Rental markets across the United States have been upended by the COVID-19 pandemic. The struggling economy has shown signs of slow recovery, but renters remain unemployed with months of unpaid back rent.
However, an innovative program in Los Angeles County provides stability and support to property owners by matching those who have vacant units with tenants who need housing. Powered by PATH and backed by Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), LeaseUp has worked with more than 600 property owners and managers across South California since 2018.
The majority of LeaseUp tenants use government subsidies, like Section 8, to cover a significant portion of rent. While government-backed housing subsidies offer a solution to the monthly rent check quandary, signing onto this kind of agreement with tenants can raise a variety of concerns among property owners and managers. See how LeaseUp addresses these questions head on.
Consistent Rental Collections
Property owners and managers can count on LeaseUp for monthly checks at a fair market rate. Unlike open-market tenants, LeaseUp’s tenants have secured income through their government-backed housing programs.
Dedicated Support
Upon entering the program, every property owner or manager is assigned their own dedicated housing specialist. LeaseUp offers 24/7 concierge support, which includes handling inquiries and scheduling viewings, assistance with applicant paperwork, and mediation if any issues arise with tenants.
Protection Against Property Damage
One of the great benefits of working with LeaseUp is protection for property managers and owners. LeaseUp can cover property damage and unpaid rent up to $10,000 after the security deposit (covered by the agency responsible for rent) has been applied.
Tenant Support
LeaseUp tenants have been carefully vetted by experienced service providers, and all tenants must be enrolled in a program that provides relevant supportive services. Prior to move-in, tenants meet with supportive services to discuss their specific needs. From there, tenants are connected to resources, such as job training, healthcare, mental health counseling or addiction treatment, and education.
Interested in applying? LeaseUp is open to property owners and managers throughout Southern California. The program works with properties of all sizes, including empty rooms and ADUs. In other words, it’s a great way to transform your extra space into a mortgage payment.
Sign up at Leaseupla.org today to see if you’re eligible to participate.
LeaseUp is a PATH initiative that partners with property owners and managers to fill vacancies and help people at risk of homelessness stay housed. By providing an easy-to-use online listings portal, consistent support, and financial incentives, we ensure a smooth, streamlined process for property owners and managers, service providers, and people seeking housing.
*Please note that leaseupla.com is a commercial real estate company and is in no way affiliated with LeaseUp powered by PATH.
The nation’s largest third-party operator is testing a more affordable apartment smart home technology to integrate with other systems.
By Paul Bergeron
Smart-home technology is generating greater efficiencies for apartment residents and their communities’ onsite teams alike. Innovation in this space has created a surplus of providers with a variety of solutions and price points.
Given all the options, multifamily C-suites wonder: If only the decision on which provider to choose was made more efficient.
The global rental-housing company Greystar has both recognized the necessity of offering competent smart-home technology and has discovered an interesting option in a growing field of emerging providers, said Andrew Livingstone, its executive managing director.
“The pandemic created a large shift in how we operate, and it moved us forward a decade,” Livingstone said. “It changed how we think about operating apartments. It forced us, out of necessity, to think more futuristically, given the circumstances.
“It firmly created opportunities in apartment-access technology, making how we enter our apartment homes a fundamental cornerstone. We’re seeing unprecedented changes with access given recent transactions involving companies that offer this and their valuations.”
Livingstone said access and smart-home technology are now an “absolute must-have,” not a “nice-to-have:” “It won’t just be in some apartment buildings; it has to be in all the buildings, he said.”
There are several players in smart-home tech technology – but there is not a clear winner, he said.
“It’s an exciting time as brands continue to innovate their services to establish themselves as leaders in this space,” he said.
Greystar is working with owners who want to try this, Livingstone said. Greystar has been the largest third-party management company in the country for 11 years running, “and right now we know that we do not have as much of this technology in our portfolio as we would like.”
Livingstone said his team realizes it needs to evolve to serve the needs of its residents, clients “and the ever-changing times we live in.”
For example, “We need to find out what smart-home technology platforms integrate best with the various components (thermostats, lights, window blinds, etc.,” he said. “What kind of battery life these systems have; what kind of after-hours service we can provide; and most importantly, how this technology can facilitate greater convenience for prospects wanting self-guided tours?”
iApartments was chosen to deliver smart-home technology to 2Bayshore, a 367-unit community built in 2015 and one of the premier buildings in the Tampa commercial business district, a popular neighborhood for young professionals.
