Discussion Board: Hot Topics

What Hot Topics are Property Managers Currently Talking About?

NARPM^® maintains Discussion Boards for several specialties within the organization. These Discussion Boards enable Members to stay in contact and to share questions and concerns as they arise. If you would like to participate in one of these groups, visit www.narpm.org/members/discussion-boards and follow the instructions. NARPM^® National approves all Discussion Board Members and the Discussion Boards are only available to Property Managers who are Professional Members of NARPM^®. Statements of fact and opinion are the responsibility of the authors alone and do not imply an opinion on the part of the officers, staff, or Members of NARPM^®. Any legal matters or advice mentioned herein should be discussed with an attorney, accountant, or other professional before use in a particular state or situation. All readers are responsible for their own investigation and use of the information.

Q: Curious how you handle turning a property back to the owner who wants to self-manage? The tenant gives you a 60-day notice that they are moving and the owner decides they want to play property manager. Do you allow the owner access to tenants’ contact information? Do you allow the owner to host an open house or show the home while the tenant still resides in the home? What clauses do you insert to prevent access until after the lease has ended?

A: Since security deposit disposition is a huge time effort and security deposits are my number one source of complaints, I turn the property back over to the owner as soon as possible, so he/she can handle the security deposit deposition. Tell the owner no, because the tenant is not licensed. If your state does not require a license, I would say no, because your company does not permit current tenants to conduct showings, and while you still manage the property, your company policies still apply.

A: Will your Errors & Omissions (E&O) insurance cover your company in the event of theft or damage to the tenant’s property due to an open house? Does the lease allow for an open house? We have a rule that either we manage or the landlord manages. What I mean is that once a landlord starts to interact one-on-one with their tenant, and without our company being a party to the conversation, we do not manage. It makes it real difficult in court when you get into he said, she said. Keys and deposits are turned over to the landlord (as allowed in our Lease and Management agreement) and a notice is provided to the tenant that we no longer manage and where deposit is held, etc.

A: In Colorado, the statute of limitations is 2 years after the tenant receives the disposition for the tenant to dispute it, so there’s no way I’m taking on that liability. Give some thought to this when an owner decides to sell the home. Do you want to be the one stuck 1.5 years later dealing with a lawyer and your former tenant when the client is long gone?

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