Friday April 11, 2014
No matter where you live, it is essential to thoroughly evaluate different property management companies to find the one that will be the right fit and provide the best service to your community.Every building will have its own needs, of course, but if you live in a New York City condo or co-op, you have unique challenges and specific services to consider.
Read on to discover the specialized services and offerings that the best NYC property management company should provide.
Technology to Keep you Connected
City residents are busy residents. While face-to-face communication between board members, residents and property managers is essential, so is great technology that fills in the gaps when you are away or unavailable. The right property management company will provide your condo or co-op with a community website to access documents, account balances, service requests, package notifications and more. The ability to submit purchase and lease applications online as well as securely make payments online is a must.Another technological advantage to look for is a resident alert system, which provides property managers with the ability to send immediate, simultaneous voice and email messages to alert residents about an emergency or other important issue impacting the building. In today’s world, a system like this can help disseminate the right information quickly, keep residents safe, and reduce stress.
Concierge Services
Moving in New York City presents its own set of challenges. The best property management companies are equipped to offer concierge services to help manage move-in and move-out details, like transferring and activating utilities, with ease - and often free of charge. Post-move in, a building may choose to retain the concierge services to help residents secure restaurant reservations, event tickets and other services.Think your building is too small for a full-time, live concierge? A virtual concierge, such as the one provided by Abigail Michaels Concierge, is another useful service that should be offered by your property management company.
24/7 Customer Care
Sometimes you need to talk to someone right away and may not be able to reach your property manager. Look for a management company that offers a full-time customer care center, with good problem resolution skills. As a benchmark, FirstService Residential, New York’s leading property management company, offers a Customer Care Center, which resolves 96% of its inquiries on the first call. They also log and track all conversations, so that if points of contention arise, they can be replayed and reviewed.Respectful Restoration and Modernization
Pre-war architecture is part of the charm of living in a New York City building. But what happens when your stairs have been walked up one too many times? Or when it’s finally time to replace that elevator that was built in the early 1900s? Finding the right vendors and managing a modernization project like this requires knowledge, coordination and patience - as well as respect for the design of the building and experience dealing with the many issues that can arise in the process.The right property management company will be equipped to negotiate the best price and select the right contractors for the project, as well as supply a team to manage and coordinate its execution. A landmark co-op at 38-50 West 9th St. saw this first-hand when their property management company, FirstService Residential, had its project management subsidiary handle the complete renovation of the building’s entrance, corridors, original wood flooring, stairs and elevators.
Understand the Value of Your Neighborhood
Property values in New York as a whole have risen at a quick pace throughout the last decade. How does your building measure up year after year? Look for a property management company that has the resources to provide complimentary quarterly market reports on building and neighborhood activity, annual reviews on property amenities and common spaces, and individual unit analyses for owners.What if you discover improvements can be made to increase your property’s value? A service like this should also offer a comprehensive review of a building’s financials and mortgage eligibility for unit owners to help facilitate the lending process to get those improvements completed.
There are many factors that go into choosing the right property management company in New York City to work with your co-op or condo building. Whether you are looking for a company to manage your building for the first time, or you feel your current company is not offering everything it should, FirstService Residential can help your building get the service you deserve. Fill out this form to get more information today.