No IoT Dedicated Wi-Fi Networks Necessary
The breakthrough aspect of the technology is that each unit is equipped with the proprietary 4-in-1 smart-hub thermostat designed for 24/7 connectivity. The system allows communities to have smart-home technology without the property (or its owners) having to invest in dedicated IoT Wi-Fi networks, which can cost from $600 to $1,000 per door.
2Bayshore’s system’s ability to provide smart-home technology access through the apartment home’s thermostat gives each unit water-leak detection and additional plug-ins for lighting and other connected devices.
“These are the things our residents want,” Livingstone said.
2Bayshore retrofitted with an enterprise smart-home platform in a move to help it compete with amenities offered at nearby new apartment developments. With existing apartment communities playing catch-up in this way, cost and intrusion have become key factors.
Installation at 2Bayshore did not require high-voltage power or Wi-Fi infrastructure, so the transition was of minimal disruption to residents, and without any damage to the physical structure.
“Many of our clients don’t have the capital or budget to invest in an intelligent apartment program,” Livingstone said. “Those kinds of networks can be expensive, and we’re finding this system works really well out-of-the box. I’ve seen it in action. I’ve spoken to our onsite teams. This checks all the boxes without having to make additional Wi-Fi investments.”
Calculating Net Operating Income
Company founder Dave Magrisso has more than 20 years’ experience in multifamily onsite products; he played the lead role in one of our industry’s first amenities as a service (AaaS) – Valet Waste (now Valet Living) – and understands how additive features and services represent value to residents and property owners. It’s an economic model he used during due diligence on smart-home technology installation benefits.
Magrisso shows that a 350- to 400-unit garden-style community could potentially bring $118,000 in additional annual net operating income (NOI) based on a $35 per month smart-home rent premium. This would increase the overall asset’s net value by roughly $2.3 million based on a five-percent cap rate.
Furthermore, using $2,200 per month as the average rent, this will could create an estimated $150,000 total increase in NOI based on modest numbers of new leases signed because of the amenity and improved retention rates.
Why Water-Leak Alerts are Crucial
Like many communities, 2Bayshore is mostly made of concrete, and concrete can present moisture issues. As part of 2Bayshore’s smart-home package, three wireless smart water sensors were placed around the residence, plus a built-in humidity sensor was placed in the thermostat, which automatically sends emergency alerts to both the resident and maintenance team when these sensors detect water or moisture.
These sensors discover slow leaks, giving 2Bayshore a preventative solution instead a reactive one.
Installing leak-detection alert systems in apartment communities (they are required in some markets) has resulted in less wear-and-tear on the apartment home and reduced maintenance work orders.
The system’s float-switch alert is saving maintenance technicians 30 minutes per HVAC system repair event, and is helping to decrease overall work orders related to clogged HVAC drains. (Clogged HVAC drains represent approximately 80 percent of HVAC-related work orders at communities.)
2Bayshore residents also can access their smart-home system’s energy management capabilities by controlling their home temperatures from anywhere through an app on their phone.
Once inside the apartment, residents experience a lifestyle upgrade by using their smart wall plugs to control things such as lights, coffee makers and personal devices.
Cutting Costs by Not Cutting Keys
That resident app also is the key to activating the community’s smart-lock access for renters or to generate temporary guest codes for deliveries and other common services such as dog-walkers or package delivery.
Physical keys are not only out of date, but can easily be replicated and used to enter the property without consent. Common places to find a key (under the mat, under the flower pot, inside the fake rock, or lock boxes) may be unsightly or not allowed on some properties.
The access system also has helped 2Bayshore save on expenses and staff time. The company was able to cancel a current contract to manage its key tracking, saving it $2,940 per year along with eight team hours per month needed to cut keys.
There are times when onsite teams need access to every unit in a community, such as during fire inspections. In that case, at 2Bayshore, it required 367 keys to be pulled to ensure easy access into each unit. There are security issues with tracking the keys, and knowing that keys are easily copied creates a significant liability for the management team.
Needing to access various apartments approximately 150 times per month, the smart-access system saves its onsite team roughly 456 hours per year in service time.
