FAQs

FAQs

What type of rental properties do you manage?
We specialize in single and multi-family properties in the Tulsa area. We also work with small to medium size commercial properties. We focus on Property Management in the Tulsa, Jenks, Broken Arrow, Owasso, Bixby and surrounding areas. We typically (sometimes there are exceptions) take on properties that lease for a minimum of $750 a month and where the property is in above average condition.

What Property Management experience and credentials do you offer?
We are members if the National Association of Realtor’s, Greater Tulsa Association of Realtor’s, National Association of Residential Property Mangers. We offer our Property Owners a team of professional licensed individuals dedicated to property management. Our team handles all areas of management including maintenance, leasing, collections, marketing, advertising, tenant relations, evictions, collections, accounting, budgets, and knowledge of relevant local and state laws.

How big is your staff?
Our team consists of licensed Realtors, leasing agents, administrative staff, support staff, marketing, dedicated maintenance team and a core group of highly qualified outside vendors.

Our property owners appreciate our staff’s depth of expertise and the small office atmosphere and personal service we deliver.

Why should I hire you as my Property Management company?
We start with a consultation meeting, where we both explore if we are a good fit for one another. You should hire a firm that meets your needs, you have great chemistry with and where expectations are aligned.

Turning over your property to the care of a property manager can be an emotional and frightening experience. Talk to several property managers before hiring one, check references and ask lots questions. You want to be able to trust your property manager so that you won’t be worrying about your home. The more research and information you gather, the better you will feel about your final decision. Of course, we’d love the chance to earn your trust and manage your property, so please read on.

How much will my house rent for?
This is a very common question we are asked and of course it depends on several factors. Only after our initial consultation, a property walk-thru, analysis of current market conditions and review of competing properties, we will make a recommendation.

The most important thing to know is that the rental market is indifferent to your mortgage payment amount. Unfortunately the rental market does not care that you might have a negative cash flow, and will punish, with extended vacancy, owners who overprice their rental homes. When you hire us as your property manager, we will do everything we can to ensure your property is rented quickly, with a quality tenant and for applicable market rates.

What will you do to rent my house?
Several factors go into insuring we rent your property to a qualified tenant:
  • THOROUGH PREPARATION – Even the best located and well priced rental homes will not lease quickly if the rental home is not in top showing condition. Homes for rent in the Tulsa area absolutely must show well and have an attractive “curb appeal” or they may sit empty for extended periods. Part of our job as property manager is to make sure your rental home is presented in a clean and attractive condition so that it will attract a good tenant.
  • FOR RENT SIGNS – Posted at the property with our website and phone number clearly displayed. Prospective renters can find out very easily the price and size of your property and when it will be ready for move-in.
  • WEBSITE – Your property and its details will be added to the Properties Plus website. Our website gets significant traffic daily of prospective tenants looking for homes.
  • MARKETING – We utilize several third-party listing services (like Zillow and Trulia), newspaper ads, leasing locators, craigslist, street signage and other marketing tactics to insure our properties receive maximum exposure and attract qualified residents.
  • MLS – If applicable your property will be included in the Tulsa Multiple Listing Service giving access to thousands of other Realtors and Renters.
  • WORD OF MOUTH / REFERRALS – Current and past tenants, friends of our tenants, referrals from other Agents that we network with.
  • CORRECT PRICING – Even the best and nicest homes will not lease quickly if overpriced. We make sure your rental home is priced according to current market conditions.
  • ONLINE APPLICATION – We try and make it as easy as possible for prospective tenants to apply for properties.
What, specifically, do you do to qualify a tenant after they have applied to rent?
This is the most important aspect of the successful management of a rental property. We do all Application processing in-house; an applicant must demonstrate a history of being a good, responsible tenant or homeowner as well as meeting credit standards and criminal background checks. Ultimately we will present to you only qualified tenants, however it is you as the property owner that will have final approval. Specifically we look at:
  • LANDLORD REFERENCES – We personally talk to past landlords and ask detailed, open ended questions about the applicant’s past performance.
  • CREDIT REPORT – We obtain a credit report which tells us the applicant’s current and past performance toward meeting their financial obligations. It also tells us their monthly debt, credit score, and shows their previous addresses (which we compare to addresses listed on the application). An applicant must meet established credit standards and demonstrate they can financially afford the property.
  • CRIMINAL BACKGROUND – We research criminal background on all applicants. Looking for the obvious red flags that may make them a questionable tenant.
  • DRIVER LICENSE VERIFICATION – We pull a copy of the applicant’s public drivers license data. This tells us not only if the addresses given on the application are consistent but also when and what the last drivers license activity was, such as a renewal or change of address. This is important because if someone says they have been living at a certain address for the past three years, but then we see they renewed their drivers license a year ago at a different address, a red flag goes up and we often find in that situation that the applicant is trying to conceal bad rental history.
  • PROPERTY TAX SEARCH – If a private individual is listed as previous or current landlord, we will pull the tax records and verify that the person listed actually owns the property. The property tax record crosscheck, along with pulling driver license data, is what reveals most of the fraud attempts that we encounter and is a level of scrutiny that most other property management companies do not even perform.
  • EMPLOYMENT/INCOME – We contact the employer to verify length of employment, status, and income. An applicant needs to earn at least 3 times the monthly rent in gross income to qualify for rental and we will want to see a copy of their pay stub.
  • PETS – We don’t generally permit animals/pets into managed properties unless you allow us to do so, however, 50% to 70% of renters have pets. When we make the decision to accept an applicant with pets, we minimize your risk by limiting the breed, age, number and size of the pets. We also use a special pet addendum for your protection and will require an additional pet deposit. We are careful in selecting tenants who wish to bring pets with them.
  • OTHER FACTORS – Many of our managed properties are subject to Home Owner Association restrictions such as no boats or trailers, and limits on the type and number of vehicles. An otherwise qualified applicant may be unable to lease a property if, for instance, they own a boat and want to park it in the driveway. We make sure issues like that are covered up front to avoid surprises after move-in.
How do you make sure the tenant is taking good care of my home while renting?
There are several ways as your property manager we monitor properties. Above all, careful tenant selection from the outset protects your property from being rented to irresponsible people. At move-in we do a walk-thru in which we document (including photos) the condition of the property for a baseline. During the lease term, we may have occasion to enter the property for repair or maintenance reasons and will use that opportunity to have a look. If we are fortunate enough not to have any repairs or maintenance at your property over an extended period of time, your property manager will schedule a preventative maintenance walk-through to make sure the air filter is being changed, that the smoke alarms have batteries and that there are no unreported problems at the property. We ask all our Agents, when in the area of our owner’s properties to do drive by and report any noticeable concerns.

