- Should I rent or sell my home?
- Can I use your services if I already have an agent listing my home for sale?
- How do you screen and select rental applicants?
- When and how do you disburse payments to homeowners / landlords?
- Do you require home insurance for the homeowner / landlord or rental insurance for the tenant?
- What contracts do you use with homeowners / landlords and tenants?
- Do you have a pet or smoking policy for properties that you manage?
- What services are provided in the Turn-Key Property Management service option?
- I would like to manage my property myself. Can you help me find a tenant?
- What fees will you charge me?
- Are your property managers licensed?
- How do you show the properties you manage?
- How will you advertise my property?
- How do you handle property maintenance?
- Where do you manage properties?
- Can I refer my friends to you for property management services?
- How do I sign up for property management services?
Should I rent or sell my home?
- This is a popular discussion point in our given economy. If you are undecided on renting versus selling then consider this scenario: Why not market your home for sale and rent at the same time? Park Avenue Properties has the resources and relationships with top producing Realtors to help you market your home for sale while searching for a well-qualified tenant at the same time. We will refer you to a top producer at no charge to you to ensure you have the absolute best resources to assist you in your real estate needs. When the best first option, Buyer or Renter, comes along then simply terminate the other option.
Can I use your services if I already have an agent listing my home for sale?
- Park Avenue Properties respects the Law of Agency and will work side by side with your Realtor. If a Tenant is found before a Buyer is found, then you simply remove your listing from the sales market. If your Realtor finds a Buyer before a Tenant is found, then you simply send us a copy of your contract and you can terminate without paying the full contract termination penalty. It is requested that you reimburse for half of the property marketing expenses (Note: $125 per month) for the months your property was advertised for rent up until you found a Buyer and you notified Park Avenue Properties in writing that your property went under contract.
How do you screen and select rental applicants?
- Tenant applications are processed electronically and include credit, criminal, sex offender and past eviction background searches. Our scoring and tenant recommendation policies are built on industry standards and are followed to ultimately accept or decline prospective tenants.
When and how do you disburse payments to homeowners / landlords?
- All rent is due on the 1st and late after the 5th. This said, property owners are paid after rent is collected and cleared. Rents collected by the 15th of the month will usually be disbursed via ePay between the 16th and 23rd. Rents collected after the 15th will usually be disbursed between the last day of the month and the 4th of the following month. Please keep these dates in mind when scheduling your monthly mortgage payments. A monthly statement will be posted to the online owner portal at month end and will include all income, expenses and owner draws collected and disbursed during the month. Owner draw payments are disbursed via direct deposit to a checking or savings account of your choosing. There is no additional charge to our homeowners for this service.
Do you require home insurance for the homeowner / landlord or rental insurance for the tenant?
- Yes, for the homeowner / landlord. The Error and Omissions (E & O) insurance provider requires that homeowners / landlords carry a minimum of $500K liability insurance. The minimum liability coverage allowed in the State of NC is $300K. You will need you to call your insurance agent and inquire if you have $500K in liability coverage. There is a good chance you already have $500K coverage or already have invested in the $1M umbrella policy allowed in the State of NC. Park Avenue Properties’ insurance provider has reported the $200K increase in liability coverage will add no more than $10-20 per year, not per month, to your existing policy(s). Rest assured, this small annual increase is well worth the extra $200K in coverage. Due to rising attorney defense costs, this is a requirement by the insurance provider and you will need it to do business with Park Avenue Properties. As proof of coverage, a copy of your declaration policy page from your insurer showing the $500K liability coverage will be requested upon signing a property management agreement. This extra coverage is for your protection and Park Avenue Properties respectfully encourages you to increase your coverage even if you do not use our services. All of our tenants are not required but are strongly encouraged to obtain Renters Insurance to protect their household goods. Their decision, yes or no, does not impact our Firm or the homeowner / landlord. Renters Insurance is not enforced or tracked by Park Avenue Properties.
What contracts do you use with homeowners / landlords and tenants?
- Master agreements that have been reviewed by Park Avenue Properties’ legal counsel are used and are compliant across the States where business is held.
