the blog

Stumbled upon an interesting article by Houston Neal, founder of SoftwareAdvice.com, called 5 Amazing Mobile Apps for Property Management.   In the article, Houston gives 5 suggestions for mobile apps ideas that I think are interesting.  Here are his ideas:

1) Augmented Realty Applications - Turn on your smartphone video camera, then point it at your property. The augmented reality app will overlay data about the property in your viewfinder. This could include things like vacant units, tenants with overdue rent or repairs that need to be finished.

2) Mobile Marketing - To start, a marketing app could perform a credit and background check from your phone. Most tenant screening services already offer this over the web, so making “an app for that” would be easy.

3) Wireless Building Maintenance Management - The app allows maintenance staff to access and edit work orders in the field. One notable time-saver is the “acceptance feature.” Work orders can be dispatched to multiple maintenance crew members. Whoever is closest to the property accepts the request. The “to do” is added to that engineer’s punch list and removed from others’ queues.

We’d like to see this developed one step further. Utilizing GPS in smartphones, the app could ping crew members’ phones, then automatically assign the task to whoever was geographically closest.

4) Voicemail Broadcasts - Start by building a call list of specific tenants — simply drag and drop from your database — then hit “go” to mass-dial each one.

This app would be handy for making general announcements, lease renewal notifications and emergency alerts. If it was a little more sophisticated, the app could automatically create and dial call lists for you. For example, the app could identify tenants who haven’t paid rent, build a call list, then send your standard “overdue rent” message.

5) Tenant Portal - A great app for apartment managers and residents alike. Apartment managers could use the app as an online bulletin board, while tenants could use it to pay rent or communicate directly with property managers. For example, after logging in, tenants would see a bulletin board of daily notices (e.g. pool closures, crime alerts, new office hours, parking announcements, etc). From there, they could perform a number of activities like pay rent, put in maintenance requests or even renew their lease.

Some solid ideas from Houston, not sure the marketplace for apps developers since the MFI is a bit fragmented for distribution, but there may be opportunity for software companies, and/or ILS’s (ourselves included) to develop a few of these tools.

Read the entire article here.

In 1997, I can recall my older sisters saying how cumbersome email was.

In 1999, I can recall high school classmates saying that Napster will never replace music CD’s.

In 2005, I remember friends saying how stupid Facebook is.

Today, I hear business associates saying that print is well positioned.

And these are probably the same people that say Microsoft cannot fail, that Google will always be the dominate search engine, and do not get the value of Twitter.

Though we have yet to see the later three statements proven false and may never, it is this same mentality that causes business to be in a continuous state of “catch-up”.  We’ve seen this in the multiple industries disrupted by innovation and changing consumer behavior.  Gannett should have created Blogger, NBC should have created YouTube, and Yellowpages should have created Yelp.

I’m not defending the value of Twitter as a lead generating service for the apartment industry as of today.  And I am not saying that Twitter, FriendFeed, or Facebook is the next platform that will change the way we find apartments.  But I think it is a mistake to make all decisions based on measurable results.

Here is why:

1) It takes time to build and adapt to new technologies.

There is a learning curve involved.  You cannot just get a PageRank of 9 overnight.  You cannot build a network of followers for your blog with one post.  You cannot build your online content presence by creating a Facebook Fanpage.

2)  Social Media is also an engagement, communication, and customer service tool.

Not all results of customer service are immediately measurable.  I do not need to defend the value of transparency; we all use UCG and review sites everyday.  But I feel like I need to convey this… The way we (consumers) communicate, interact, and consume information is changing and for the most part, has changed.  The social web, reviews, and UGC influence our purchasing decisions.

Would you stop using your phone because it does not provide a way to effectively market to consumers?  Now replace the words, “your phone” with “social media”.

Conclusion

Newspapers have a daily circulation of over 40 million with 39% of people read newspapers.  Print is still providing significant results.  There is no doubt that print should be a main source of advertising for many companies.

