Management Tips

  Boston’s Rental Registration and Inspection Ordinance covers rental properties subject to the ordinance. Rental registration is generally renewed annually, while the City selects non-exempt properties for inspection at least once every five years. Short-term rentals also have separate registration rules; some properties may still be subject to the rental inspection ordinance. Check the City’s…

Reading Time: 17 minutes   In this article, we will answer one of the most commonly asked questions: When should a landlord hire a property manager? From our experience of working with over 500 landlords, these are the top 10 situations when a landlord decides to hire a property manager.  Quick overview: Consider help when payments, tenant…

  Package theft is rampant nowadays, but that doesn’t mean you can’t prevent it from happening to you and your tenants. In this article, we will be covering three affordable ways to protect you and your tenants from having packages being stolen at your property.   Tip #1 – Good lighting     There shouldn’t…

  Every investor should have a Dwelling Fire Policy, also known as the landlord’s policy. In this article, we are going to talk about the different types of insurance for condos and the different types of transfer for every type of building as well – The Condo Landlord Insurance Facts You Should Know. Those policies…

  Your property could be one of the most expensive things you own. Stop for a moment and think about another valuable object that you have, whether it has price or sentimental value. Perhaps, it’s a person like one of your children or an item such as a piece of jewelry that’s been passed down…

  In this article, we will be discussing sight unseen rentals. What does that mean? It means when an apartment gets rented by someone who hasn’t seen the apartment in person. A lot of problems can come from this because they haven’t seen the property. They’re going to base upon either pictures, videos, or 3D tours. They…

  During a landlord reference check, we usually ask a lot of questions to make sure that our tenants are screened properly. In this article, we will cover what is a landlord reference and what are the questions that we ask to successfully screen a tenant. Quick Answer: The Must-Ask Questions Did they pay rent…

  One of the most common questions that we get is, “Are landlord and work verification necessary?” Back in the day, anything that we can do to pre-emptively determine if your tenants are going to be a good one or not, we’re going to do it for you. Prior planning prevents poor performance and learning how…

  With so much uncertainty going on in the world today, we are trying to offer our clients and our landlords a little bit more protection. We’ve designed a Property Protection Program (PPP) that allows us to keep you updated with the maintenance cost over the course of a month or a year. With PPP,…

  Are you curious if your tenants should pay the water utilities for your property in Massachusetts? In this article, we will be covering that most commonly asked question by most landlords.   Is it possible for tenants to pay water bills?     In a condo association, water bills are included. However, if you do…

“Can my tenant withhold rent?” is one of the most common questions we hear from Massachusetts landlords. The short answer: sometimes, but only under specific conditions — not just because a tenant is unhappy. Here’s what landlords need to know. When a tenant can legally withhold rent in Massachusetts Under Massachusetts law (M.G.L. c. 239,…

  In today’s article, we’re going to be covering keys. We already discussed about the master key system in a different session.  So today, we will discuss key fobs.   What is a Key Fob?     Key fobs are the little things that can get you into a building. Instead of using actual keys,…

  Insurance losses will change people’s lives, and whether it means floods or fires, or something that is going to kick a tenant out of the properties, we make sure that we handle the process from start to finish and as quickly and as efficiently as possible.     Why hire a public adjuster?   Every…

  As a property management company for a few hundred investment properties around greater Boston, we have had our share of losses ranging from small to massively big. These insurance losses change people’s lives, whether it is a flood or fire or something that is going to kick a tenant out of the property. We…

  In our previous article, we have shared the best master key systems that allow us to have one key and codes. That makes us not worry about bad cuts or copies of old keys, but that doesn’t mean that old keys don’t still exist. Today, we will discuss key cutting machines and the keys…

  When our clients are looking at a property, they always ask, “What are the things that make this property desirable?”. In this article, we are going to share some of the things that we think make a property desirable.   #1 Convenience       When tenants are picking a property, they consider how far…

  Back in 1978, lead, a metallic substance, was added to paint. It was added because it made paint brighter and more durable. In this article, you will understand how this material that makes our places more beautiful can also affect our health particularly the children. In Massachusetts, a Letter of Interim Control lets an…

  Insurance is one of those topics that nobody really enjoys talking about, much like going to the dentist,  but it is necessary. Having a commercial single family or multi-family property is different than owning and living in it yourself.   Things that you should know about Single and Multi-family Insurance     Typically, single…

  Are you planning to rent your place to international students and workers? Below are some tips and forms needed to be able to do so.   Forms needed during the application process     A person who wants to study or work in the United States would need to apply to either their school…

  One of the most important aspects of owning investment properties is the lease renewal process and property marketing. To do this, you have to start early. The renewal and marketing process has many steps, all of which should be carefully considered and done correctly.   When facilitating the lease renewal and marketing process, we…