As a small service-based property management company serving the greater Sacramento area, we are always looking for ways to improve our business. To that end, we belong to several organizations, namely NARPM (National Association of Residential Property Managers), SAR (Affiliate with Sacramento Association of Realtors), and most recently, the BBB (Better Business Bureau).

The BBB maintains records of a company's "reliability report", basically categorizing any and all complaints filed against that particular company since they have been in business. While it is noteworthy to mention that the longer a company has been around, the greater the likelihood that a complaint or complaints exist, but as the old saying goes..."the devil is in the details". At the BBB website, consumers can review the nature of individual complaints against a company, as well as to see whether or not the complaints were favorably resolved.

ICPM is proud to be a new member of the BBB, and look forward in our efforts to strive towards setting a good example for our peers in the real estate community.

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 105 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, we do NOT markup repairs, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say: “Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

I did not think I was in the market for a new laser printer, but during a recent shopping trip to Costco, I decided to purchase a new HP Officejet 6500 Wireless Printer/Copier/Scanner/Fax.

I have a 6300 model from HP that has been a little workhorse for our small, service-based property management company over the past 3 years, but it always had a drawback-  the toner cost. The toner cartridges cost about $40 each, or I can get a combo pack at Costco with 2 black and 1 color cartridge for $75.00, not a bad deal at first glance. The printer itself cost me $225, but I was noticing that the toner costs were really outrageous.

What really tipped the scales and convinced me to buy a new printer? Several things actually:

1. Technology is getting better AND cheaper, so my new hardware cost a whopping $139.99, almost half the cost of the old machine.

2. Efficiency: The new Officejet offers an XL toner cartridge that can handle an estimated 1200 copies before it needs changing. The old 6300 model (per manufacturer specs) can handle about 400 copies before it is screaming for a refill cartridge. The XL toner cartridges cost about $68 each, but if they truly perform 3x better than the old ones, this machine is going to save us hundreds of dollars per month in toner costs.

3. Energy: The Officejet 6500 is an energy star rated piece of hardware, and features a sleep mode when it is sitting idle, something the old 6300 model did not do.Wireless is also thrown in for networking, though I use mine as a hardwired system only.

I used to always be a "don't fix it if it isn't broken" kind of guy, but I am definitely seeing the benefits of keeping an eye out for technological advances, both to improve our small company as well as to always strive to improve on our already fine tradition of customer service-based Property Management.

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 105 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, we do NOT markup repairs, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say: “Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

As a small Sacramento-based property manager for the past 16+ years, we have had the privilege to work with some of the very best Landlords in the area, from 1st time investors to seasoned real-estate professionals, people are coming (and staying) with our services due to a simple but stringent governing principle- We say what we do, then we actually do what we say. Our business is mostly word-of-mouth and the feedback has been overwhelmingly good. Our clients enjoy personalized services customized to their individual needs, grounded in the knowledge that they have first-hand access to a licensed Broker, without having to deal with various departments and other roadblocks.

As agents for our Landlord clients, we have a fiduciary responsibility to act in their best interests. We also have an obligation to everyone else we deal with to be honest and fair. Recently, these concepts collided with the move-out of a tenant from one of our rentals.

Our ex-tenants, Mr. & Mrs. "Jones" (No one knows why the Smiths and Jones' get all the bad press), moved from a condo we manage in Roseville after a 12 month lease. As always, we documented their move in and move out with digital photos to protect our Landlord client's interests. As part of the move-out process, the Jones' requested and were granted a pre-move out inspection, wherein we inspected the property and noted any deficiencies needing correction in order to maximize the security deposit refund, up to 100%.

Overall, the walk-through went well, though we did note that the carpet needed cleaning, 2 smoke alarm batteries were missing and the furnace filter needed changing. otherwise, the tenants did an admirable job of keeping up the rental over their lease. The tenant had a history of being argumentative, and was loudly critical of our findings during the inspection, but that is just an unfortunate part of the job our clients pay us to do. 

