

Convenience, convenience, convenience – Never before has it been so easy to make a purchase or pay a bill. If you’ve ever suddenly remembered that you forgot to pay your telephone bill while sitting on the train to work, you’re not alone. Mostly likely, you pulled out your smartphone and paid it on the spot. Renters also want this same type of flexibility and ease of payment.

More protection – Both the property management company and the tenant benefits from the built-in security of online payment solutions. Unlike paper cheques, online payments cannot be lost, stolen or misplaced. There is also a digital audit trail, for added visibility, accountability and safety.

The Property Vista Solution

Online payments are no longer a “nice to have” – they are essential for doing business. In the years to come, there will be a digital revolution in the property management industry, and those that adapt will come out ahead with their customers and perspective renters.

With Property Vista’s solution, your residents can choose direct withdrawal, direct online payment, debit or even Visa and MasterCard payment methods.. The resident portal even accommodates different state/provincial rules concerning security deposits and last month’s rent payments.

And, for added peace of mind, our solution features bank-grade security for your tenants rent payment transactions. Our systems are PCI-compliant, and feature token-based security that ensures secure data and transactions. In addition to being PCI-compliant, PropertyVista products offer end-to-end encryption through Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology, ensuring that sensitive tenant credit and banking information is always secure.

To discover how Property Vista can help you support online payments, sign up for your free account today or give us a call to learn more.

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According to IDC senior analyst, Emily Taylor, “The majority of Canadians are mobile workers in some capacity, and we expect the number of mobile workers to total about 14.0 million (or 75.5% of employed Canadians) by 2018.”

In the US, the mobile worker population will grow at a steady rate over the next five years, increasing from 96.2 million in 2015 to 105.4 million mobile workers in 2020.

Property management teams, maintenance teams and the residents they serve, are often on-the-go or working out of the office. Being able to monitor and manage mission-critical services like maintenance is key to profitability as well as resident satisfaction. More than ever, a web-based “as a service” solution is the answer property management companies are looking for.

Better Coordination of Tasks

Even with a designated maintenance coordinator, synchronizing multiple sites and work orders with equipment and staff can be complex. A centralized portal that is web-based offers increased visibility so that no service request or preventative maintenance falls through the cracks.

Work orders take seconds to initiate, and with a clear audit trail of digital communication, it makes it easier to both coordinate and keep third-party and on-site vendors and maintenance crews accountable.

Track Maintenance Progress

Of course, this increased visibility means that key stakeholders (residents, property managers, maintenance coordinators and assigned personnel) can more easily keep tabs on the progress of the service request – from start to finish.

The ability to track allows property managers to quickly intervene if there are delays from the maintenance staff, ensuring a better resident experience and quick resolution of the request.

Streamline Internal Communication

Sometimes a service request needs to be forwarded internally to management or accounting for review or comment. A communication portal creates a streamlined system where teams and individuals can pass on communications and internal notes and resolve service issues effectively.

Improve Customer Service

It may sound simple, but a little can go a long way when it comes to your residents. Deploying a cloud-based maintenance solution that gives all stakeholders – residents, property managers and in-the-field maintenance staff or third-party vendors – a real-time view of how the maintenance request is progressing.

It allows maintenance or property managers to communicate maintenance appointment times more easily with residents – and by the method they prefer: email, telephone or SMS. Upon completion, tenants can rate the service they received, giving you immediate feedback on how your team is performing and allowing you to address any lingering issues immediately.

“Portable” Portals for Better Collaboration

From the initial service request through to resolution and rating, an online maintenance portal can be used to monitor, evaluate and improve your maintenance division.

Equally as important, it improves collaboration between all key personnel, wherever they may be – on site, in transit to the service request location or at head office. Better collaboration improves productivity and reduces costs.

To discover how Property Vista can help you deliver outstanding maintenance service for your in-the-field teams, sign up for your free account today or give us a call to learn more.

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