12A — May 31 - June 13, 2013 — Owners, Developers & Managers — Mid Atlantic Real Estate Journal
www.marejournal.com O wners , D evelOpers & M anagers By Ashish Patel, Pilera Property Management Software The dark side of community management: Three tips
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hen you first visit a property as a po- tential resident, ev-
very fast. There was a situation not too long ago at a Virginia property where the residents came close to rioting because they felt that the management com- pany was not living up to its responsibilities. Management, for their part, claimed that the residents were unreasonable, slovenly, and constantly dis- obeying the property rules. So as a community manager, what do you do in a situation like this? Hire a mediator? Serve mass evictions? Break out the water hoses? Before you resort to those sorts of ex- tremes, here are a few tips. Isolate the problem . It’s very rare that an entire prop- erty suddenly turns against management. Often it’s a single agitator, bad-mouth- ing management to other residents, pointing out minor issues and making mountains out of molehills. If you hear general grumbling, talk to res- idents who you trust and see if you can trace the problem back to one or two malcontents. Document everything . If by Fanelli Group Properties, LLC to prepare the site for the Villages of Deer Lake at Cinema and Hollywood Boulevards, in Orwigsburg, West Brunswick Township, Schuylkill County. Schlouch is providing clear- ing, grubbing, sediment/erosion control, earthwork, sanitary and storm sewers, water line installation, roads, concrete, curbs, paving and seeding. Doug Gable is Schlouch’s site coordinator and Steve Billman is project manager/ estimator.
residents are accusing you of not performing your property management duties, be sure to have written documentation that states that you have been. If there’s a maintenance issue, be sure you have the date, the details, the assignee, and the resolution right at your finger- tips. Community management software can really help in situations like this. Arrange town meetings. Gathering residents together in an open forum with man- agement can easily degenerate into shouting matches if you’re not careful, but if you keep the reins tight, it’s a great way to establish a dialogue, hear resi- dents’ complaints, and keep everyone up to date on what’s being done and what will be done to fix things. Community management, like anything else, can have a dark side. But as long as residents and property manag- ers are respectful, open, and honest with one another, most situations can be dealt with to everyone’s mutual satisfac- tion. n Schlouch has been named by CMCDevelopment Corporation to prepare a residential site for Tuskes Homes Maple Shade Estates. The 54-acre site is lo- cated in Bethlehem and Palmer Townships and will have 78 building lots. Schlouch is providing clear- ing, grubbing, survey, stakeout, blasting, rock removal, earth- work, sediment/erosion control, sanitary and storm sewers, water line installation, roads, building pads, curbs, paving and seeding. n
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erything is designed around you seeing the best that the property has to offer. The man- agement office (hopefully) is spotless, the staff are friendly and helpful, and there’s usu- ally a candy dish for you to enjoy while you look over lots of glossy, colorful paperwork. But everyone knows the flipside of this idyllic situa- tion. Once you sign on the dotted line and move your- self in, you’re able to see the real property, warts and all. Sometimes it’s nothing major -- maybe the lock on the gate to the dumpster sticks. Some- times it’s unbelievable -- theft, invasion of privacy, and things you’d never dream a property management company would allow. As a community manager, you can only do what you can do. There are only so many hours in a day and your budget is what it is. But if you’re not receptive to residents’ com- plaints, things can get ugly GROVE, PA — Schlouch Incorporated has been se- lected by M. A. Curcillo, Inc. to provide concrete work for Col- lege Station Student Housing. The project is 22,000 s/f. Schlouch will be installing concrete building footers, walls, piers and slabs for the build- ing. Br andon S l i ch t e r i s Schlouch’s site coordinator and Darren Brown is project man- ager/estimator. Work will be completed by Summer 2013. Schlouchhas also beennamed
Laurel Corporate Center Mt. Laurel, New Jersey
856-764-2600 | www.whitesellco.com Commercial Office & Industrial Real Estate
Schlouch Incorporated announces three projects in PA
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