What do you do if they are not taking care of my property as they should, or you discover unauthorized pets?
As your property manager we will monitor and enforce all conditions of the lease. We try and give tenant’s an opportunity to correct the situation and usually they will. If a problem persists, we will make a decisions on notice to vacate or eviction, based on the specific situation and often seek your approval on these critical decisions.

What happens if the tenant does not pay their rent?
The lease states rent is due on or before the 1st and deemed late if not received by close of business on the 5th. Our software system automatically sends out late notices to all tenants with unpaid rent. If tenant has not made payment arrangements we will send out and post “Five Day Notice to Evict” around the 12th day of the month. If the tenant has not responded or failed to make arrangements we will then begin the formal eviction process. Whether or not we eventually proceed with a formal eviction depends on the specific circumstances. It is always financially better for all involved if a solution can be worked out before eviction. If the tenant has experienced a one-time event which is causing them a financial hardship, and we have had no previous problems with them, it is better for you and the tenant if we give them a chance to catch up – if there is reason to believe they can do so. If the tenant has demonstrated an ongoing pattern of late payments, broken promises about payments and/or evasiveness, we know from experience that eviction or notice to vacate is the best course of action.

Each case is unique and the property manager will make a decision based what is best for you and your home in the long run. That said, we always proceed with the legal notices required for eviction regardless of any other factors. We will simply postpone the actual filing of the eviction if the tenant is showing favorable effort toward resolution.

How informed will I be about what happens with my property?
Absent any special considerations unique to you or your property, our rule of thumb is this: If something may cause a potential interruption in your ordinary cash flow (loss of tenant or non-emergency repair in excess of $300), we will let you know about it right away. Other than that, the saying “no news is good news” is most appropriate. Non emergency items will be communicated along with your monthly statements and, of course, we encourage you to contact the property manager anytime you have a question or wish to discuss something.

Each Property Owner receives a login to our Online System that covers many basic questions and inquires. Some issues require a level of involvement that our Online System is not designed to accommodate. In these rare cases we are a phone call or email and we do our best to proactively communicate with Owners.

If you are a worrisome property owner or someone who desires a high degree of personal involvement with the property or who needs constant communication from the property manager, such as a phone call before any repairs are completed, we are likely not a good match for you. The property owners who appreciate us the most are those who truly want everything handled for them turn-key and don’t want to be bothered unless something important is happening. That is the type of property management service we offer.

How do you handle maintenance requests?
Tenants are encouraged to utilize our online form; they can also fax or call in their requests. Additionally we have 24-hour emergency number for after hour maintenance issues. After we receive a repair request, we will likely contact the tenant and ask them questions which will help us determine the exact nature of the problem so we can determine the best course of action and minimize maintenance costs. We also make sure it is not something that may be a simple fix, that we can coach the tenant through (ex: reset button on the disposal, tripped breaker) before your money is spent on a service call. After determining that it is a legitimate problem, we will coordinate with our dedicated maintenance team or send the appropriate service vendor to make the repair.

