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1. Profit Center
You own and operate a property management company. The primary revenue for your company is derived from a percentage of the total of the rent roll
that you manage. Accordingly, in order to increase revenue, you need to add additional units under management. This requires bringing on new clients,
growing the company, hiring additional personnel, possibly taking on additional office space, ect. But what if there was another way to add additional
profit to your bottom line, without having to take on additional doors?
Assuming your company has over 1,000 units or more, you may perform over $500K dollars a year in regular maintenance related services on the
properties that you manage. We’re not even talking about turn overs, remodels, paints, etc, but just regular old maintenance. Some of this spend is related to emergency repairs-like a plugged toilet, and a portion is simply scheduled annual maintenance services such as gutter cleaning, dryer vent cleaning, carbon & smoke alarm checks, pressure washing, sewer jetting, window cleaning, etc.
These scheduled annual maintenance services are not optional services, they need to be performed otherwise your clients properties will suffer from deferred maintenance and your company will be liable. Some of these annual maintenance tasks also carry liability-such as dryer vent cleaning and carbon and smoke alarm logging. Failure to perform these tasks can result in multi-million dollar judgments against your company.
As a responsible property manager, you retain vendors to perform these services for your clients. Working with these vendors, however, is time consuming for your company. Scheduling multiple vendors every year on each property requires manpower, mailing of notices, rescheduling for tenants, etc. Further, there is no financial benefit to your company other than client satisfaction and the liability reduction that occurs as a result of performing these tasks.
What if there was a better way? What if you could perform all these services for your clients, save them money, give them a better client experience, reduce your workload, reduce your liability, and create an additional profit center for your business-all at the same time? Let HomeSmiles help. We can provide a proven methodology to perform all the required annual maintenance for your clients for less than half of what they would otherwise pay.
If you own a property management company with over 1000 units, a HomeSmiles franchise partnership can reduce your company’s liability, reduce work required to perform annual maintenance services, and generate additional revenue for your company.
Homesmiles has created a system to efficiently perform 18 annual maintenance items, generate reports including before and after pictures, at a price point that is typically 50 percent lower than the market rate! This system is so efficient owners have seen gross profits of approximately 21 percent. Imagine making 21 percent on money already being spent to maintain the properties you already manage, while saving time based on the reduced administrative paperwork, and saving money for the owner! See the accompanying charts for a more detailed breakdown of market costs and an illustration of revenue potential.
*See 2021 Franchise Disclosure Document, Homesmiles Franchising, LLC
2. Scaling Your Property Management Company
If you are an emerging or established property management company, HomeSmiles can help you scale to the next level. HomeSmiles’ established processes allow you to implement an established system with all the required back-end support to perform all required annual maintenance on the properties that you manage while simultaneously allowing you to generate additional profit. As you scale your property management company, you will simultaneously scale your HomeSmiles profit center. We have everything you need in order to add an additional revenue center to your existing property management company and scale your business with a HomeSmiles franchise partnership.
3. Liability Reduction
You own and operate a property management company. You have your license, you’ve done the training, you’ve provided excellent service to your clients, and built your business…but, you’re concerned aren’t you? What if something goes wrong? What if there is a fire? A carbon event? A slip and fall? What about deferred maintenance? Am I doing everything I can and should do for the houses and buildings that I manage? Am I exposed to litigation? These concerns are real and they should cause you a moment of pause. Liability and deferred maintenance claims are on the rise and getting worse every year. Some illustrative case studies are included below .
a. Deferred Maintenance Claims
Property Management Standard of Care
California Court Affirms $93K Judgment Against Property Management Company for Deferred Maintenance
In the California Fourth Appellate District case of Brown v. Rodriquez, a property owner sought nearly $295,000 to repair the damage to his properties he contends the property manager caused by failing to perform ordinary repairs and maintenance. In the owner’s view, these extraordinary repairs would not have been necessary if the properties had been properly maintained with routine annual maintenance. The property manager had failed to perform routine annual maintenance such as roof cleaning, gutter cleaning, window washing, water heater flushing, furnace filters, dryer vent cleaning, pressure washing, ect. The trial court agreed that the property manager’s failure to repair and maintain the properties required the owner to perform extraordinary repairs that would not have otherwise been required. The property owner sought over $286K in damages. The court awarded the owner approximately $93K for the repairs caused by the property manager’s failure to perform routine annual maintenance.