Livingstone said as he continues to implement these technologies at more communities, and the onsite teams work with it more, “we are able to provide valuable feedback that helps smart-home technology providers improve the quality of their offerings.”
About the author:
Paul Bergeron
Paul Bergeron has been reporting on the apartment industry since 2002 and served 20 years as editor-in-chief for the National Apartment Association’s UNITS magazine. He currently is editor of his LinkedIn media platform, Thought Leadership Today, and can be reached at [email protected].
How can you help out a tenant with bad credit is is the question this week for Ask Landlord Hank. Remember Hank is not an attorney and he is not offering legal advice. If you have a question for him please fill out the form below.
Dear Landlord Hank,
My daughter and I have relocated to Lubbock, Texas, for her job. We have been having a hard time finding a place to rent because her credit score is low; while mine is decent, I don’t make three times the rent. Is there anything someone can do for a person in this situation? Miranda
Hi, Miranda,
Owners of rental property are very concerned now about tenants being able to pay the rent, as so many people have been harmed by the pandemic, with loss of jobs and the closing of so many businesses.
You want to make yourselves look like a good bet to a landlord.
You want to be the candidates about whom the owners won’t have to worry about being able to pay the rent. If your daughter has poor credit, which means she hasn’t paid her bills, you can offer to pay the last month’s rent up front so the owner will feel more comfortable.
You can point to your great rental history (if you have that).
You can try to rent something that is a third of your gross income. Or you may need to ask someone to co-sign for you, so the owner has one more person with good credit to rely on for rent. This could be a challenge for you as you are asking an owner to take a risk on you and your daughter when your daughter has shown that she is not a good risk.
Best of luck.
Sincerely,
Hank Rossi
Landlord Hank says for a tenant with bad credit, “you may need to ask someone to co-sign for you, so the owner has one more person with good credit to rely on for rent.”
Ask Landlord Hank Your Question
Ask veteran landlord and property manager Hank Rossi your questions from tenant screening to leases to pets and more! He provides answers each week to landlords.
HUD is proposing changes to the rules governing Fair Housing Act discriminatory effects and asking for a return to 2013 rules, dropping changes put in during the Trump administration, according to a release.
The rules being proposed advocate going back under the 2013 rule, where HUD says “the discriminatory-effects framework was straightforward: A policy that had a discriminatory effect on a protected class was unlawful if it did not serve a substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest or if a less discriminatory alternative could also serve that interest.”
Then the rule change in 2020 under the Trump administration “complicated that analysis by adding new pleading requirements, new proof requirements, and new defenses, all of which made it harder to establish that a policy violates the Fair Housing Act. HUD now proposes to return to the 2013 rule’s straightforward analysis,” according to the release.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Marcia L. Fudge said the proposed rule is entitled “Restoring HUD’s Discriminatory Effects Standard.” The publication proposes to rescind the department’s 2020 disparate-impact rule and restore the 2013 discriminatory-effects rule. HUD states that it believes the 2013 rule is “more consistent with decades of case law and better effectuates the act’s broad remedial purpose of eradicating unnecessary discriminatory practices from the housing market.”
Secretary Emphasizes Lifting Barriers to Diverse Communities
“We must acknowledge that discrimination in housing continues today and that individuals, including people of color and those with disabilities, continue to be denied equal access to rental housing and homeownership,” Fudge said in the release. “It is a new day at HUD-and our department is working to lift barriers to housing and promote diverse, inclusive communities across the country.”
She said the proposed rule change involving the discriminatory-effects rule “is the latest step HUD is taking to fulfill its duty to ensure more fair and equitable housing.”
The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing and housing-related services because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, and disability.
The discriminatory effects doctrine is a tool for addressing policies that cause systemic inequality in housing. It has long been used to challenge policies that unnecessarily exclude people from housing opportunities, including zoning requirements, lending and property insurance policies, and criminal records policies.
“Accordingly, having a workable discriminatory-effects standard is vital for the accomplishment of the Biden-Harris Administration’s policy goal of a housing market that is free from both intentional discrimination and policies and practices that have unjustified discriminatory effects,” HUD said in the release.
HUD’s 2013 discriminatory-effects rule codified long-standing case law for adjudication of Fair Housing Act cases under the discriminator- effects doctrine, for cases filed administratively with HUD and for federal court actions brought by private plaintiffs.
