What we're Thankful For

You're probably not in the office today, this post will go out the day after Thanksgiving, 2016, which is November 24.  And that's one thing to be thankful for, that you're off today.

Then there's where we get to live.  Yes, Texas is hot for much of the year, but right about now we're not thinking about that.  We're glad to live without snow and ice, with sunny skies almost all year long.

Think also about who we get to work with.  I am thankful for my "work family," who have my back every day, and who work every bit as hard as I do to keep us all on track, pursue our goals and keep our company growing.  I can't imagine doing what I do without every single one of them.

How thankful am I for our clients?  Well, without them we have absolutely nothing.  No properties to manage, no tenants to keep happy, no "work family" however much we care about each other.  I want only to keep getting better at what we do so our clients can't live without us, gratitude drives me to be the best we can be.

I could probably go on, but it's your day off.  Feel free to be thankful for a short blog post today!

Caveat Emptor and the Hailstorm

One of the first terms I learned in real estate is the concept of "Caveat Emptor," which means "Let the Buyer Beware."  Nothing in property management better represents this term than the circumstances surrounding hail damage.  As we head into winter, I'm thankful (hopeful?) we won't have to worry about thunderstorms raining hail down on our expensive rooftops and HVAC units exposed like sitting ducks, because if/when it happens, we then have to evaluate sales pitches by roofers/general contractors, some legit, some maybe not so much...as they promise MANNA from our insurance companies.  They will say: We'll get you a new roof!!!  We'll get you new HVAC units!!! Hallelujah brother!!  There's just this little voice in my head asking:  Is it true?  If it is true, is it right? 

Even if it is true and even if we believe it is right for us to pursue a claim for our client, what does it mean for our future premiums and those of other property owners?  It's definitely a "buyer beware" situation. A newsletter published by "Texas for Lawsuit Reform" recently outlined exactly this conundrum. 

The column cited concern for the potential of abuse by what they called the "Hail Cartel" which they defined as unscrupulous roofers, public adjusters, and attorneys intent on getting as much as they can from the insurance industry.  In this scenario the property owner may believe they benefit by getting a new roof/HVAC system, but if the contractor you're working with is, um..shall we say...ethically challenged, can you trust their workmanship?  I don't think so.  Caveat Emptor indeed.

Santa Cop is coming...to Arlington

There are lots of toy drives that will start to collect this time of year.  One us Property Managers, the favorite is the "Santa Cop" program in Arlington.  The Arlington police department and the Arlington Police Foundation, and the Arlington School District join together to distribute boxes to businesses, for us building lobbies, and we do our best to fill them up.  All our managed buildings will get a box any day now, and we'll encourage our tenants and their employees to bring a new unwrapped toy.  

Once the toys are collected, the groups have a great party for as many families as possible, last year it was over 1,200.

We will do part to make 2016 the best ever.  We're glad to contribute what we can, and we especially enjoy working with Arlington's finest to get it done to help every kid in Arlington have a great Christmas.  If you don't already have a way to help bring Christmas smiles to kids faces, I can heartily recommend that you grab your santa cap and call the Santa Cops.

Burning topic of the week...ICE MELT

It's 90 degrees in the shade in north Texas right now, it is mid-October, football is on a constant loop on all the channels, and did I mention it's 90 degrees in the shade?

Still, we property managers must plan for rain, sleet, snow and all the same things that keep the post-person slogging through to bring you your mail.  So in this week's PM huddle, the subject of ice melt came up, and whether we are prepared for the rare but inevitable sleet event.  The only question is when.  We stocked up last year, and didn't use a single bag.  Complacency could bite us this year, so we thought it through.  Do we have enough to go around to all the properties?  Do we have a landscaping company on board to get out (just) ahead of the storm to put it out?  Do we have them scheduled to come clean up the residue after the sun comes back out?

The toughest part of a sleet event for us?  It's whether and when to get in our cars and come to work. We north Texas drivers don't have much experience with the subtleties of steering into skids, and our municipal authorities do well just to sand the overpasses.  People die on slick roads.  I prefer no one does that for the sake of getting to an office building thank you very much.  But the tenants expect us to be providing service whatever the condition of the roads.

We communicate early and often with our tenants, keeping expectations reasonable while admitting our own frailty to stand up to scary icy roads.  If it's dangerous, we stay home until it's not dangerous, that's where we come down on the subject.