We tell our tenants that we are able to handle most repair requests within 1 to 3 working days, comfort items such as Air conditioning, no hot water or heat, receive highest priority and are usually attended to the same or next business day.

Do you use the cheapest maintenance people you can find?
No. Our dedicated maintenance team is middle of the road in price and they are competent and reliable. We also have a network of reliable maintenance sub-contractors who are capable in a wide range of home repairs including air-conditioning, light plumbing and electrical. Our team is charged at $45 per hour and we often charge a $75 trip charge. Outside vendors range in price from $35 to $75 per hour and have trip charges from $75 to $125. Depending on circumstances, costs may be higher, like when it involves after-hours emergencies. We try to have our team handle most of the multi-trade and make-ready tasks and use other vendors when we are backed up. This saves our owners a lot of money on multi-trade repairs by cutting down on the number of service calls to the property by different vendors. It also means that if we are called out on a dishwasher repair, we are going to be checking the a/c filter, sink drains, smoke alarms and general condition of the property – something that a single trade vendor will not do for you.

We have developed a very sensible approach to handling maintenance and repairs, that will likely result in over all cost savings to you, most other property managers simply can’t deliver this level of service.

Do you hold some of my money for repairs? How much?
We will typically require and hold a minimum of $300 property/maintenance reserve per unit in your account so that we always have funds to address minor issues and pay vendors timely.

How do I know your property manager won’t spend my money on large repairs without my approval?
We promise in our management agreement with you not to do that. For ordinary maintenance and repairs of less than $300, we will take care of it without notifying you. These items are clearly noted on your monthly statement. If we think a repair might exceed $300, we will call you and let you know what is happening, what we think should be done, and what the estimated cost might be.

Sometimes expenses such as a replacing a bad water heater, a roof leak that needs patching or repair, or emergency A/C and furnace repairs are unavoidable. In those cases where 1) the health or safety of a tenant is an issue, or 2) in instances where there is only one option to consider or 3) the property will incur further damage if immediate action is not taken, we will initiate the repair work, even if it is higher than the $300 limit, and then let you know of the situation and what we are doing about it. Mainly, we don’t think important repairs should be delayed while we try to contact you for permission to do the obvious.

What if I want you to use my plumber, A/C company, etc.?
When you sign with us to manage your property we will offer a full turn-key solution, therefore we generally don’t permit our owners to schedule maintenance. Our professional reputation as property managers, both with tenants and owners, is largely, if not almost entirely, determined by the effectiveness with which we handle maintenance. We have established processes that insures the best possible response and resolution to maintenance and repair problems for your property. When we deviate from these processes it is inefficient, Tenants suffer, more costly to manage and reduces overall profitably for the owner.

When do you mail the owner’s checks and statements?
Owners checks are mailed out on or after the 28th of each month but no later than the 30th for that month’s activity. Most months, you will have your check and statement in hand by the end of the month.

Can you put my rental proceeds directly into my checking account?
We can ACH your proceeds directly to a bank account.

What will I receive with my monthly statement?
You have online access 24/7 and a monthly statement showing all income and expenses for the accounting period are sent monthly.

How much is your monthly property management fee?
Our usual property management fee is 10 percent of the monthly rent, with a $75 per month minimum. In some cases like multiple properties or other special circumstances our management fee may be lower or higher.

How much is the leasing fee?
The leasing commission is dependent on several factors, unit type, number of units under agreement, lease term, etc. Leasing fee typically ranges from 50% to 100% of the first full month’s rent, depending on lease term. We absorb all costs of leasing the property including listing fees, internet marketing, for rent signs, lockboxes, etc., unless otherwise noted in the management agreement.

Are there administrative fees or other service charges up and above the property management and leasing fees?
There are no administrative fees or start-up costs. We don’t charge for copies, long distance calls, mileage, or other incidentals. The only other expenses you could incur would be for services which fall outside the normal scope of our property management agreement (such as contracting a major renovation, restoration or remodel, assisting in sales efforts for which we are not otherwise being paid). These scenarios are all outlined in the Property Management agreement but rarely come about.

Who holds the tenant’s security deposit?
All security deposits are and must be held in a separate deposit trust account.

How much security deposit do you charge the tenant?
As a general rule of thumb we usually get around 70% to 100% of one month’s rent for deposit. This is what will be asked for by most property owners and property managers in the Tulsa area.

Are you a licensed Property Manager?
We are licensed Realtors in the state of Oklahoma and we are members of the National Association of Residential Property Managers.

How soon can you start managing my home?
We would be happy to start the process immediately. We start by obtaining some information about you and your property and helping you decide if we are a good fit for one another. Contact us online or call the Office at 918.488.8880
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