Idaho Falls Property Management FAQ
The jacobgrant property management system provides a plethora of services designed around increasing returns and protecting your asset. The fee schedule for our services is very straightforward. Below you will find questions we are frequently asked along with details that are sometimes overlooked.
Get to know our fees!
Property Management Fee Schedule
The jacobgrant fee schedule is straightforward and easy to understand. Fees are based on rent collected. Your property will be bid between 8% and 10% depending on the package you choose, location, and volume. If no rent is collected, there is no fee.
No Standard Lease Signing Fee
Would you rather have a 6% fee with half a month’s rent for a lease signing fee? Or would you rather pay 10% of all rent collected? EXAMPLE: You have a house that rents for $800/month. 6% of rent for the year is $576. signing costs $400 = $976. 10% of rents = $960.
With turnover typically being the largest expense in property management, do you want to pay your management company to create more turnover?
How do you market and what does it cost?
The jacobgrant marketing system is designed to fill your rental property with the best possible tenant as quickly as possible. We attract qualified tenants through this website, local newspaper, craigslist, several syndicate websites, and rentals.com as need demands. We keep you informed of market conditions because adjustments to rent may be necessary.
Property Management Website
At jacobgrant we have made our website a priority because the world is shifting more and more to web access. In addition to having a state of the art management website, we have made the investment to make rental listings very easily accessible to mobile devices. Did you know that 60% of all searches were mobile searches The most recent report was 60% of all searches were mobile searches. It has been vital to make jacobgrant.com easily accessible to mobile devices.
- + mobile access increases likelihood that your rental property will be found online.
- + video tours increase quality of tenant traffic to your property.
- + online application increases applications for your rental property.
- + search engine optimization increases the likelihood that a tenant will find our “rental listings” page.
Local Newspaper
We are one of the last markets in the United States that still pulls significant traffic through the print classifieds. Because we are doing multiple ads every month we receive a discount. We pass it on to you.
Craigslist
Craigslist is one of the most valuable leads producers and it’s free! Because a significant amount of tenant traffic comes from Craigslist, we use it extensively. We have a posting system that makes the listing much more attractive with pictures and video when available. We study the metrics of Craigslist to increase those leads based on when we post while still managing the growing list of rules on Craigslist.
Syndicate Websites
We use a publishing method that sends our listings out to several other websites. Some of the more popular websites are tenant.com, hotpads.com, and lycos.com. This creates more traffic from internet searchers. Those internet searchers are typically better qualified. This means more quality tenant traffic for your rental property.
The discounted marketing expense for the newspaper and the additional website marketing is $65/month when it is being used. This will only be charged to your account during a vacancy. If rentals.com is used the discounted rate will be passed through with no markup. This discounted rate is typically $40/month.
Do You Require Renters Insurance?
Renter’s Insurance Requirement
Because liability reduction is a very high priority at jacobgrant property management, we require Renter’s Insurance on all new leases. If Renter’s Insurance lapses, our system will notify us of this lapse. The jacobgrant system treats this like any other lease violation. If you have multiple properties, we can see reports that notify us of how many policies are being held.
Liability Insurance
Tenant’s are responsible for damage done to your rental property. The tenant is also liable if someone is injured as a result of their negligence. The liability portion of renters insurance protects tenants in the event of damage to your apartment, the community or other residents. If coverage does not exist, it presents non-covered damages and presents increased liability exposure.
Renter’s Insurance also covers tenant’s contents in the case of a catastrophe. If you have a roof leak and it damages a tenant’s contents who is liable?
We require Renter’s Insurance because it is good business with tenants and it provides another layer of liability protection for owners.
What day are owners paid?
Owners funds are dispersed on the 15th day of the month. If the 15th is a weekend or a holiday it will disperse on the following business day. This is an ACH Payment and takes up to 1 business day to clear.
Where are security deposits held?
Security deposits are considered tenant funds until move out. Therefore, they are held in an FDIC insured account separate from any other account. This is not the law in Idaho, but is the law in many states. A separate account avoids co-mingling funds and is considered best practice in the industry.
Can I set the maintenance limits?
On the contract, the owner can set the maintenance limit. Repairs below this amount will be done without contacting the owner. Anything above this amount will require permission from the owner to do. This gives owners the control over how much they want to be involved or bothered.
What about pets?
Should I Allow Pets in my Rental Property?
Pets are a difficult decision. They have the potential to do serious damage, but if you refuse them you are removing approximately 60% of the market. Typically our recommendation is to allow pets and remediate the risk by holding a larger deposit. The deposit is based on carpet replacement cost. Pets present the most risk to carpets. Even if you decide to accept pets there is a list of pets that are not allowed because our liability policy and most policies held by owners have exclusions with these dogs. To see a list of the breeds you can click on application requirements in the prospective tenant section.
* Fair housing requires that service animals are allowed even in “no-pet” housing. Charging additional rent or security deposit for a service animal is illegal.
What About Utilities?
What About Utilities?
Utilities will be addressed when you sign a contract with jacobgrant property management. A landlord agreement will be created by the owner and listed as follows:
- owner’s name or company name c/o jacobgrant property management
- 1075 S Utah Ave Ste 178
- Idaho Falls, ID 83402
These agreements decreases the cost of turning utilities on and off and greatly reduces the risk of frozen pipes during the winter.
