All Forum Posts by: Briar Blake

Quote from @Josh Otero:

Hi Briar, 

These are always tough situations. This PM company definitely did not do what they promised and therefore violated their contract. I suggest that you do ask for a reimbursement. Also see what company they used to replace the damage for that issue. They may have used one of their friend's companies or something shady like that. If you're in the LA area, it's definitely very common. If that's the case, then you definitely have a strong argument for getting a reimbursement.

Thank you for your input! The company that did the repair is their "preferred" vendor for these things which in itself is not sketchy, but I don't think there is a way for me to know if it is a friends company or something. It is very interesting to know that is common in the area. My plan going forward is to keep a close eye on things to make sure I'm not paying too much for each repair. 

Thank you all for the insights! To answer some questions, yes, there is a clause that states in an emergency situation prior approval is not required. I completely understand why that clause is there and I'm happy to have it for many reasons including protecting my tenants and my property from damage, etc. It is validating to hear that most of you feel communication about this matter would be normal/expected. Since I haven't heard anything (still!) I will reach out and ask more about the details of the situation to better understand what went on. I also am happy to give them a chance to explain so we can build trust. 
Thank you all so much! 

Quote from @Sean Gallagher:

This is my fear, I have not crossed over to a property manager but just what you discuss has me worried because one day I know I'll have to.  I'm only at 3 rentals and just 1 tenant can make or break you trying to be a PM while also working a w-2, I've already come close.  I have one tenant who is a god send compared to most, he accomplishes nearly ever repair I need, even did an HVAC unit.  If a PM handled similar situations, they would be using their HVAC go to technician, they would take a certain % of the total and add ontop of it for themself, parts would probably get marked up, it would be like 3x.  It's stopping me from scaling to a much larger portfolio leveraged versus a smaller paid off portfolio.  PM's will keep all late fees, they hold the security deposits so they collect all the interest on security deposits.  I understand they can make our life a lot easier but is it worth it if it eats up a lot of our cash flow?  Thought about if I did scale to say 100-200 doors that I would hire another company to audit the current PM on how they're handling my properties.  I don't know how the really big players stomach it.

Yes absolutely, it is a hard decision to make! I don't deny that sometimes I look at all the fees as cash flow that could be in my pocket. When I really think about it though, I'm so grateful to not be managing my property day-to-day. It makes so much more sense for me in my situation to sacrifice that cash flow so that I can focus elsewhere. I buy back my time in this way. It's a balance of trusting my PM's and managing my PMs. This is a case where I want to manage more and make sure I'm addressing it correctly. I hope you end up with the best case scenario for yourself and your portfolio! You are so lucky to have such great tenants too!

Quote from @Locke Tucker:

What type of rental is it? It's it something you can manage yourself? Was it actually an emergency, or did they just say it was an emergency?

i think if the PM violated the contract twice, they will likely continue this behavior if there are no repercussions. I would personally put them in notice just because they never tried to communicate it on the back end of fixing it. That said, I don't think you can ask for reimbursement unless you would have done the job yourself or they clearly overcharged for the job.

Hi Locke! Thank you for your reply. It’s a mutifamily property with 6 units and I have a W-2 job so not something I can self manage. Also a leaking water heater to me sounds like a very high priority but not an emergency. 
Thank you for your advice! I’ll send them an email to that affect. 

My contract with my property managers requires my approval for any expense over $500. For the second time, an expense for well over $500 has been payed without my consent. It was in response to a potential emergency situation (ex: a water heater in one of my units was leaking and they paid a little over $2,000 for replacement). I was never even informed of this expense, I just keep a close eye on the ledger which is how I saw the expense. For a little background - I have been taking a big loss on this property for the last year for reasons out of the control of my property managers.
What would you do in this situation? I am going to send an email requesting that I be contacted for these expenses, but is it also fair for me to request reimbursement? Would this make you question your property managers?
Thank you in advance! I am pretty new and I'm trying to learn all I can.