The public will have 60 days to file comments on the rule change.
From small private entities to large, publicly traded institutions, it seems as if everyone is getting into the single-family rentals (SFR) investment business.
As the competition for acquiring quality rental housing increases and inventory continues to dwindle, SFR investing remains challenging unless a company finds the right investment partner or partners. Finding the right partner can be done by creating a joint venture (JV), a business arrangement in which two or more parties agree to pool their resources to accomplish a specific task. In virtually any type of economy, a great way to invest in SFR housing at scale is to create a joint venture.
Forming a JV, or a fund to invest in single-family rentals, can bring many benefits to all parties involved, not to mention the residents of the properties. Combining the resources of two or more companies in a JV partnership, typically results in faster growth for all of the entities. While one company may be responsible for putting forth more debt and/or equity capital than the other or others, that investment will likely pay off in multiples. That growth can manifest itself in a variety of ways, including the ability to target new markets for acquisitions, the ability to increase the number of properties on a company’s radar screen, and much more.
Faster growth has enabled property owners and operators to focus more on the resident experience, and to make it one of their top priorities. As a result, resident benefits have become increasingly prevalent. Rapid expansion may also provide the partner with greater leverage to renovate properties with environmentally-friendly features and amenities, for instance, or to develop cutting-edge, tech-enabled properties for residents who work from home every day.
Atlas Real Estate recently executed a $1 billion JV with DivcoWest to acquire and renovate SFR nationwide. This JV enables us to achieve scale at a much faster rate than we would have been able to without a JV partner. Before we achieve our desired scale, we need to ensure that our processes are locked in, otherwise, the inefficiencies will be exacerbated. Our mission statement at Atlas is to “uplift humanity through real estate,” and we believe that we will have a positive influence on the communities and residents we serve throughout the United States. .
Not All of a JV’s Benefits Are Monetary-Related
In addition to being able to grow faster with an infusion of both equity and debt capital, there are other advantages to forming a JV. As an example, throughout Atlas’ history, our JV partners have many connections in the real estate industry, and creating a fund allows us to tap into those resources. In addition, the risks and costs involved in a JV structure are allocated among all parties. Therefore, the liability does not fall solely on one company; it’s diversified. Savvy companies structure JV agreements so that only a portion of a company’s business is associated with the risk.
While a JV does not bind two or more companies together for perpetuity, the relationship can turn into a long-term one, filled with even more investment opportunities in the future. If the JV achieves its goal, the entities can add additional phases and monetary funds to invest in, renovate or develop additional properties, for example. The right JV partnership can open many doors and even result in massive expansion for a company.
JV Investment Partnerships Have Grown Exponentially
For many reasons, joint-venture structures are increasing in popularity, even among companies that aren’t traditional single-family rentals players. In today’s tight market, companies seeking to accumulate a large portfolio of properties need to have capital at the ready. Most companies, however, cannot fund a portfolio acquisition alone, thus they require a partner to make it work. Increasingly, entities outside of the SFR industry are deploying capital into JVs because of the significant upside this type of investment opportunity brings.
Across the country, SFR homes are filling a void that starter homes held for previous generations. As a result, professional operators in the residential and commercial sector are eager to place their money in such a promising sector. A recent Trepp report states that 2020 was the most active year for SFR securitizations on record, with new issuance topping $8.3 billion — a whopping growth of 99% from 2019. Through April 2021, there were more than $3.1 billion of newly securitized SFR CMBS, keeping 2021 on pace to break a new record. According to The Altus Group, institutional SFR operators acquired between 55,000 and 65,000 single-family homes last year, with 2021 expected to net upwards of 70,000.
Find the Right Partner
Finding the right partner should be a methodical, well-thought-out process since it’s the most important step in creating a successful JV. Not putting enough effort in this step could make or break the entire process. There are many potential partners out there, but it may be difficult to find one on the same page, or to find one with shared values. Begin by interviewing different partners to see who aligns the closest. Two of the most critical questions to ask during the diligence process are: 1) Does this potential partner have reputable leaders on their team? 2) Is this potential partner a cultural fit? Make sure to understand—and clearly establish—non-negotiable items when commencing these conversations.