However, the proportion that read just the print version of a newspaper fell by a quarter, from 34% to 25% over the two-year period.  Within the week, hundreds of thousands will stop reading.  Within a few months, millions will stop reading.  Within 10 years, the industry may not exist at all.  Though print may not be dead, it is definitely dying.

When you move in with roommates, there always seems to be a smaller room, with no closet, ceiling fan, or flooring, that you have to walk through the kitchen and living room to get to the bathroom. And the other room has a fireplace, walk-in closet, flat-screen tv and jacuzzi inside of the bathroom.

What is the correct way to decide how much everyone pays?

I have done this a number of ways, all ending in disaster. There is no “right” way but here are some suggested way that might work out. Let’s use this example; a four bedroom house where all rooms are the same size:

Room 1: Private Bath

Room 2: Large closet

Room 3: Ceiling fan

Room 4: Views of the beach

1) Open bidding/auction system

Start with a room and start bidding on it. Highest winner gets the room. Move on to the next room until only one room is left, and that person pays the remainder.

Though this seems the most logical, it is the most unfair. The last room always has excess marginal benefit because of the nature of an open bidding system. So for example, if room 4 is highly desired, then the price is driven up and Room 3 (the least desired) can be acquired at an extremely low price. Let’s say Room 4 goes for $750, with Room 1 & 2 going for $500. That means that Room 3 pays $250. The person that moves into Room 3 would have paid an additional $150 more to live there. However, person who’s paying $750 wouldn’t pay $760 to live there so he/she is at the correct price point. Because there is a fixed ceiling or a maximum rent, the additional $150 should be split between all roommates so that everyone excess marginal benefit is the same. However, in an open bidding system, this is tough to account for.

2) Closed bidding system

Everyone writes down what they would pay for each room, and the highest bidder gets to room but pays the second highest bidder’s price. For example if I bid $750 for room 4, and the next highest bidder bid $650 for room 1, then I win the room and pay $650. If there is an deficit or surplus in the total bid price compared to the actual price, it is divided equally. For example, Room 4 goes for $650, Rooms 1 & 2 go for $400 and Room 3 goes for $350, equaling $1800. The total price is short $200, in which everyone would pay an additional $50.

3) Pricing the rooms and drawing straws.

This seems logical as well, but people have different preferences and place different values on certain amenities. I may value a view at $300 more a month while you may not.

4) Musical Rooms - switching rooms after “x” months

The biggest hassle and may seem the most fair, but this is the worst option. The point here is the maximize everyone utility and that is not done by forcing someone to pay for a convenience they otherwise would not have.

A close bidding system based on either proportions or dividing the deficit or surplus is the most confusing, but the most fair. All are suitable and trying to accommodate everyone’s preferences and price points is the best solution.

Good luck.

Here is my list of things renters should know before you rent.

1) Rental prices are negotiable.

Finding a rental is much like buying a used car. In most cases, you are dealing directly with the owner and can negotiate the price, lease terms, amenities, and condition of the property. Large property management groups and apartments do not usually negotiate, but there is no harm in asking.

2) Landlord must provide you with your credit scores

When apply for a rental, landlords run your credit history. If you have your credit history pulled more than once within a short period of time, this can hurt your credit score, even if it is as little as 2 points. If your first application is rejected, get a copy of your credit score so your next application does not hit your credit again.

3) A verbal lease under 1 year is legally binding.

This may vary from state to state, but the general rule is that a verbal lease agreement under 1 year is legally binding. You can find your state laws at http://www.rentalprop.com/ltlaws.htm.

4) Landlords may be required to pay you interest on your security deposit.

Again, this varies from state to state and the interest rate varies from state to state. But currently in San Francisco, landlords are required to give tenants 5.2% on their security deposit. My security deposit is $5300 so the interest is enough money to buy a Nintendo Wii.

5) Take hundreds of pictures during your walk-in inspection.

