Charleston Property Management | If you own rental properties one of your concerns should be tenant retention. When tenants decide to move out of your property you are left with a vacancy and time where rent is not being collected. When tenants move out, you must spend money on cleaning services, maintenance, repairs, repainting, carpet shampooing, marketing, and many other expenses. Making sure your great tenants don’t move out is essential and Charleston property management can help property owners decrease their vacancies and increase their retention rates.

Some ways that Charleston property management can help you increase your tenant retention are:

• Being Available:Tenants want to know that they are being heard by their landlords or property managers. They get frustrated when maintenance requests or questions go unanswered or when they cannot get ahold of the property owner to arrange rent payments or renew a lease. If you own more than one rental property, you can feel inundated with calls from tenants. Using Charleston property management to manage your rental homes means that you don’t have to be at the beck and call of your tenants, but they are still being helped with amazing service through a property manager!
• Handling Maintenance: Handling the maintenance on your property can be tiresome and tedious, especially if you do not live near your rental property. Tenants also expect their maintenance issues to be dealt with in a timely fashion if they have to have repaired. Charleston, property management employees, are adept at making quick decisions that are within your budget and deploying the right vendors to the home to fix issues quickly. Also, property managers can get ahead of maintenance issues by conducting inspections of the house, changing the air filter quarterly and regularly checking in with their tenants to make sure the home is to standard.
• Doing Extra-Tenants tend to stay in homes where the landlord or property manager goes above and beyond or out of their way to ensure that tenants are satisfied and happy. Some of the things that Charleston property management firms could consider are offering vouchers off rent for referrals that sign a one year lease, providing free carpet cleanings, having a grace period on rent due date, keeping up landscaping or providing lawn services, offering online access to rent accounts.

If you are ready to see what a difference using a Charleston property management company can make, contact Scott Properties today!

Charleston Property Management | Why Your Tenant’s Trust Matters

Charleston property management companies often think about how their vendors can be trusted and whether or not their tenants can be trusted, but some rarely think about the importance of their tenants also trusting them. If you own a Charleston property management company, you should consider how you can help your tenants trust you more, and we’ll explain why it is important.

How Charleston Property Management Companies Can Gain Tenant Trust

There are many ways that you can earn your tenant’s trust. One of the most important reasons for your tenants to trust your property management group is because it improves your landlord-tenant relationship. The more your tenants trust you, the less likely they will be to damage the property, pay rent late, or incur lease violations.

Here are a few things you can offer your tenants to increase their trust in your Charleston property management company:

1. Charge reasonable screening fees- When renters are looking for a new place to live, they are going to be cringing at the expenses. New deposits, first-month rent, last month’s rent, pet fees, applications, moving fees—it all adds up quickly. When a Charleston property management company has reasonable upfront fees, tenants are much happier and likely to rent.
2. Include Yard Maintenance- Many tenants choose to rent single-family homes because they don’t want the responsibility of owning a home. Including yard maintenance in the rental price is a great way to earn your tenant’s trust.
3. Be Willing to Go Above and Beyond- The lease agreement outlines what the responsibilities of the landlord and tenants are; however, whenever a Charleston property manager can go above and beyond for their tenants, it shows that they care. Going above and beyond for your tenants also goes a long way in earning their trust and helping them feel comfortable coming to you with problems.

One of the best ways to ensure you have your tenant’s trust is to hire a Charleston property management company that is reputable and delivers results.

When you’re ready to partner with a management company, call Scott Properties –  843-790-4929

The Importance of Vendor Credentialing for A Property Manager

Real estate investors love hiring property management companies because these companies come with maintenance crews and built-in vendor relationships that make property maintenance easy and convenient. When a property manager does the proper credentialing on their vendors, they can reduce risk and save a lot of time and hassle.

A property manager needs to be able to verify the criminal history of employees of the vendors, ensure the vendors are properly insured, as well as their quality of work and a financial estimate for their services. When vendors don’t carry the proper credentials or cannot answer your questions, you run the risk of poor workmanship, improper repair work, and fraud among other things.

What to Keep in Mind When Verifying Vendor Credentials

A property manager needs to verify vendor credentials before they hire a company to complete any work. You should also do yearly reviews on all of your vendors to ensure their quality standards are still the same, their rates are still competitive, and they’ve kept up with their licensing and insurance. You’ll also want to get updated rosters on employees, especially those who will be working on your properties. The vendors you work with should be honest and willing to tell you if anyone on their team has offenses on their criminal record that are not conducive to providing services for a property manager.

Following Up with Vendor Services

A great property manager will follow up with tenants after vendors’ services to ensure that the work was completed in a timely manner, that the vendors were courteous and respectful, and that the job was actually completed. You can learn a lot about your vendors by talking to your tenants and getting their honest reviews of the services provided. At the end of the day, it’s great if the vendor makes you happy, but what a property manager really needs is for the tenants to be happy and satisfied.

If you are looking for a great property manager in Charleston who works with the best vendors in the area, call Scott Properties – 843-212-9672.

Property Manager | Is Investing in Single-Family Rental Real Estate a Good Idea?

Making investments is a great way to protect your financial future for retirement or uncertain economic times. However, knowing what to invest your money in can be a challenging task. The housing market rises and falls it seems, and after the recession more than ten years ago, some people are still wary of investing in single-family rental real estate. If you ask any property manager however, this real estate niche is still growing, evolving, and seeing profits.

There are two major trends that the single-family rental niche has benefitted from. The first is the baby boomer generation selling their family homes and downsizing, leaving great properties for sale to real estate investors. Some of these baby boomers who have their mortgages paid off are even going into the property management business themselves and renting out their large homes. The second trend is the fact that millennials who grew up during the recession are wary of buying a home and experiencing another economic disaster, so they are looking for single-family homes to rent from a property manager.

Housing Market Forecast for Charleston 2020

The economy in South Carolina is great, with historically low unemployment numbers. However, the current trade war has made investors wary of another economic crash. Global markets including China and Germany have also slowed their trading, and interest rates have been in flux after the Federal Reserve raised its key borrowing measure four times in 2018 and then lowered in 2019. However, there is great news for the housing market.

Labor market predictions have remained stable and strong throughout the year, which is the biggest predictor of the housing market, according to top economists. There are more jobs than people to fill them, which means more workers will have to be brought in to fill positions, and those workers will need to rent a home from a property manager who specializes in single-family homes. All of this means that now is the perfect time to invest in a single-family home and a property manager that can maximize your return on investment.

If you’re ready to hire a property manager for your residence, call Scott Properties – 843-212-9672.