Examine each partner’s business goals and values to ensure that they are complementary. Reach out to other companies, investors, and employees that this potential partner has worked with in the past to provide better insight into how they run their business. Get to know the leaders personally, and find out what makes them tick. What are their hobbies, dreams and passions? Uncover their professional and personal value systems, as well. Then, run through scenarios to determine how they would react to stress, if they would remain calm under pressure, how communicative they are, their level of loyalty and reliability, etc. A partner that responds favorably to these scenarios is a good partner to trust in a JV relationship.
Some Considerations to Ponder Before Executing a JV
While the terms of each real estate JV are structured differently, here are some general considerations to make before entering into a partnership:
Identify all of the parties involved. (A JV can consist of more than two partners).
Clearly set forth the goal of the JV and how it will achieve those goals operationally. For instance, if the goal of the JV is to purchase and renovate single-family homes, what is the geography/location of these rentals, what technology will be used to achieve the goal, etc.
Determine the amount of capital and/or resources each party will contribute to the JV.
Establish the terms, such as the amount of debt or equity capital each partner will front
Determine the upfront contributions each entity will make and understand the ownership split
How the JV will be managed, controlled and operated and by whom.
What will happen once the deal is complete/exit options.
As with any relationship or partnership, there are risks associated with forming a JV. Both companies should be on the same page, and possess the same vision and goals at all times. Trouble begins when the objectives are unclear, the lines of communication are poor, or differing sets of expectations exist. If a JV doesn’t work, that can put strain on other parts of a firm’s business. The clashing of cultures and imbalance of workloads can lead to disagreements and rifts within the partnership. A JV requires significant work and time to develop, and in many cases, it can take years to agree upon the terms of a deal.
With home prices at peak levels and inventory at a minimum, forming a joint venture is a great way to invest in properties. When making a pitch to a prospective partner, be persistent, memorable, and personalized. In the real estate industry, a partner could be looming just around the corner. Who knows when a business associate, longtime mentor or even a competitor could approach with an offer to form a fund, so always be prepared for that possibility to arise. Although the single-family rentals investment sector is a huge, $3.8 trillion industry, it’s still a very small world.
About the author:
Vincent Deorio is the Vice President of Corporate Development at Atlas Real Estate. Contact him at [email protected], or (303) 902-4785.
The Oregon Senate has passed a bill now headed for the governor’s signature which provides 60-day eviction pause for those awaiting rental assistance, according to a release.
The bill is intended to also ensure landlords who are awaiting payment of past-due rent will receive it.
Earlier this session, the Senate passed a bill that extended the grace period for repayment of rent accrued during the eviction moratorium until February 28, 2022. Now, the recently passed Senate bill adding the eviction pause provision “furthers those protections by ensuring a tenant cannot be evicted within 60 days of filing for rental assistance. Additionally, the Landlord Compensation Fund will retroactively and prospectively reimburse successful applicants at an increased rate of 100 percent of unpaid rent accrued due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” the Senate said in a release.
Additionally, the first wave of federal emergency rental assistance was passed by Congress in December 2020. Following passage, the latest guidance on distribution of those funds was delayed until May 2021. Due to this, applicants have had limited time to access funds before the eviction moratorium closes
“While some feel as though life is getting back to normal, others are still struggling due to this wholly unequal recession. Lower-income and vulnerable Oregonians are taking much longer to recover,” said Senator Kayse Jama (D-East Portland) in the release. “The Legislature has worked incredibly hard to keep Oregonians housed throughout this crisis. It would be wrong to let a lapse in timelines cause Oregonians to face eviction or insurmountable debt.”
The eviction pause bill gives renters a 60-day pause on being evicted, as long as they can prove they’re one of more than 10,000 Oregonians waiting on rental assistance. While renters have until Feb. 28, 2022 to pay past-due rent from April 2020 through the end of June 2021, they’ll be required to start paying monthly rent in July.
The state is currently rushing to push out approximately $500 million in rental assistance and compensation for landlords. But technical glitches, an unprecedented number of applications for rent assistance, and staffing capacity within the Oregon Housing and Community Services department and its partner agencies, have caused significant delays, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting.
