Diary of a leasing agent " Are the Monkeys running the Asylum ?"

[Angela Holmes]

Some of you may remember me, I posted a few months ago about having a cash windfall from a relative and wanting to invest in multi family but I lacked experience. As a Graphic designer and product analyst in Silicon Valley I have become burned out from commuting, and going to meetings about more  upcoming meetings. I dream of finding my first  four-plex to start and then moving on to add more.

To gain more knowledge as a landlord, I decided to work part time at my .com job while also taking on a part time job as a leasing agent in South San Jose. What better way to interact with both tenants and investors I thought. Nothing could have prepared me for this hands on learning experience.

My first day at this multi unit property I was left alone while the more experienced property managers and leasing agents went to a meeting. They told me I was bright enough and if anyone wanted to be shown a model unit, to just close the office and take them on a tour. My first interaction was with a couple that said they received a late fee but they had a signed,dated receipt from the office manager showing they had paid on time. I went into the property management software that I had been trained on and saw the payment had been entered in the system four days later than what the receipt read. I assured them that when the manager returned I would ask her to refund their late fee. Unfortunately this happened haphazardly to various tenants every month I was there. On top of that checks were credited to the wrong accounts on many occasions and even resulted in eviction notices being given to the wrong tenants. I really started to rethink using a property management company for my future investments. I wondered if they were all ran this way. I am sure they are not but if left unsupervised bad apples in the bunch create more bad apples.

On top of looking to invest in income properties, I had also been looking for a new single family home for my own family. I thought South San Jose was safe and pretty much crime free. A home I was interested in purchasing  was a few blocks from the leasing office.Working at the property office also gave me an inside look at the neighborhood. Unfortunately while I was there, My supervisor's car was stolen in broad daylight, a naked lady on drugs ran through the property and jumped into the pool to cool off and  homeless people often used the entryway potted plants to relieve themselves.As you may have guessed, I decided against buying the house a few blocks away.

This multi unit property was toted as a luxury building. It was very well constructed by the builders and I admired the facility workers. They did an awesome job. The problem was a low income multi family building had been recently built next door.(SOMETHING TO CONSIDER WHEN INVESTING) Although they probably had their share of good tenants, they had a whole lot of unsavory characters in and out of the building that I could see from my office. Not to bring up religion but myself and a lady of another faith use to pray we would make it safely to our cars at night without being robbed. My husband wanted me to quit for safety reasons, but I stuck it out a few more months.

Although I did not think the property was being very well managed, I was always courteous to my team as well as the tenants who were also moving out in droves because of the crime. I had a ethics dilemma when an investor sat down and asked me why I thought so many people were moving out of a building that was only a year old. I told him I was new and I was temping for someone that was out on maternity leave. He explained that was why he was asking because I wasn't in the office "click" as he called it.I advised him to look at he security cameras with the Maintenance supervisor. After he had the office manager review it with him, he looked very frazzled and surprised. I won't describe here all of the things things he saw on the tape but it did involve drug use and people relieving themselves in the stair wells, as well as a romantic relationship with an employee and tenant.

I will try to summarize the positive experiences of my months as a leasing agent.I did learn a lot about property management software,entering payments on time, and keeping up moral in the community by hosting monthly parties. I learned investor representatives really need to pop in and check the books and records in the system when they can The crime that spilled over into the property seemed to have lessened somewhat when I left. The addition of electronic entry for the parking garage seemed to help some, but somehow non residents were still getting in to charge their electric cars.Because I was a temp the office manager blew off my concerns while I was there. The property which I will not name was being audited when I left.

The district manager asked if I wanted to interview for a permanent job at another property. I politely declined her offer. I will take all of my notes and experiences with me when I go to purchase my first income property with my sister. I think after this experience, I will stick with a four plex for a while and manage it myself since I use to help my grandparents manage theirs.

I am still learning so much on Bigger Pockets webinars. I can't wait to update you on when my sister and I buy our first investment property together.