The owner inspected the property after vacancy, and emailed us to breakdown the charges they would be assessing the ex-tenants- charges which did not align with our inspection results. Among the erroneous charges were fees to remove stains in the carpet, replace a broken mini-blind, and dismantle a large plywood cabinet in the garage. It was fortunate for the ex-tenant that we maintained accurate digital photos showing all of the pre-existing conditions at the rental, including the ones above that our client was planning on charging the ex-tenant for.

I had to bring this up because it is one of those "behind the scenes" incidents that the ex-tenant will never know about nor appreciate, how we defended his deposit and had to stand up to our own client, erring on the side of what was honest and fair, rather than go along with what could be "gotten away with". At the end of the day, we'll likely lose a client over our principles, but it is a small price to pay to keep one's integrity intact.

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 105 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, we do NOT markup repairs, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say: “Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

It has been an eventful year of foreclosures and short-sales, but don't start thinking we are out of the woods yet. The government's moratorium on foreclosures is due to lift August 31, 2009. As a small property management company that can often rent to people facing foreclosure, we are looking forward to what we think will be a brief respite from government intervention in our market. No one can say for certain, but I'll venture to speculate on the immediate future of our rental market-

It is going to get a little better in short order as the banks rush to push through as many foreclosures as possible through the system before the government stomps on the brakes again. I would predict the next moratorium gets put into place by November 1, or the 15th at latest. This should translate to an unseasonably busy September/October as the next wave of foreclosures hits the market, followed by a surge of new rental vacancy (to go with the abundance of vacant inventory we have already) as the REO's are bought up by speculative investors and returned to the market as rentals.

There are differing opinions on the effectiveness of government intervention in the real estate industry, but I think it is pretty safe to say that intervention got us into the current mess, and we know whom to thank for that. Do we really trust the same people to get us out of this?

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 105 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, we do NOT markup repairs, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say: “Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

As a professional residential property manager these past 16+ years, I have had my fair share of challenging scenarios. Most scenarios involving Landlord/Tenant relations fall into 4 possible categories:

1. Good Landlord/Good Tenant- My favorite scenario, and by far the most rewarding one to work with. The Landlord recognizes their responsibilities to the Tenant and the property, while the Tenant fully understands and adheres to the terms of the lease agreement.

2. Good Landlord/Bad Tenant- I would say I hate to work with these scenarios, but they tend to be a significant part of new incoming business (Client placed a tenant themselves and now needs our help to straighten them out or evict them and start over).

3. Bad Landlord/Good Tenant- Almost as bad as you can get, here you have a Tenant that is adhering to the rental terms, while the Landlord does not keep up his/her end of the deal. These scenarios tend to be short-lived in our business, as i find that I have less and less patience with clients that refuse to keep up their properties.

4. Bad Landlord/Bad Tenant- A rare situation indeed, where on one hand you have an uncooperative hostile tenant, while on the other a perpetually irate client that seems to always be questioning why they are paying us to make their life miserable (bothering them with repair requests and other expenditures, etc.).

If you have a property management question, we are always happy to lend some support.

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 105 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, we do NOT markup repairs, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say: “Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

Unlawful Detainer Actions (Evictions being the more commonly used term) are an unfortunate part of the Property Manager's job, and one that we hate to have to perform. In situations like these, the best that can be hoped for is a quick turnover with a minimum of damage, so here are a few pointers if you are a Landlord facing a possible Eviction with your tenant:

1. Do NOT make it personal. I have found over the past 16+ years as a property manager that the best approach one can take is a "sorrowful" one. As a Landlord, you are "sorry" that this situation has resulted in legal action, and while you can sympathize with your tenant's position (even if you can't, you pretend to), they have left you no other choice but to proceed with Eviction. Whatever small satisfaction one might derive from letting the tenant know in no uncertain terms "exactly" what you are thinking about them is nothing compared to the kind of property damage a vindictive tenant can do to your home. Keep it simple and professional, but take no personal satisfaction in doing (or at least try not to let it show).