“Disparities that already existed were deepened by the pandemic. With Senate Bill 278 we have an opportunity to prevent further exacerbation of those disparities and increase opportunities for health and future success for Oregonians struggling to get by,” added Senator Jama. “When we end this session and spend more time with our communities, every legislator wants to see those communities benefiting from the work of the Legislature. Senate Bill 278 will do just that.”
Tenants are thinking a little differently now post-pandemic, so what are the 3 most important things to tenants and what things in rentals are they are looking for these days?
By Justin Becker
There is no argument that the best tenants are the ones who pay rent on time, have long-term leases, and respect the properties they occupy. As a landlord, the key to your success is retaining the current tenants and attracting new ones.
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it hard for most landlords to get the best tenants, making the real-estate industry more competitive. If you want to have a high chance of getting the best tenants now, or in the post-pandemic period, then you should consider the features highlighted below.
Whether you are improving your current property or purchasing a new one, we have listed the three most important things every tenant wants in a rental property. These features will not only assist you in attracting new tenants, but also help you find the best tenants in the industry.
No. 1 – Location and Security
Just as it is for a business, location can greatly influence your real-estate revenue. For instance, the best tenants in the industry want to rent an apartment or house that is closer to their place of work, restaurants, community parks, and grocery stores.
These clients focus more on the quality of lifestyle. They are willing to overlook certain desirable aspects and pay more money, as long as the property is located in a great neighborhood.
For instance, tenants would prefer to live in a place where they could take an hour or less to commute to work. Tenants also find it desirable to settle in a place where they can easily buy dinner when they don’t want to get in the kitchen and cook.
Another example is that there are many growing families that would love to settle in a good school district. This is the top priority for tenants who have young school-going children. Even for tenants who don’t have children yet, a good school district is still perceived as a predictor of the quality of the neighborhood. This is, therefore, a factor that’ll always be on the mind of a tenant who is looking for a long-term home.
The good thing about having a house or apartment complex in a desirable location is that you can charge higher rent, and no tenant would complain.
Another thing, which goes hand-in-hand with location, is safety and security. A safe environment and neighborhood is one of the greatest motivators for the majority of tenants. If tenants are worried that their homes or cars will be broken into, it may not be easy for them to sleep at night.
As a landlord or property-management professional, it’s important that you research the crime statistics of a certain area before investing in a property. If you don’t, you might find yourself buying a property in a dangerous location that won’t attract tenants.
If you already have a rental property, it would also help if you add an alarm system, or any other security feature, to make your tenants feel safe. Remember, the goal here is to keep the existing tenants comfortable, as well as to attract new ones.
No. 2 – Move-In Ready Conditions
Be sure you rental is move-in ready and looks great for prospective tenants as that is among the 3 most important things tenants want post-pandemic.
This is one area that many landlords don’t take seriously. However, if done correctly, there is a high chance that you can attract some of the best tenants around.
Repairs, both in common areas and units, are annoying and disruptive to tenants. If your property needs, for example, carpeting, cleaning, or painting, it might turn off excellent potential tenants. It’s therefore important that before you show off the apartment to prospective tenants, you clean it and make all of the necessary repairs.
If the tenants see the property in a poor state, it may create a poor impression of the property in their mind, and thus they will lose interest. Another disadvantage is that they may set it in their mind that this is how they should also treat the property.
You want to avoid giving your potential tenants such an impression. A move-in-ready unit sets the standard that every tenant should maintain the property in high regard, all while keeping everything clean and neat.
Another important step in getting your property in move-in ready condition is to include important appliances in the apartment, and make sure they are working properly. As much as homeowners are willing to pay for certain appliances and their upkeep, tenants who are renting the property usually aren’t.
Tenants do like nice appliances that they can take pride in, and thus take proper care of them, but most don’t want to buy costly and large items that they may not require in their next rental unit. This means that if you decide to provide new appliances for your tenants, it’s less likely that they will be damaged.
For instance, tenants would be willing to pay higher rates for 1 bedroom apartments if they are sure that the landlord will provide laundry machines/facilities as part of the rent. Every tenant recognizes that washing their clothes at a local laundromat can be very expensive. An in-unit washer/dryer, or even community machines, could therefore be ideal in such a scenario.
No. 3- Excellent Amenities
Excellent amenities are without question the top priority on the list of many tenants. When it comes to amenities, there are several things that landlords should keep in mind.