Do you have a pet or smoking policy for properties that you manage?
- It is recommended that a property owner be pet friendly where possible. Our standard pet fee to charge the tenant is $250.00 for up to two (2) pets. $150.00 is non-refundable (our firm uses this money for a pet cleaning, if required) and the remaining $100.00 is refundable to the tenant if pet damages do not exceed the non-refundable portion. Please note that by not accepting or considering pets you may be limiting your rental audience. Dog breeds considered aggressive are restricted. No smoking is allowed at any of our managed properties.
What services are provided in the Turn-Key Property Management service option?
- Finding and screening a qualified tenant, preparing and executing the lease, performing pre and post move-in inspections, collecting rent, collecting and holding the security deposit, disbursing monies to the owner, handling all maintenance issues, evicting (if necessary), and responding to any and all tenant / 3rd party issues.
I would like to manage my property myself. Can you help me find a tenant?
- Yes, we call this our “Procurement-Only” service option. We will find a well-qualified tenant, prepare the lease between you and the tenant, collect the first month’s rent and collect the security deposit. We then turn the lease and security deposit over to you and you assume management responsibilities for the lease term.
What fees will you charge me?
- For our Turn-Key service option, the following applies:
There are no hidden fees or monies due upfront. If your property is rented within 1 – 60 days of listing the rate is 10%, 60 – 120 days the rate is 9%, 121 days or longer the rate is 8%. Discounted monthly rates are offered at the following: (a) Clients with 2 or 3 properties start at a rate of 9% (not 10%) per month which can respectively decrease to 8% per month if the vacancy time exceeds 121 days or longer for a specific property. (b) Clients with 4 properties or more receive a flat rate of 8% per month.
The cost associated with advertising your property is recouped from the Finder’s Fee (also known as a Leasing Fee) which is assessed at the beginning of the lease term and is equal to 50% of one months rent. Additionally, there is a one time $100 set-up charge per property. - For “Procurement-Only” service:
Tenant Procurement involves advertising, showing, finding and placing a well-qualified tenant in your property. Once a qualified applicant is found, the lease documents will be prepared for your and the tenant’s execution. The first month’s rent will be collected (prorated if a partial month), as well as a full security deposit (equal to one month’s rent). A fee equal to one (1) month’s rent will be charged to you for this service. This fee will be deducted from the collected rent and you will be billed for the difference if partial rent is collected. The tenant’s security deposit is released to you to hold for the lease term. There is a one-time $325 marketing fee charge for this service which is paid at contract signing.
Are your Property Managers licensed?
- Yes, our Property Managers are licensed Realtors® / Brokers in the state they do business. Dedicated to property management, our Property Managers are also active members of the National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM®). Our firm owner serves on the National Board of Directors for NARPM® as a Regional Vice President. He is also a past President of the Charlotte, North Carolina NARPM® Chapter. Our regional sales manager serves as the Charlotte, NC NARPM® Chapter President and serves on the NC Property Management Division Board of Governors.
How do you show the properties you manage?
- We require all showings to be Agent assisted. No property access is granted unless the prospective tenant is accompanied by a licensed Agent. We use security code lockboxes on each property so that other Realtors® / Agents do not have to sign out a key at our office. Signing out keys is a deterrent to Realtors® / Agents and, in many cases, they will not show your property due to the extra time and gas required to pick up a key and take it back to the office.
How will you advertise my property?
- We advertise listings aggressively online through our website, local Multiple Listing Service (MLS), and multiple listing-syndication sites that blast your listing across the internet. On the ground, we place For Rent signs at the properties.
How do you handle property maintenance?
- Our in-house maintenance department dispatches service vendors for routine maintenance. Maintenance dispatchers are on call during after-hours, weekends and holidays for maintenance emergencies.
Where do you manage properties?
- Our general rule of thumb is that we manage properties within a 40 mile radius of the major cities in which we do service.
Can I refer my friends to you for property management services?
- Of course, and thank you for asking. Anyone interested in our services can call our office at (888) 372-7528 or contact us here.
How do I sign up for property management services?
- Get started by filling out our New Owner Client Form.