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Owner & Investor FAQ

Long Term / Annual Rentals

We can begin the process immediately.  Please reach out so we can find out more about where you need help and if we are a good match for requirements and expectations regarding management – whether you have a long term rental or a short term rental.

All the paperwork is done electronically and can be completed very quickly.

KeyVest's Qualifications

Yes, KeyVest was founded by Investors for Investors.  The founders had their own single family home porfolio of about 190+ homes and were dissatisfied with the Property Managers in New Jersey, so they started their own in-house team.

Other investors liked how KeyVest’s Founders were managing their own portfolio and asked if the Founders would be willing to manage their properties as well.  Thus, KeyVest Property Management was born.

Yes, we are both insured and licensed REALTORS® affiliated and licensed by the New Jersey Real Estate Commission.  We are also members of the National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM).

Yes, we are a full-service Real Estate Brokerage.  We have helped investors grow their portfolios to hundreds of homes and have sold investment portfolios as well and individual properties.

We have experience managing single-family (1 to 4 units), multi-family (apartment complexes), and even commercial properties.

We also provide full-service property management for short-term rentals or vacation rentals.  This includes marketing (MLS, Airbnb, VRBO, and more), leasing/bookings, calendar management, cleaner coordination, inspections in between guests, and being the on-site contact for guests’ questions and emergencies.

Marketing Your Property

It is important to set an appropriate rental price.  Pricing too low attracts lower quality tenants and leaves money on the table. Pricing too high increases vacancy time, meaning your property is generating lower income than it should.

We will conduct a thorough rent analysis to find the sweet spot in the middle to attract quality renters and get it rented quickly. 

The most effective method in New Jersey to maximize your property’s exposure is using the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) by far.  When listed in the MLS, the property is pushed out to thousands of other sites increasing its visibility.

Typically we can have a property rented within 30 days from the time a tenant leaves to a new one moves in.

The property will usually be on the market within a week or two depending on the cleaning and repairs required. Once on the market and priced appropriately, it is another week or two until it is occupied again.

Leasing & Finding Quality Tenants

As investors ourselves we have become very thorough at screening and placing quality tenants becuase placing a good tenant can make the difference in long-term returns.  Placing an unqualified tenant leads to problems down the road that can cost you time and money.

Our screening process includes a criminal background check, credit check, employment and income verification, rental verification and history, and landlord/tenant disputes. 

Yes, we require all renters to show proof of renter’s insurance.

One of the easiest ways we can protect your investment/property is setting the maximum amount allowed in New Jersey for the security deposit. The maximum is one and one half of the monthly rent.

We deposit the money into an escrow bank account in the name of the Landlord and Tenant.  The interest is tracked and awarded to the tenant annually, as it is required legally.

We have our own lease that is detailed and thorough.  It is 13 pages long!

We have crafted our lease over the years based on our own experiences and what we learned along the way to better protect the owner and their asset.

Our lease is one-year long.

One year leases give you more control over rent increases to make sure you stay up to market rate (our commitment is to maximize your profits!). There are times to do multi-year leases, for example if you are in a long-term buy-and-hold strategy, this may make sense. But then you are locked in at that rent unless you build something into the lease.

Our Broker Owner shares himself as an example of not following his own advice on one-year leases. He signed a multi-year lease with his tenants because they are good tenants and he wanted them to stay… but then market rents increased significantly. With the rental price stuck and the increased market rates, he was leaving over $6,000 per year on the table.

We are happy to work with our owners to decided on what is the best option for them and their goals based on the property, market, and tenants.

Rent Collection

We encourage tenants to pay online, which ~90% do. There are other options available to make rent payments.

Rent is due on the 1st of the month.

Tenants have a 5-day grace period. On the 6th day, they incur a late fee.

Owner funds are batch processed and sent out on or around the 8th-10th of each month as long as the money has cleared our bank account. Typically owners receive their funds between the 10th-12th of each month. Weekends and holidays will impact these dates.

All owner payments are made by ACH and sent directly to their checking or savings accounts provided.

If rent is not paid by the 5th of the month, the tenant incurs a late fee on the 6th.  We also send a three day notice letter because it is important to act on this right away.

If the tenant doesn’t pay within the next three days, we send a notice to quit informing the tenant we are filing against them if they do not pay.  Most of the time the tenant will pay, but usually things never get this far.

Property Management

We work in partnership with each owner and involve them as much or as little as they want.

Some owners want to be completely hands-off and just want to receive their check every month. Other owners want to be more involved.  We are happy to accommodate either preference, and promise there will be complete transparency and no surprises!

Most of the time owners like to be more involved in the beginning as we establish trust and then become more hands-off.

Our agreement includes a 30-day notice if the owner, or KeyVest, wants to cancel the agreement. 

Although, we have never had any owner use this clause, we don’t want to hold anyone hostage.

In order to cover some of our costs, we do have an early termination fee if the agreement is terminated prior to a lease execution or within the first 6 months of the agreement being in place. After the initial 6 months of the agreement, owners may cancel without penalty.

The property management fee covers:

  • Move-in and move-out inspections
  • Move-in and move-out coordination
  • Tenant onboarding and liaison
  • Rent collection
  • Tenant portal
  • Owner portal
  • Maintenance coordination
  • Vendor management and coordination
  • Utility management
  • Monthly full reporting

Our property management fee covers one inspection per year; however, whenever we need to visit the property for any maintenance requests we are always checking things out for any concerns.

Owners can request supplemental formal inspections for an additional fee.

Maintenance

One of our commitments to owners is to not make any decisions in a vacuum.

Upfront we will work with the owner on a threshold amount.  Typically it is $250.  It is agreed that any repairs under this amount can be taken care of without the owner needing to approve anything.  After, or as the repairs are being taken care of, we will send report.

However, anything above that threshold amount initially agreed upon, we will involve the owner every step of the way and do not make any decisions without their consent.

Tenants are provided an online portal to submit maintenance requests.  They are also given an emergency number for repairs that need immediate attention.

Everything in the portal is tracked and timestamped to keep diligent records in case there are any disputes in the future.

Yes, we require repair reserves of $250.

We have established good relationships with our vendors by being able to pay them on time after the work is complete.  Having the reserves available enables us to do this and maintain our relationships with trusted vendors.

No! We do not upcharge vendor invoices. Our goal is help our owners maximize their profit and we do this buy mitigating expenses. We share all invoices with our owners because we value transparency.

The maintenance expenses are the responsibility of the owner.  KeyVest will pay the bills on your behalf, which is why we require a reserve account.

We have heard horror stories of Property Managers performing “preventative maintenance” without the owner’s knowledge, and then receiving bills worth thousands of dollars.

We do not do this. Again, as investors, we understand the importance of making sure a property is cash flow positive. Decisions are not made in a vacuum and we always consult our owners.

Absolutely!  We are always happy to use an owner’s network for repairs without any additional charge. It is always helpful to use a vendor that is already familiar with the property and that the owner trusts.

For single family properties (1-4 units), we require tenants to take care of this.

For multi-family properties (5+ units), we hire someone or have the super handle it.

If owners prefer to hire someone for their single-family property, we are happy to handle the coordination.

Can we help maximize your income and minimize your risk and expenses?

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