2. Do NOT stall. We recently advised an owner client that he should let us commence Eviction proceedings against his non-paying tenant on April 7, 2009. At that time, the tenant owed April rent. Contrary to our advice, the owner tried to "work it out" with the tenant, and made a verbal agreement to let them stay until May 10, 2009. Here we are at May 13 with no rent and a non-paying tenant STILL in the property.

3. Count the costs, then cut your losses. Our client's main reason for avoiding the Eviction route was cost. He did not want to pay the $675 in attorney fees, court costs and sheriff's fees to get the tenant out. However, I pointed out to him again today that at $1150 per month (the current rent), the tenant is "in our owner's pocket" for $1650 with no end in sight because no legal action has been taken. Had the client acted on our recommendation, the tenant would likely have been shown to the curb by the sheriff by now.

4. Get Eviction Protection if it is offered. Many property management companies (ICPM being one of them) offer Eviction protection programs where, for a nominal monthly fee (ours is $10), the property management company will cover the legal costs to evict a problem tenant (subject to certain circumstances covered in the management agreement).

Have a question about rental management, landlord-tenant relations, or just want to find out more? We welcome your questions. ICPM is a small, service-oriented property management company for discerning investors looking for "a bit more" than they are used to getting from property management. Our business is over 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO sales, and property management is our only business. Find out what we mean when we say:

"Experience Property Management The Way it Should Be."

Thomas R. Martin

Broker/Owner, ICPM

(916) 770-9707 Work

(916) 722-2121 FAX

www.investorschoicepm.com

As a professional property manager since 1992, I have my fair share of odd stories that have stuck with me over the years. Here is one of my favorites:

I had occasion to call Ms. Parker (name changed to protect the slightly deranged) during the summer of 1995 after I noticed her lawn was looking unkempt during a routine drive-by inspection.

"You have to get your lawn mowed, or your rent will be increased to pay for gardening", I explained. She did not miss a beat, replying "I am NOT going to risk catching AIDS from a mosquito, so do what you gotta do!" Ironically, in 2008 we were getting the same occasional complaints about West Nile, but that is another story.

"While I got you...you need to send out someone to arrest the man staying in my attic!". Now, I should point out that I already knew Ms. Parker was, shall we say, a little eccentric."Why do you think someone is in your attic?" I asked.

"Well, my kitchen lights flicker, so that must be from him walking around." I am shaking my head at this point. She continued- "And he stole from me...I was making lunch and had my chicken on the kitchen counter, and when I went to the bathroom, he came down and stole it!"."He must be using the attic as a bathroom, because my kitchen smells awful!"

In the end, we sent out the ghost busters (aka: our contractor) who discovered and corrected the problems. The kitchen ballast was bad, causing the lights to flicker. And the smell? Yes, her chicken had fallen off the kitchen counter and fell between the cupboard and refrigerator, where it proceeded to rot over the next 2 weeks until discovery. True story. Does this mean I get to list "paranormal experience" on my resume?

We just pulled off a small miracle this week. Our tenants moved out of their home on Tuesday, we had the home painted Wednesday, cleaned Thursday, carpets cleaned Friday, and new tenants moved in Saturday morning. Even for professional property management, that is a pretty tight turnover.

What should have been a very easy turnover was complicated by our ex-tenants use of anchor, or "molly" bolts.

While it was evident that the home they lived in was kept quite nice over the past 18 months, we did not know the damage that was hiding under every wall hanging. The walls of our 2400sf 4-bedroom home were studded with molly bolts, at least 3 on EVERY wall.

Molly bolts are typically used to mount heavy wall hangings (mirrors, etc.). Our tenants used them to hang calendars, 5x8 picture frames, you name it.

New paint is based on a 3-year lifespan, so we could only charge the ex-tenant for 50% of the touch-up paint cost. However, we maintain that any hole larger than a nail hole is treated as wall damage, and is therefore considered beyond normal wear and tear.

As we dug deeper into the move out condition, it was clear there were more hidden surprises in store. The ex tenants made off with all 6 smoke alarm batteries, the garage remote batteries, half the light bulbs, and a host of other items that would be easy to miss if we were not being so thorough.