Ample parking is one of the most important amenities that every landlord can provide for their tenants. No tenant wants to drive around for long minutes while searching for a parking spot, especially when they have melting ice cream or a bundle of groceries in their car.
As a landlord, you should look to purchase properties in suburban areas since there are many parking spaces on the streets; parking can be a challenge in an urban environment. If you don’t have enough parking spaces, you should give your tenants directions to any decent parking garage nearby.
If you happen to offer parking spaces, you should outline rules related to them in the lease agreement. It’s also important that you post signs that notify everyone of these rules. Finally, you must enforce the rules to ensure that no unauthorized user accesses the parking spaces.
Another amenity that tenants prefer are apartments that have adequate storage space and open floor plans. This might mean offering an extra closet in the bedroom, or eliminating an unnecessary wall.
Alternatively, you can offer a storage unit outside of the house, maybe within an outdoor storage shed or basement. Tenants prefer landlords who offer them an option to store seasonal belongings such as skis and bikes, as well as their large belongings. This offers them enough space to move around their rental and entertain guests. In the end, this creates an enjoyable living experience.
A private balcony or back yard could also be a wonderful addition and can be attractive to new prospects, especially to urban dwellers. It also can be an amenity that makes your property stand out from the rest of the neighborhood.
You’ll attract more tenants to your property if you can offer space for them to enjoy some fresh air and sunshine. You’re even more likely to charge a higher rent for it.
Most Important Things To Tenants Conclusion
Whether you own apartments, manufactured housing units or stick-built homes, you must include the above three amenities to attract the best tenants to your rental property.
Apart from just ensuring that you have provided the best amenities and best location, you should always aim to be a good landlord to your tenants. Maintain a good landlord-tenant relationship by always attending to their needs as best you can.
We hope that you become a successful landlord or property management professional, especially in the post-pandemic era.
About the author:
Justin Becker is a property owner in the state of Michigan and has a passion for managing communities. He owns apartment complexes and mobile-home communities, and has been writing his own blogs for his properties for several years.
A new analysis says that remote work during the pandemic changed the asking prices for rent, and that higher education correlates with the ability to work from home, according to a new Yardi Matrix analysis.
Rent growth was much slower in many cases where renters were highly educated.
The detailed analysis shows “rent to be lower by 10.06 percentage points for a property where 100 percent of the over-25 age population held a bachelor’s degree, compared to a property where the over-25 age population contains no college graduates.”
The result is even lower, by 17.12 percentage points, the analysis says, for a property where 100 percent of the over-25 age population held a post-graduate degree.
The reason for weaker rent growth is tied to many tenants who sought new living arrangements during the pandemic. The general consensus is that suburban rents, where many remote workers moved, have outperformed urban rents.
The ability to move was not evenly distributed because pandemic-related remote work was overwhelmingly concentrated among the college-educated segment of the workforce.
Will remote work continue to affect prices for rent?
The analysis by Yardi Matrix says, “Multifamily properties where a large proportion of tenants held a bachelor’s or post-graduate degree exhibited much weaker rent growth during the pandemic compared to properties with a less highly educated tenant base.”
There are many different things that drive rent growth, and remote work was just one rent driver during the pandemic, the report says. It adds, “as the economy rapidly normalizes, the question for remote work is whether it will become a durable trend or fade out as life normalizes—and whether it will continue to affect multifamily rent growth as it did during the pandemic.
“Many (though not all) remote employees enjoy their newfound workplace flexibility, and many employers (also not all) are looking at solutions to accommodate them in the future.
“Undoubtedly, cities and offices will reopen. The social dynamism and collaboration opportunities they afford are too strong to ignore. However, if some proportion—even a small one—of pre-pandemic demand has permanently left these assets, the results presented here suggest rental-rate recovery may take longer than many are currently expecting.”
About Yardi Matrix:
Yardi Matrix researches and reports on multifamily, office and self-storage properties across the United States, serving the needs of a variety of industry professionals. Yardi Matrix Multifamily provides accurate data on 18+ million units, covering more than 90 percent of the U.S. population. Contact the company at (480) 663-1149.
A landlord who denied a tenant’s request to keep an assistance animal due to her disability, and then retaliated by evicting her, has been charged by HUD with a Fair Housing Act violation.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) said in a release that it is charging a landlord in Niagara Falls, New York, with violating the Fair Housing Act by denying a tenant’s reasonable-accommodation request to keep an assistance animal in a no-pet building.