So what steps should a property management company take to prevent claims for deferred maintenance against the company? First of all, the property management company should have a routine annual maintenance recommendation for the client. This list should be provided to the owner as part of the property management package. As an example of routine annual maintenance activities, the following, at minimum, should be performed:
The property manager should strongly recommend to the owner in writing that these activities be performed annually to protect against deferred maintenance and also for the health, welfare, and safety of the building occupants. If the owner chooses not to follow the property manager’s recommendation, the property manager should get the owner’s denial in writing. Documenting the file with the owner’s written denial will be vital to the property manager’s future defense against deferred maintenance claims.
b. Liability Claims
Property Management Standard of Care
California Court Affirms $29M Judgment Against Property Management Company for Deaths Caused By Fire
An appellate court in California affirmed a lower court’s judgment for $29 million against a property management company and property owner for a lawsuit based on the negligent performance of property management services at an apartment complex. Golden Eagles Insurance Corp. v. Lemoore Real Estate and Property Management Inc., 2012 WL 1670475 (Cal. Ct. App. May 14, 2012).
The insured, a licensed real estate broker, provided property management services for an apartment complex. During its tenure as property manager, a fire in one of the apartments killed five people. The survivors of the decedents sued the property manager and the owner of the apartment complex for wrongful death, alleging negligence in the maintenance and control of the apartment and failure to keep the property in a safe condition. The “trial by reference” resulted in judgment against the property manager and owner for $29 million. The property manager was found 90% at fault. So what steps can a property management company take to prevent fires in order to protect the tenants, the owner, and the company?
First of all, the property management company must comply with new laws which require the company to “inspect and maintain” all smoke alarms. If your client owns a multi-unit residential property or a single family residence (“SFR”) rental property, they are required to install, maintain and test smoke alarms on their property. [Health & S C §13113.7(d)(2)] Although there is no specific timing requirement, this should be done, at minimum, annually. An “Inspection and Maintenance Log” should be performed and kept in the file for that building and client.
Second and often overlooked, the property management company should ensure annual cleaning of dryer vent lines. Buildings with active laundry rooms may even consider more frequent cleanings. Dryer vent fires are a leading cause of SFR and multi-family fires in the United States. They are easily preventable by annual cleaning. An annual inspection of the premises or “walk through” should also be conducted to ensure adequate spacing of furnaces/wall heaters from combustible items. Although there are many additional steps that can be taken, these should be instituted immediately.
4. Proven Systems
A HomeSmiles franchise is a turn-key model for adding maintenance to your property management business. Our equipment, systems and training were developed to maximize efficiency. No experience is needed because our training will teach you everything you need to know. We take the guess work out of every step, including how to equip your van so you have exactly what you need onsite. Using the HomeSmiles system your team will be able to complete an 18 Point Service in just under two hours.
Part of our proprietary system is the customizable reporting that is an essential deliverable for property managers. These service reports are branded with you logo and automatically sent to your clients with before and after pictures of all work performed, providing the documented proof needed to reduce or eliminate liability claims against your company. Homesmiles technicians can even create reports that can be used for annual inspection documents which are required by more and more property owners each year.
For property managers that want to expand their HomeSmiles business outside of their managed properties, our HomeSmiles Sales Center will assist franchise owners with bidding, scheduling, and invoicing of clients. This inbound and outbound service will track all services with pricing, square footage, detailed property notes, and anniversary updates to reduce the time, energy and personnel at the franchise level.
5. HomeSmiles-The Industry Leader in Property Maintenance
HomeSmiles is the industry leader in property maintenance services. We have performed over one million individual services for property owners. HomeSmiles is the nation’s fastest growing home maintenance services brand.
Association of your company with a HomeSmiles franchise partnership will not only bring added value to your business, but also allow you to provide better services to your clients at a reduced price.
6. SBA Financing, Fast and Easy Startup!
We are a registered SBA franchise and have all the necessary pieces in place to allow you to finance your franchise partnership with HomeSmiles.
With our experience behind you, we can have your van(s) in your driveway and running service calls within 45 days. You can literally be generating additional income from doing what you are doing already in less than 2 months. And remember, this isn’t just a “one time” piece of revenue-it is annual. Further, as your property management continues to grow, so will your additional income from your HomeSmiles Franchise partnership.
And speaking of growing your property management company; the best way to grow your business is to take great care of the clients that you already have. Properly performed, documented, and reported maintenance services make your company shine for your clients and tenants.
Get Your Dreams On Track
Buy A HomeSmiles Franchise Today!
Our team is standing by to help guide you through the process of opening a HomeSmiles franchise. Contact us today to schedule a consultation at a time that is convenient for your schedule.
