NEW CLIENT WELCOME

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Garner Properties and Management, LLC is very excited to be your property manager and we are looking forward to a prosperous partnership. Our motto, "From our family to yours, welcome home" is also our philosophy. We are here to answer any questions you have regarding your rental home and to assist you in making your portfolio as profitable as possible.

This welcome packet provides you with an introduction to our services and some valuable tools you can use.  Please retain this link for future reference. 

Garner Properties & Management is the largest single- family property manager in the Detroit area.  We have achieved this by providing each of our client's personalized and dedicated service.

We believe communication is critical to a successful relationship. We use state of the art technology to provide you with instant e-mail notifications on: property showings, lease notifications, tenant payments, work orders and court proceedings.  This information is also available on your owner portal.  In addition, you are always welcome to call or e-mail us if you are unable to find the information you need.  Our goal is to answer all emails within 48 hours. Please keep in mind that during the first 7 days of the month our office is extremely busy with rent collections and our response time may be a bit delayed. You will find information on the following topics below:

1. Getting Started
   1. Marketing your vacant property
   2. Managing your existing tenant
2. Staff Introductions
3. Menu of Services
4. Owner Portal  & Training
5. Accounting Practices and Statements
6. FAQ's

GETTING STARTED  

Marketing your vacant property

If your property is vacant, the next five days will be focused on getting your property listed and on the market. This includes:

• Marketing pictures of exterior and interior of property
• Posting of pictures on website and affiliated databases
• Yard sign
• Participation in all ad campaigns (web and print)
• Professional rental analysis -- market pricing
• Weekly Listing review by dedicated staff
• Preferred Marketing Program 
• Preferred positioning on the top rental web sites
• Placement of lock box at property
• Property showings by leasing agents
• Tenant screening and lease placement

Managing your existing tenant

If your property already has a tenant, we will ensure a smooth transition by providing the following:

• Review of lease and ledger documents
• Placement of new lease (if applicable)
• Introduction to tenant
• Filing of transfer documents (Section 8 and MSHDA)

STAFF INTRODUCTIONS

CLIENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT

GPM has a team of dedicated service professionals ready to assist you with any questions you may have regarding your portfolio. While you are free to contact any of our staff members directly, we suggest you first direct your inquires to the Client Services Department in order to better serve you. Our Client Services team is able to quickly liaise with other departments to determine the best course of action.

BRENDA GARNER, Director, Client Services

Contact Brenda for any questions you may have related to your account and for  information on REO Liability insurance

JESSICA ZILKA, Director, Client Services

Contact Jessica for any questions you may have related to your account or land contract servicing

STAFF DIRECTORY

BOBBIE ROMAS, Maintenance Coordinator

Contact Bobbie for questions related to open Work Orders

GORDON DIONNE, Regional Rehab Manager

Contact Dionne for questions related to your rehab project or questions related to your investment property located in Arizona

JEAN KELLY, Customer Service Representative

Contact Jean for questions related to 7-day demands for payment or the court process

JESSICA HART, City Compliance Specialist

Contact Jessica for questions related to city inspections, utilities accounts, and city issued garbage cans

JULIE AGUIRRE, Section 8 Specialist

Contact Julie for questions related to Section 8 guidelines and inspections

TERESSA HARBIN, Director of Marketing & Real Estate Sales

Contact Teressa for questions related to marketing your vacant property, selling your investment property, or acquiring new investment properties.

MENU OF SERVICES 

For your convenience, please find a listing of the various services we offer.

Ready to Move-in Inspection  (Labor plus cost of materials)

When a new tenant moves into your property, it is important to document the status immediately preceding the tenant's move-in.  This is important to protect your investment in the case of damages from the tenant.  This service includes:

• Pictures of property (2 pictures per room)
• Checklist of condition of property
• Check all services (water, electric, gas)

Move-Out Checklist  (no cost)

When a tenant moves out of your property, we will verify the condition of the property and assess any costs for which the tenant is responsible.  This service includes:

• Pictures of property
• Punch list
• Rent Ready quote

Rehab Services  (4Diamond Services)

If your property is not in a rent ready condition, our affiliate 4Diamond services can provide you with a quote and services to get your property ready for market.  This service includes:                  

• Placement of lock box at property
• Pictures of property
• Punch list
  • Estimate quote     
  • Detailed property assessment  ($125 (credited if have us do work))
  • Rehab  (Cost Varies)
    • Includes pictures of completed work

Secure Vacant Property

This service is available for all vacant properties. We recommend that all vacant properties in the City of Detroit and the City of Inkster are secured.  Services offered include:

• Change Locks  ($85)
• Board up windows  ($350)
• No-Zone  ($130-$150 per month)
• Remove/Store/Reinstall furnace and hot water tank  ($350)

Winterization of Vacant Property  ($125)

Any properties which are vacant during the fall/winter months should be winterized to prevent frozen and burst pipes.  This service includes:

• Drain water tank
• Pull water meter
• Turn water off
• Drain toilet
• Blow-out supply lines
• Place anti-freeze in drain traps, (toilet & shower, etc.)
• Shrink wrap toilet
• Tag property

Snow Removal Per Push  ($25)

Grass Cutting every 7-10 days standard size yard  ($26)

24-Hour Maintenance Service

• GPM to handle repairs  ($45 hour (Plus Materials))

If you designate GPM to handle maintenance repairs to your property we will use our staff and network of preferred vendors to handle any repairs.  You will receive an e-mail notification for any Work Order placed in the system.