According to the details HUD’s charge alleges that the apartment complex owner “refused to allow a woman with mental health disabilities to keep an assistance animal even though she provided him with a physician’s letter attesting to her need for the accommodation. The charge alleges further that the owner refused to allow the woman to live with the animal and subsequently evicted her, claiming that the dog had displayed aggressive behavior and was not a legitimate assistance animal.”
Letter presented from mental health professional
During a hearing, according to the HUD complaint, an attorney for the tenant presented a new assistance-animal letter from https://www.pharmacybc.com/ambien-zolpidem/ a mental health professional that stated the tenant was a “person who suffers from a psychological impairment which substantially limits her ability to concentrate … and her dog currently provides emotional support by improving motivation through emotional bonding which successfully ameliorates the effects of her disability.”
The letter went on to say the mental health professional prescribed that the tenant “be permitted to live with an emotional-support animal in her dwelling, despite any rules, policies, procedures or regulations restricting or limiting animals, and be provided any other reasonable accommodations in housing.”
The charge alleges that as a result of the landlord’s actions and the eviction the tenant “suffered actual damages, including eviction, loss of housing opportunity, out-of-pocket expenses, emotional and physical distress, as well as embarrassment and humiliation.”
The Fair Housing Act prohibits housing providers from discriminating against individuals with disabilities, including refusing to make reasonable accommodations in policies or practices when such accommodations may be necessary to provide such individuals an equal opportunity to use or enjoy a dwelling. This includes permitting persons with disabilities to have service or assistance animals. It also means that a housing provider that has a no-pets policy must waive it for a resident or prospective resident who needs an assistance animal because of a disability.
“Assistance animals provide invaluable support for persons with disabilities, including allowing them to fully utilize and enjoy the place they call home,” said Jeanine Worden, HUD’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, in the release, adding the action “sends a loud and clear message to housing providers that HUD remains committed to ensuring that they meet their obligation to comply with the nation’s fair-housing laws.”
HUD’s charge will be heard by a United States administrative law judge. If, after a hearing, the administrative law judge finds that discrimination has occurred, the judge may award damages to the complainant for any losses that have resulted from the discrimination.
Multifamily housing had another record-breaking rent-growth month in May, according to the latest Yardi Matrix National Rent Report.
The company said that national rents recorded “their greatest increase in the history of our data set. All Top 30 metros had positive month-over-month rent growth for the second consecutive month, with New York’s rent growth far surpassing the other metros.”
Highlights of the Yardi Matrix report on record-breaking rent growth:
Multifamily rents increased by 2.5 percent year-over-year in May, which is almost exactly where rent growth was in March 2020 when the pandemic began spreading in the United States. Many metros have recovered and surpassed pre-pandemic rent-growth numbers.
Rents grew $12 in May to $1,428, the largest one-month increase in Yardi’s data set’s history. The 0.8 percent month-over-month growth rate was the largest since June 2015. For the second month, all Top 30 metros had positive month-over-month rent growth and 90 percent had month-over-month gains of 0.5 percent or more.
Yardi Matrix now includes single-family rental units exclusively in built-to-rent communities. “Our data set covers more than 90,000 units nationwide. The pandemic has driven demand for single-family rentals, and the SFR industry boasted 7.3 percent year-over-year rent growth as of May.”
Overall, New York had the strongest month-over-month rental growth at 3.4 percent. The report said New York may be different than other markets going forward since many brokerages and banks are requiring their workers to return to the office this summer. Unlike New York, many tech cities like Seattle may see a slower return as tech workers are more able to work remotely.
Portland also showed strong month-over-month rent increase at 1.1 percent, along with Chicago and Las Vegas.
Tracking single-family rentals
Yardi Matrix said they are now tracking single-family rentals as an asset class. Their data shows there are 90,000 units in 7,000 communities they can track.
Phoenix, the Inland Empire in California, and Detroit have the largest number of single-family rentals the report said.
“The pandemic has fueled even more demand, and new institutional investors are pursuing the sector every day. The current constraints to purchase a home coupled with demand for more space is fueling strong rent and occupancy growth across metros,” Yardi Matrix said in the report.
