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Owner Information Dear property owners: This letter is designed to explain additional maintenance charges and property trip fees. It includes the most commonly asked questions with answers. Moreover, below is a list of L. Cramer personnel to be called regarding your individual questions. I hope this information will give you a better understanding of our company. An additional Ala Carte menu of services is attached. These services are not included in your property management fee. I would like to stress to our homeowners how important home maintenance is for their investment rentals. Investors should do regular maintenance on their properties in order to maintain the value of the property. A well-maintained property always sells, or rents more readily a higher price. Regular care to a property minimizes or prevents unexpected repair work and expenses later.
How does L. Cramer & Assoc, Inc. handle maintenance issues and the costs involved?
L. Cramer & Associates has an exclusive contract with a maintenance company by the name of SW Florida Property Maintenance. Due to the size of our contract, our clients get preferential prices and services seven days a week. Prices are subject to change without notice, due to factors beyond our control, i.e., hurricanes, fuel shortages, increased fuel costs, increased labor costs, or the increased cost of local building supplies. We pay these bills on your behalf immediately in order to get the best prices for you in this market place. We carry these outstanding balances for you for 15 days at no interest. After 15 days, an interest charge of 1 ½ %, or $25.00, whichever is greater, will appear on your account each month until the balance is paid. If you have rental income available, we will deduct all unpaid balances before sending you the remaining funds. If you do not have enough rental income, or you have no income available, due to vacancy, to pay your bills, the interest charge will be applied within 15 days. If you would prefer to handle your own maintenance issues & property trips you may do so; however, please note in that instance, we cannot bid, supervise, coordinate repairs, coordinate tenants, or pay bills on your behalf.
As the owner, do I have to pay for lawn care during the time the property may be vacant?
Yes, you do. If you have arranged for local lawn care, it is your responsibility to inform us in writing. Otherwise, our company will make arrangements and you will be billed accordingly. Please note: owners will be billed in direct relation to how often their yard must be mowed. These charges vary from $35.00-$100.00 a cut, depending upon the frequency your yard must be mowed (time of year in Florida has a great deal to do with this) plus the size of the yard, etc. For instance, wintertime Florida is dry and grass grows slowly; however, during summer, it rains virtually every day. Our lawn company drives all vacant properties weekly, and mows only those lawns deemed necessary. In Lee County, it is against the city and county ordinances for grass to be more than 10 inches high. Overgrown grass, excessive weeds, overgrown trees and/or numerous palm limbs in the yard will draw the attention of the local Code Enforcement Department, and your property could be cited (particularly in Cape Coral). If your property is cited, the city allows seven days to correct the problem. If the problem is not corrected within time allotted, you will be fined, or, if code & correlating fine is ignored, the City may place a lien on your property. L. Cramer & Associates will not be held liable for any citations you receive on your rental property. In addition to the possibility of citations, or liens, it is imperative that your property be maintained in proper viewing order at all times to assist in obtaining a tenant for the property.
Does the owner have to pay for lawn care after the tenant moves in?
No, unless your yard requires a final clean up. Does my yard need to be watered during vacancy?
Yes, it does. You may have a sprinkler system in place. Do not assume the builder, the prior tenants, or the prior owner has set up a sprinkler timer system in accordance to the allowable city watering rules. It is now a felony offence in parts of Lee County to water your yard on the wrong day! We have a water shortage and the city takes the situation very seriously. If your home has a sprinkler system, we automatically go out to your home and program the sprinklers for a charge. L. Cramer & Associates will not be held liable for any citations you receive on your rental property. Does the owner have to pay for pool care when the property is vacant?
Yes, you do. If you have arranged for local pool care yourself, it is your responsibility to inform us in writing. Otherwise, our company will arrange for pool care weekly until home is rented; you will be billed accordingly. As with the yard, it is imperative for the pool to be maintained in proper order at all times to assist in obtaining a tenant for the property. Does the owner have to pay to have the well system treated during vacancy?
Yes, you do. Do not assume the builder, the prior tenants, or the prior owner has treated the well system prior to your ownership. The local builders never treat the well systems before I get them. That may mean your entire water system already has a bad odor from non-treatment, may have algae growing in the tank, and may have unwelcome creatures like frogs and lizards. It must be treated immediately with bags of salt pellets and bleach, and may need a complete sanitation. The charge varies $50.00-$150.00, depending on treatment needed. Non-treatment will shut down your entire well system. If your well system shuts down due to non-treatment, which is actually lack of salt, this repair would not be covered under any warranty program and could create a huge financial expense for an owner. Does the owner have to turn the power and water on while the property is vacant?
Yes, you do. First, many of our rentals have well & sewer systems in place and they only function if the power is on. In addition, my office often shows rentals at night when it is convenient for a tenant to view your property. All vacant rental properties must have active power and water in order to participate in our rental program. What happens if the owner does not turn the power on when the property is vacant?
