First Rate Property Management Blog

Instant Tenant Screenings Are TV Dinners

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

In the past, we've discussed many technology changes within the property management industry. These changes in general reduce a manager's workload and help facilitate that need for something "instant." Instant and online screening are good examples of where tech...

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Who's #1 in Residential Income Properties

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

It was just over ten years ago that I joined Swope Investment Properties. Prior to joining Swope Investment Properties, I, through First Rate Property Management, managed many of Mike Swope's properties. Mike and I had also invested in some four-plexes together. It's...

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Feds Change Water Heaters

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

The company that handles our after-hours maintenance calls, NightTenders, sends out certain maintenance alerts. The most recent was from the US Department of Energy for improved energy efficiency for water heaters that goes into effect as of April 16, 2015. This change will ...

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Below is a link to a Wall Street Journal article...

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

That article discussed the current rental investment market. For the most part, I agree with what the article says. There is no doubt that at today’s prices, the right investment property can produce a great return. I love the example of the California investors who are boa...

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$8K Housing Credit Termination causing some urgency with tenants

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

In order to receive the $8,000 Housing Tax Credit first time home buyers need to be under contract by the end of April and closed by the end of June. Based on the number of tenants giving First Rate Property Management notice to vacate due to buying a home, there seems to be a se...

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War Is Declared on Fake Assistance Animals

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

Before the holidays we blogged about a potential law making it illegal to lie about the need for an assistance animal. Maybe it was the photo, but for whatever reason that post got the most attention of any blog entry before. I guess I finally got to see sensationalism at work. A...

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Property Management Insurances

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

Idaho is often criticized (or lauded) as being the "Wild Wild West." We have fewer laws and requirements than most states. With fewer barriers to business, such as property management, we see greater competition. Greater competition puts an emphasis on quality and price...

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Legislation, Lead Based Paint, and Vacancy

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

Our vacancy dropped a tad bit to 2.56%. Below is a graph that we will publish every so often so that you can see the trends. As I stated before, February was a great month for us. We leased a lot of properties up. Our system creates a report of all properties on notice and vacant...

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More on Legislation and Lead Base Paint

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

First Rate Property Management becomes a Certified Lead Based Paint RenovatorLead based paint was banned from residential use in 1978 due to the known health issues it can cause, especially to children under the age of 6 years old. A new law was passed by the EPA and will take ef...

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How Credit Scores Are Calculated

Blog Post

By Melissa S. Sunday, January 1, 2017

I receive updates from about five different lenders. Some of these are daily updates, while others are weekly, and they almost always include current rate information. But sometimes they include other information that I like to pass on. Below is a link to an update from Eric...

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