Comprehensive inspections are vital at both move-in and upon vacancy, to insure that the Landlord's interests are protected, as well as to maintain a policy of honesty and fair dealing with the Tenants.

We are seeing a definite increase in call volume for all of our vacant rentals, as if someone turned on an imaginary switch somewhere. What started as a fairly slow week has turned into a dash to screen applicants, as we now have 6 vacancies ready to rent with applications on almost everything.

We continue to receive good positive feedback from applicants, telling us (without exception) that our rentals are far and away the cleanest and most well-maintained they have seen. After 16+ years in the business of property management, I have seen what passes for "habitable" in some landlord's minds, and it is not good.

At ICPM, we pride ourselves on the services we provide, and not just to our owner clients. Today's tenants are tomorrow's landlords, so we treat our tenants with the respect and courtesy they deserve. Our approach has paid off- we have had tenants go on to become landlords needing our exceptional services. We have had many tenants opt to negotiate renewal leases, saving our owners thousands of dollars in vacancy loss and turnover costs.

Happy tenants take better care of our clients' homes. Take care of your tenant, and they will take care of you.

Thomas R. Martin

Broker/Owner, ICPM

(916) 770-9707 Work

(916) 722-2121 FAX

tmartin@investorschoicepm.com

As a property manager in the greater Sacramento area, we are often compared to other companies with differing philosophies on just how the job should be done. With over 16 years of management experience, I have had some time to consider how we want to be identified in the marketplace, so I have taken measured steps to insure our services meet or exceed our client's expectations. To demonstrate what I mean, we'll use a little excercise we like to call "Good, Better or Best" in relation to various aspects of property management and how different companies handle those aspects. Here goes...

Management Contracts:

Good: Clients have the option to sign a 6 or 12 month contract for services, but pay no management fee during an initial vacancy.

Better: Clients have the option to sign a month-to-month contract providing flexibility, and pay no management fees during initial vacancy.

Best: Clients sign a flexible month-to-month management agreement, pay NO management fees during initial vacancy and NO fees during subsequent vacancies longer than 30 days.

Maintenance Services:

Good: Property Manager will coordinate maintenance on an ongoing basis, with little or no involvement from landlord as they have the ability to spend substantial amounts of rental revenue without landlord approval. Maintenance is usually marked up and provides an additional profit center for the management company. 

Better: Property Manager will coordinate all maintenance both during and after business hours, with some limitation on the amount of money that can be spent without securing landlord approval.

Best: Property Management Broker will personally monitor maintenance 24/7 and follow Landlord's specific instructions for each property, using management's vendors or Landlord's own vendors as directed, all with absolutely zero markup on any repair or maintenance item, insuring an impartial and unbiased assessment of all maintenance related issues, eliminating an inherent conflict of interests.

Vacancy Marketing/Showing:

Good: Property Manager or leasing agent shows 7 days per week and advertises on the Internet as well as newspaper and signage.

Better: Property Manager continually re-evaluates the market, giving weekly updates to all vacant property owners and negotiating rental adjustments to stimulate activity where and when appropriate.

Best: Property Management Broker personally re-posts web ads every Monday, Wednesday and Friday to keep vacancy postings on the top, middle and bottom of the Craigslist listing, personally monitors and usually attends most showings to witness the applicants' response and to evaluate the overall quality of the vacancy, curb appeal, etc. and personally updates each vacant property owner on at least a weekly basis until rented.

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) is proud to say we meet or exceed the examples of "best" given above, as our niche market values consistent quality over mere portfolio size, and client retention over "revolving door" growth. If you or someone you know is interested in finding out more about our services or our exceptional referral program, don't hesitate to give us a call or email. We are the cure for the common property management company.Visit us online at www.investorschoicepm.com, and find out what we mean when we say:

"Experience Property Management The Way it Should Be."

Thomas R. Martin

Broker/Owner, ICPM

(916) 770-9707 Work

(916) 722-2121 FAX

tmartin@investorschoicepm.com