Your home could get mold. Your well system could smell like rotten eggs and this odor can take up to one month of usage to dissipate. Your well system could also shut down from non-usage and lack of proper salt & bleach treatments. In addition, your home will look unoccupied, and there is a terrible theft problem in my area where vacant homes are robbed of their appliances, and, or vandalized. In addition, my company cannot work on properties without utilities, and our company will not show homes for rent without utilities activated. When is the best time to get my power turned on if my rental is vacant?
Before the builder, old owner, or old tenant turns it off. Get it transferred before it is turned off! Otherwise, you will have to pay my office to go to your home twice for a fee, to flip your breakers on, and then off, in order for the local utility company to turn your power on. See Ala Carte menu for fees. I have seen trip fees on my statement for my home, why?
If your home is vacant, you get one trip to your property as part of our management services. This trip is to pick up keys and assess & photograph the rental. Nevertheless, if we have been informed that the keys are ready, and we make a special trip to procure them and they are not ready for pick up, we must go again! If we pick up the keys and the keys do not fit the door, we must either return them to the original holder or hire a locksmith to replace the locks. We have to charge for the additional time. See Ala Carte menu for fees. I saw a charge to remove hurricane shutters or a construction door on my rental, why?
If your property is vacant, the builder may have delivered the home to us with some, or all, of the hurricane shutters in place, along with your unattractive construction door instead of your front door. This is done to prevent theft and or vandalism during vacancy. Most often, we ask the new tenants to remove the shutters and replace your construction door with the nice decorative door left in your garage. However, not all tenants are capable of doing this as the tenants may be elderly, a woman living alone, or the tenants are simply not capable of this type of strenuous work. I was charged for a mailbox, why?
New construction homes do not come with a mailbox. If you want to arrange to install a mailbox yourself, you must submit this in writing to L. Cramer & Associates, otherwise we will install it, and you will be billed. If your existing rental does not have a functioning mailbox, we will install one. See Ala Carte menu for fees. I already had a mailbox and I was charged for the repair of my mailbox, why?
We do have some problems with vandals destroying mailboxes with baseball bats. Alternatively, people can be intoxicated and run them over. The tenants are responsible if they damage the mailbox; otherwise, it is the owner's responsibility to repair it. I was told I should pay for window treatments and or appliances in my rental, why?
Rentals in Florida are expected to have certain items, window treatments being one of them. Rentals in our area usually have all appliances in place (stove, refrigerator). A washer and dryer may be optional, but could prevent your rental from being leased quickly if missing, as most rentals have those items in place. Garage door openers are also big in this area. However, these items are certainly not required; nevertheless, the lack of these items may slow your rental time down. If you would prefer to not include any, or some of these items, you must let us know, so we can inform potential tenants. I received a utility bill after my tenant moved in, what do I do?
First, pay the bill; you do not want to endanger your credit score over such a minor issue. Then email our leasing agent Elizabeth Flores at Elizabeth@lcramerpm.com and you must fax or mail a copy of the bill to our office. We will attempt to get reimbursement from the tenant. Then turn the water or power off ASAP! Get the billing out of your name. Most often, the tenant will be courteous and get all utilities placed in their name immediately. However, some tenants do not remember to do so, or they just do not bother to do so. Turning off the utility in question will get their attention! I have work charges for my house on my statement and I don't know why?
As a courtesy to our owners, our in-house policy is to call every owner when work needs to be done over a $200.00 amount. We try our BEST to follow this rule. If you were not called, please call the maintenance department. However, if it was an emergency issue, a fast decision may have had to be made, if we were unable to get in touch with you. I was charged for work that should have been covered under my warranty, what should I do?
First, do we know you have a warranty in place? It is your responsibility to inform my office in writing of any special warranties your home may have. This information must be placed in your owner file and entered into our database in your file. If you have a newly constructed home, do not worry, we already know you have a one-year builder's warranty in place. Do not assume your warranty company will respond in a timely manner to your tenants needs. Please read your builder's warranty policy very carefully. It is imperative that you understand all builder home warranties are designed to protect THE BUILDER, not the buyer. The warranty company may not respond, or, if they do respond, they may decide they are not responsible for the repair. It is up to our office to follow the rules of the tenant laws and make sure your tenant's needs are addressed. For example, let us say it is a weekend, a holiday, or after hours, and your tenant or your vacant home has:
All of these items according to tenant laws must be addressed within 24 to 48 hours. We always call the warranty company first, but often times they do not have any system in place for emergencies, for after hours or weekends or holiday calls. If you feel you have been charged unfairly, please seek reimbursement from the builder. In addition, if your builder never responded to numerous requests for repairs, we will let you know, and then it is your decision whether to risk losing your present tenant or pay us to fix the problems. Your builder's lack of response could also endanger our opportunity to get your home rented if the property is vacant and has unresolved maintenance or building issues.
I was charged a service call fee to assess my warranty problem, or an additional walk through, why?