• Owner to handle repairs

If you have elected to handle your own repairs, GPM will log the service request and forward the work order to you via email. 

Legal Services

GPM has an on- staff attorney to assist you with any legal issues which can arise from owning an investment property.

• Eviction Proceedings
  • Appearance fee  ($200)
    • Plus filing and service fees (vary by court)
  • Collections  (1/3^rd of amount recovered)
• Tax Appeal per property  ($475)
  • Plus 25% of  amount recovered
• Appearance fee of Property Manager in court  ($100)
• Record acquisitions                                                                
  • Copy of recorded deed  ($50)

Property Acquisitions/Dispositions - Complete Real Estate Services

Garner Properties & Management has a Real Estate Agent on staff to assist you in any Real Estate needs.

• Acquisitions - we can assist you in finding your new rental property or your new primary residence. 
  • Negotiate on your behalf and work directly in your best interest.
  • Assistance to find your ideal property
  • Weekly updates of new on the market properties
  • GPM does NOT charge any commission or fees for Real Estate Services in Acquisitions.

• Dispositions - We can assist you to sell any Real Estate.  We work in your best interest and can answer any questions, whether it's your rental property or a primary residence.
  • Negotiate on your behalf, represent you.  Make sure the deal is done correctly and in your best interest. 
  • Follow-up with the buyer's (agent) and all communication between seller and buyer to get you to the closing table.
  • Research comparable properties in the area. 
  • Assist in finding the best market price.  
  • Discount on commission  for all our clients and no compliance fee

OWNER PORTAL AND TRAINING 

The Owner Portal is the gateway to your portfolio information.  Information regarding your property, tenant, work orders, bills and statements will be on this portal. All documents related to your property are scanned and posted to the Document section of your portal.

You will receive an e-mail with your portal login and password.  This password is case sensitive so we suggest you copy and paste from the e-mail for the best results.

To set up your account for the first time:

1. Log in to your account.
2. Go to the Statement tab.
3. Select Edit Payment account
4. Select the payment method
5. Fill in the information requested

Once your account is set up, you may make a contribution to your account:

1. Log in to your account. 
2. Go to the Statement tab.
3. Select New Contribution
4. Enter the amount you would like to contribute
5. Send an e-mail to the Client Services Department to confirm the contribution.

ACCOUNTING PRACTICES AND SERVICES 

In order to provide you the quickest turnaround between income collection and disbursement, we use by-monthly reporting--this means you always receive your rental income within 2 weeks of it's collection.

Draw/Statement Periods

We disburse funds twice a month for rental income:

• 1st Draw: between the 10th-12th of the month
  
• 2nd Draw: between the 22nd-24th of the month

Your statement periods will always run from the end of the last period to the end of the current period.

• Ex: January 25th-February 12th, February 13th-February 24th

How to Read Your Statement
 

• Portfolio Summary
  • Previous balance and Portfolio Summary
    
• Portfolio Income/Expense section
  
• Property Income/Expense section
  • Management Fees
    • Calculated 2x per month
    • Applies to Income AND Expenses

FAQ's 

What is the portfolio minimum?

• Section V.a.iii. of the Contract for Management of Single Family Home states "The Agent will retain one-half (1/2) of the first month's rent received for Owner's Property to put into Owner's operating reserve.  This operating reserve is not a fee to Owner; it is to be used towards normal maintenance, move-out repairs, and other unexpected expenses related to Owner's Property.  This operating reserve will be held by Agent under the same terms as subparagraph (xiii) of this section."

How can I tell if my tenant paid rent?

• You will receive an automatic e-mail notification when a payment is received.  You can also access your Owner Portal and run an Income Report for the current period

How do I check the status of my vacant property?

• You may review the showing activity report for the past 7 days on the Owner Portal
• Contact Teressa Harbin

My tenant is delinquent, what now?

• 7 day demand notices are sent to any tenant with a balance after the 5^th of the month.  Upon expiration, we file a court case on any Tenant with a balance over $500.

What expenses are charged back to the tenant?

• Any maintenance or service call that is a result of Tenant's misuse or neglect.  For example: misuse of toilet/plumbing and  broken door jams
• Court fees related to a court case filed on Tenant.  We charge back all service and filing fees and $75 of the attorney appearance fee (maximum allowable by the state of Michigan)