Most renters often treat the walk-in inspection very lightly. The landlord has you sign off on a sheet that was filled out by the landlord and undoubtedly misses multiple issues. The easiest thing to do is grab your digital camera and take pictures of every possible scratch, dent, hole, and stain. Make sure you email your landlord the pictures so there is a time log for when they were taken. Lastly, test all the appliances and cooling and heating systems thoroughly before signing off on your walk-in inspection. Just another tip, test how thin your walls are by flushing the toilet, running the showing, talking on the phone, opening the garage, etc.

Anything else that should be on this list?

Everyone has used Craigslist, Rent.com, and other marginal websites to find a rental. I rarely come across spectacular rental sites, but here my list of useful websites that most people never heard of.

1) www.mapskrieg.com

Founded by a good friend and ex-programmer, MapsKrieg is a Craigslist and Google Maps mashup. Useful for people who want to browse Craigslist by location. And if you are interested, check out www.housingmaps.com, www.byownerport.com, www.cribq.com, and the dozen other copycats.

2) www.backpage.com

Okay, I’ll admit that millions of people know about this website. But this Craigslist knock-off provides a small advantage through partnerships with local newspapers. Though Craigslist offers more listings, you can find some deals on Backpage and offers the same simplicity and speed.

3) http://mullinslab2.ucsf.edu/SFrentstats/

This website is tracks history from Craigsist and provides heat maps, rent stats, listing density, and other useful information. This website is only in San Francisco, but I have seen other ones for other cities. It is a fairly simple website, but definitely useful for researching purposes. For homes sales, http://www.trulia.com/home_prices/ has a pretty good mapping resource.

4) www.rentometer.com

Not the greatest or most intuitive website, but basically tracks rental rates from users. Simple premise, you enter your rent and see what other people pay. Though MLS data is far more useful, I enjoy their play on the network effect.

5) www.roomster.net

I may take this off of the list because of the lengthly sign-up process, but they have a good amount of roommate listings. Obviously Craiglist and Roommates are the best, but Roomster offers some nice options. Rent.com has a roommate section, www.roomclicks.com is okay, and www.sublet.com can have the occasional suitable listing. Does anyone know of a great roommate website?

If anyone has a recommendation for a website that should be on this list, let me know. I still need to find a great legal resource for tenants.

3 Simple Steps for Better Lease Terms

From the time I moved out of my parent’s house in 2001, I was thrown into the world of renting, really with no guidance or help. My parents did not decide on where I should live, what terms I should ask for, or how a lease was written. So I made my fair share of mistakes when finding a rental, but I also have lived in some great houses with friendly landlords for very low prices. So here are my thought on how to secure a great lease when dealing with owners. Please note that this is not valid for property management groups with set policies.

1. Dress up in business casual

Though it is illegal to discriminate when renting, it does not negate the fact that people are prejudice. If two renters with the same credit scores apply, but one applicant is a 45 year old business woman and the other looks like he/she just finished a fifth of vodka, the landlord has an easy choice. Treat a meeting with your potential landlord like an interview for a professional job because most landlords ARE interviewing you. Being professional and respectful presents you as a great tenant, providing you with leverage when negotiating.

2. Find a credible co-signer before applying

Let’s face it, college students and young professionals generally have bad credit. If you know you have bad credit, this hurts your ability to negotiate the terms. And remember, most landlords negotiate lease terms. If you are able to find a great co-signer, the landlord will have to view you as a qualified tenant and possibly be more lenient on the deposit, length of lease, or even price.

3. Always have other options

Much like any purchase, you want to have options to compare and choose from. You wouldn’t buy a new car without going to a couple of car dealerships. Finding a rental is no different. Unless you are looking in San Francisco or New York, you have options and want to explore those options. So start early, give yourself time to research, and use a multitude of resources. The last thing you want is to be time pressed to make a rash decision and chose a sub par rental at a bad price.

What do you guys think? Any other tips for renters when dealing with landlords or looking for a rental?