If your warranty company is PRO HOME (First Choice or Advantage Builders), they will not respond to ANY SERVICE CALL unless our maintenance company has confirmed it is a legitimate complaint or problem FIRST. They will not dispatch a worker from their warranty company based on information supplied from a tenant. If you feel this is an unfair charge, please seek reimbursement from the builder involved or PRO HOME itself. This is their policy and procedure, not mine. In addition, your builder may give you the opportunity for a 45 day, 3-month and, or an 11-month walk thru with the warranty company (read your warranty manual to see if these inspections are offered to you). If you would like us to conduct these walks on your behalf, the service fees are listed in the Ala Carte menu. I was charged $50.00 per month vacancy fee, why?
All owners are charged a $50.00 vacancy fee while a unit is empty. This fee is not paid while the home is being rehabilitated, only when the home is vacant and rent-ready. This fee allows our staff to regularly check on your investment property twice monthly for the following reasons:
I was charged a renewal fee of $250.00 on my property, why?
Your tenant's lease was up for expiration and they chose to renew with your permission. The fee is $250.00 for that service. Even a month-to-month agreement will be charged a renewal fee of $250.00. However, a portion will be prorated back to you, for every month in a 12-month period that the tenants do not stay. My property management fee recently increased, why?
Your contract may state an amount by which your management fee increases at a year anniversary date. Please read your contract. I seem to get my rental income late, why does that happen.
It is very important that each owner understand the date that his or her tenant pays rent. Do not assume it is on the first of the month. For example, whatever day your tenant moved into the property is the monthly rental due date. If they moved in on the 17th of the month, the rent is due on the 17th of every month. When the tenant pays the rent to L. Cramer & Associates, our accounting department needs 7-15 days for those funds to clear our bank in order to pay the owner. If your tenant pays substantially late enough to cause a delay in you receiving your rental income, we always try to email or call the owner. How can I get my rental income faster?
Have the rental income transferred to you by ACH bank transfer. This is accomplished by supplying my accounting department (Michele ext. 205) with a voided check from the account in which you wish the funds transferred. There is a $1.50 charge to the owner per transfer for this service. I was charged a fee for keys to be copied, why?
Our office must have four full sets of working keys to your property. That means if your rental has four separate keys to the house, I need four copies of each key. The builders do not give us four sets of keys to your new home. See Ala Carte menu for fees. Does the owner have to pay to have the septic system to be pumped out?
Yes, you do. If your home has its own sewer system, this unit must be pumped out once a year in order to prevent backups inside of your rental property or in the yard. See Ala Carte menu for fees. I was charged for a property tour, what is that for?
If an owner or their representative comes to town and wants to see their investment property, L Cramer & Associates, Inc must coordinate a tour of your property by setting an appointment with the tenants and accompanying the owner on the tour for a fee. See Ala Carte menu for fees. If the property is vacant, the owner may come to our office, check out the keys to that property, and do a tour unaccompanied at no charge at any time. Questions or problems call the following: Toll Free 1-866-540-3478 / 239-540-3478 /Fax 239-540-3568
Repair/Maintenance/Trip Charge/Prop Rehab Update = Laura Urban Ext. 219 lauraU@lcramerpm.com.
Vacancy Walk/Tenant Inspection= Lellany Zas Ext. 220 Lellany@lcramerpm.com
Tenant Rent Collection /Tenant Eviction= Heather Ochoa Ext. 204 heather@lcramerpm.com
Owner Payment/Statement= Michele LeConey Ext. 205 Michele@lcramerpm.com Maintenance Invoice/Finance Fee/Owner Cancellation= Margaret 239-540-4508 Margaret@swflpm.com
Tenant Renewal/Rent Clicks/Company Web Site= Kim Snyder Ext. 234 kim@lcramerpm.com
Rental Program= Elizabeth Flores Ext. 206 Elizabeth@lcramerpm.com
Tenant Move Out Claims/Damage Claims= Fran Haworth Ext. 211 fran.haworth@earthlink.net
RE/Buy/Sell/Tenant Sec. Claim Update/Tenant Credit +Collections= Dianne Oakwood Ext. 223 dianne@lcramerpm.com
Security Deposits= Laura Schuette Ext. 202 laura.schuette@earthlink.net Managers General Manager
Trish Connelly-Willingham Ext 208 trish.connelly@earthlink.net
Assistant Manager/Accounting Manager/ Maintenance Company Manager
Laura Schuette Ext. 202 laura.schuette@earthlink.net
L.Cramer's Web Site addresses http://www.lcramerpm.com/ http://www.propertymanagementleasing.com/ http://www.lisatheleaser.org/ http://www.lisatheleaser.net/ http://www.lisatheleaser.info/ Save yourself time and frustration by directing your question to the proper employee who has the answers for you in their database. Neither Lisa Cramer, nor the receptionists, can help you in regards to most of these questions without asking the departments involved. L. Cramer & Associates, Inc. is departmentalized due to the large number of owners and tenants we service. Help us, help you! Thank you for your time. |
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