 |
In January of 2009 the company owner J. Andrew Woodruff found himself upside-down on his primary residence. He called 10 different property management firms to determine if leasing was an option. Only four call him back. Two actually showed up for their appointments. Both told him that it was impossible to get more than $3,000 per month for a rental in Denver.
Andrew saw an opportunity.
He spent the next four months researching property management firms. He discovered that, on average nationally, PM firms only returned 60% of their phone calls.
He found that the #1 complaint from property owners was being "Nickle and Dimed" by constant, over-priced, repairs and maintenance.
He found that almost every PM firm was still using paper, not computers, to communicate with their tenants and owners.
He thought he could be better.
With a VOIP phone system all the brokers at WPM can be reached 24/7 by forwarding calls to their home and mobile phones. All voice-mails are emailed to the brokers for timely response.
With online Tenant and Owner Portals all of WPM's clients have 24/7 access to their account and all documents, service orders, and financials. All work orders are emailed to the property owners for approval before work is done. Better communication means fewer surprises.
ACH direct deposit allows WPM to pay our owners faster (we run statements and pay owners on the 6th of every month - before the mortgage is due. Most of our competitors pay on the 20th - after the mortgage is due). It also means our tenants rarely pay late.
Evictions - Out of 270 leases written to date WPM has had 1 eviction. Evictions are expensive. Lost rent, legal fees, damage and repairs, all add up. WPM over-qualifies their tenants. We require that our tenants make three times the rental rate to lease our residences.
Maintenance - WPM does not charge and additional fee on 95% of our work orders. Our contractors are trained to determine if the tenant caused the work being done, so we can bill them appropriately. Our contractors generally give WPM a 10-25% discount from street-rate.
WPM has been designed to be the best PM firm in the country. No one else compares.
Property Management
Property Management Services - A Complete List
The following is a list of the tasks Woodruff Property Management commonly perform for owners.
Rent collection
• Receiving rent
• Hunting down late payments
• Sending out pay or quit notices
• Enforcing late fees
Evictions
• Filing relevant paperwork to initiate and complete an unlawful detainer action
• Representing owner in court
• Coordinating with law enforcement to remove tenant and tenants possessions from unit
Legal
• Advise in the event of a legal dispute or litigation
• Refer owner to a qualified attorney when necessary
• Understand and abide by the latest local, state and federal legislation that apply to renting and maintaining rental properties.
Inspections
• Perform periodic inspections (Inside and outside) on a predefined schedule looking for repair needs, safety hazards, code violations, lease violations, etc.
• Send owner periodic reports on the condition of the property
Financial
• Provide accounting property management services
• Make payments on behalf of owner (Mortgage, insurance, HOA dues, etc.)
• Detailed documentation of expenses via invoices and receipts
• Maintain all historical records (paid invoices, leases, inspection reports, warranties, etc.)
• Provide annual reporting, structured for tax purposes as well as required tax documents including a 1099 form
• Advise owner on relevant tax deductions related to their rental property
• Provide easy to read monthly cash-flow statements which offer a detailed breakdown of income and itemized expenses
Maintenance, Repairs, and Remodeling
• We don't "Nickle and Dime" you. We do not up-charge (add a fee too) invoices under $300. This accounts for move than 95% of the maintenance we do for our clients. Other companies may appear to have lower fees, but they will make it up by over-charging you for work preformed.
• We have negotiated a less-than-street rate with all our contractors. Typical savings are 10-20% off the invoice.
• All of our contractors have been thoroughly vetted and meet our professional standards. It is very costly to do have to do a project twice.
• Provide and oversee an in-house maintenance crew
• Establish a preventative maintenance policy to identify and deal with repair needs
• Provide an network of licensed, bonded and fully insured contractors who have been vetted for good pricing and good work that is up to code.
• Assign jobs to different parties (in-house employees, handyman and professional contractors) based on who will do the best job for the best price.
• Maintain outdoor areas
◦ Leaf and snow removal
◦ Landscaping
◦ Removing trash and debris
• Maintain and monitor a 24 hour emergency repair hot-line
• Larger renovation or rehab projects - We do charge 10% of the invoice from project management on large projects.
◦ Provide recommendations on how the project can maximize rental income.
◦ Prepare preliminary cost estimates
◦ Get multiple independent bids for the work
◦ Act as general contractor overseeing the work
Tenant Move Out
• Inspect unit and fill out a report on the property's condition when the client moves out
• Provide tenant with a copy as well as estimated damages
• Return the balance of the security deposit to the tenant
• Forward any portion of the owner's portion of the tenant deposit to the owner or hold in owner reserves for repairs.
• Clean unit and perform and needed repairs or upgrades
• Re-key the locks
• Put the property back on the market for rent
This isn't intended to be a comprehensive list of property management services, but it should give you a fair idea of the scope of our property management company's activities.
We do all of this for you for the very fair price of 10% of the monthly rent.
