Highlights from the Income Property Management Expo – Ontario 2013
Hundreds of apartment managers and prospective managers trailed into the Ontario Convention Center on May 7th to attend the Income Property Management Expo. The ballroom was full of booths that offered different services and information to the attendees to help them be the best manager they can be. Every company from banking to damage repair were present, armed and ready with the help that owners are seeking for their buildings. Several seminars were also taught by different groups to explain their company in a more in-depth way in order to achieve maximum potential in offering their beneficial services.
Many booths were promoting the use of solar panels to reduce electricity costs. One company in particular, Herca Solar, recommends installation of panels into common areas such as a lobby or mailroom. As electricity prices continue to rise, taking advantage of solar energy is more and more advantageous. Herca Solar’s paneling has a 25 year warranty and due to new laws, since solar energy is an earth-friendly alternative to other lighting options, the government offers federal tax credit immediately after installation. These treasury payments will eventually even out with the panel payments as owners continue to see their electricity bills dramatically decrease.
Any inexpensive way to make an apartment building look more expensive is by installing QuikCase patented, nail free, click-together molding kits that fit into windows. This casing is only $60-$90 per unit (which is half the cost of those found at hardware stores) and will give the apartment building new, resort-looking window casings. Available in four cut styles and three colors, this is a simple investment to make the building look nicer and even create the ability to slightly raise rent due to the classier look. Another small change to an apartment building can be made by hiring Vista Paint to re-do the interior or exterior painting of a building. They will be the designers, painters, and maintenance crew that do routine checks to make sure the paint is still in excellent condition and make repairs if need.
A bigger change available for apartments is the installation of a new gym facility with the help of Matrix Fitness Centers or the addition of state of the art washing machines and dryers from PWS Laundry Company. By including an exercise room, more rent can be charged to tenants for use of the facility. Matrix Fitness Centers will design the space as well as provide and service the equipment in order to make the gym a great success. Using coins for the laundry is becoming more tedious so PWS Laundry Company partners with Speed Queen equipment that functions on a SmartCard systems and they will help apartment buildings transition to the technological advance. They offer four different options of machine according to size and cycle time.
Also present at the convention was the Southern California Apartment Owners Association that is an advocate for apartment owners’ rights at the local, state, and national levels. With over 55,000 members nationwide, this group does many things to fight for apartment owner’s rights and even offer classes and seminars on a variety of topics for people to learn how to be the best apartment managers they can be. The NAA is truly looking out for the well-being of their members and will go to great lengths to help and protect them.One of the most important parts of owning an apartment building is pre-screening applicants and the Contemporary Information Corporation can help with that. They do a vast amount of learning a person’s credit score, previous evictions, fraud search, criminal record, alias scan, and even the sex offender database. There is no monthly or annual fee; there is only one charge per potential tenant being researched.
The Duringer Law Group presented a seminar at the exposition on good management techniques, especially for times when a tenant is being combative, while also informing owners of their rights to evict residents. Their brochure from the booth has a very detailed but easy to understand description of how to properly evict someone and it says that they are always willing to answer any questions owners may have, free of charge. If there is a need to hire the law firm to prosecute a resident, they have a minimal fee of between $95 and $150.
With other 100 companies with booths present at the Income Property Management Expo, it was a great success. There were so many different areas of help for apartment owners to take advantage of during the day that they can use the information now or in the future. With all of the knowledge gathered, managers now have even more tools to be the best they can be for their tenants. See everyone again next year!