Our firm collaborate with the property owners, to provide, Property Management services, this include collection of rent, managing of security deposit(s), maintaining financial records and providing monthly and annual statements to the owner, arranging for repairs to the property as necessary, inspecting the property on a regular basis, advertising the property to obtain a tenant, screening applicants, writing leases and appropriate addenda, and seeking legal recourse should a tenant fail to pay rent or cause damages to the property. Your property manager is the first person a tenant will call should there be maintenance issues of any type of emergency at the property.

All property management and leasing fees, are negotiated, based on the owner needs, these are strictly between the landlord and our firm. All our fees are outline in our service proposal.

An evaluation of the current market is done to determine the highest potential rent a property can bring. Also, each time a property lease comes up within ninety days prior, we revaluate and send owners an updated Comparative Market Analysis to determine the appropriate fair market rental as well as current sales analysis.

Minimum term for a lease is twelve months. There is an exception to this during September to and February, we recommend considering a lease term that would get the vacancy cycle back into the more active time of the year.

We provide a very broad marketing strategies, and pay for additional online advertising through hundreds of websites including, Bright Listing Service, (MLS), AppFolio, Zillow, Trulia, Hotpads, Realtor.com, Zumper, Homes.com, Apartment.com, Fredericksburg.com Washington post, Rent.com, and many more 3rd party's internet filtrations.

All applicants are vetted through the same process, using Transunion credit, criminal /civil background, employment & landlord verifications. Once this is competed, we prepare and email owners a synopsis of the information received on the applicant's background, we also make a professional suggestion to allow the owner to make the final decision on accepting or denying the offer. This is our standard policy under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, Our Tenant Selection Criteria policy & Fair Housing Act. Due to the privacy act, we do not share the applicant's credit report, paystubs ID's etc. with any owners.

Yes, upon acceptance of the applicant, we will prepare all the pertinent lease documents and execute them on your behalf, with the tenants. We also monitor the Lease to ensure the Tenants are in compliance with the Lease requirements and address any issues under the Virginia Residential Landlord Tenant Act.

Realistically it depends, as there are a number of factors, involve like the size, location and overall condition of the property, the asking price relative to that of comparable properties, and the biggest one is the time of year. However, market timing for renting are generally much shorter than the time required selling the same property, and landlords can usually may expect to a tenant within 30 to 60 days. If a property does not rent within this length of time, it is generally a sign that it may be overpriced, relative to its size and condition. Pricing your property competitively and having your property in the best condition possible are crucial to effective marketing.

We do a lot of property sites visits (7) to ensure compliance so read below for all the details:

1) One prior to our firm taking the account, this is to determine if any pre-marketing repairs prior to listing the property i.e. safety issues etc.

2) Two when the house is vacant, we do another visit in order to comply the detailed move in report

3) Three Annual visits to ensure owner/tenant compliance, around Feb/March of every year.

4) Four Pre-move out, with tenants before listing property usually within sixty days of lease expiration

5) Five We also do drive by inspections

6) Six Our vendors are trained to look around while making repairs and report back to us

7) Seven * Final move out with tenants to determine lease compliance/ deductions to security deposit.

Owner have access to all financial statements on the "Owner Portal". These reports reflect receipt of rent, any maintenance expenses incurred during the month and the monies deposited. Owners also receive an end of year statement as well as a 1099.

Absolutely, this is a standard policy of ours, to have proof of renter's insurance from all tenants prior to move-in. As well as proof of all utilities in their names, too.

I am a First Time Investor, Is Investment Property a get-rich-quick business?

NO! It is a long-term approach to financial success. Typically, a minimum time-frame of five years as with any business gains are realized. With a little patience, you will most likely be very pleased with the results.

Yes! Pets and Smokers are not protected classes; however, if you may consider a pet on a case by case basis and charge a nonrefundable pet fee. As for smoking, it is our policy that All our properties are strictly non-smoking properties and we include this rule in the lease.

This is where the lease administration comes in, if rent is not received in our office by the 5th/6th of the month. We will send the tenant the five days noncompliance notice, we also make several attempts to reach the tenant by calling, texting, emailing and will notify the owner. If the tenant does not pay the rent within five days of the notice sent then we will communicate with the owner and advise them of their right to proceed with the unlawful detainer/eviction process. Also, we will explain the process and the attorney fees, etc. You will make the decision whether to proceed with civil legal action for eviction.

We process all monies upon receipt during the first 10days of the month, we do have a closing cycle for our monthly bookkeeping that is on or before the 12th of each month. If the 12th falls on a weekend or holiday, payments and statements will be processed on the next business day. Please note direct deposit or Electronic ACH can take up to two (2) business days this is based on the banking institution and the National Treasury Service which we have no control over.

Yes! We advise all property owners to consult directly with their insurance company for adequate insurance for their property. I.e. rental dwelling, fire, vacancy loss etc. We require current proof of insurance to be on record in our office for all properties we manage. We also require BANKS Property Management and Sales to be named as "Additionally Insured". We also inform your tenants during the move in process to obtain renter's insurance and require a copy of this as well.

Feel free to browse our Rental Application Packet. This is updated annually to correlate with the annual legislative changes, all applicants are fully vetted, to include verification of rental references, employment, military orders, FCRA reports, background and landlord verifications. Our specially designed tenant criteria and financial guidelines will determine whether each applicant meet our criteria for the rental property.

No, we avoid taking such a huge responsibility, as rents are never guaranteed. The obligation of the mortgage, HOA fee, taxes, insurance, should be an owner responsibility.

When damage or situations constituting breach of lease come to our attention, we estimate the damages, by obtaining the lowest estimate and present it to the owner. In some circumstances, the owner may choose to waive any action being taken. If the situation requires further action, then we will notify the tenant of the breach of lease and establish a date for re-visit to ensure the breach are remedied.

Yes, we inform all owners on any and all concerns pertaining to their property, so for example: When a tenant report normal non-emergency repairs concerns, our first determination is check if the repair are that of the owner or tenant responsibility, then if there is a home warranty to be contacted and inform the owners of that, routine repairs we will also obtain the lowest estimate. If there is an emergency during or after hours, then we will act in accordance to taking care of it, as Mandatory repairs (safety or system issues) are done immediately, contacting home warranties, or our stand by vendors while informing and consulting with the property owner if there are decisions to be made concerning the best course of action.

All Repairs are be done by licensed contractors (plumbers, electricians, etc.) if owner chooses to make the repair, our office are automatically indemnified from any and all liabilities.

All emergencies are personally handled by the Broker Property Manager Merlyn Banks 24/7 and appropriate measures are taken to safe guard an owner's property as well as with tenants to ease the situation.

Yes, but prefer not too, as home warranty companies are no longer reliable. We have seen a huge lack in responsiveness resulting in owners having to abate rent and unhappy tenants. We do not rely on them to make the repair; however, we will attempt to use the home warranty on file, and will notify owners of all repair claims and action taken. In cases of emergency such as no heat, no a/c, plumbing, issues, etc., and the home warranty cannot send out a technician then we may use other vendors outside the warranty company, in order to get the repair done.

Yes, providing the owner preferred vendor respect the tenant schedule by making an appointment, and show up in a timely manner, if not our obligation to the lease and tenant, are safe guard the property and make all repairs in a timely and reasonable timeframe.

No, your agreement with our firm will authorize us to sign all documents on your behalf, "As Agent for Landlord".

The tenant's security deposit is held against damages to the property. It may not be used for rent unless there is unpaid rent at the end of the lease.

This can be a bit tricky as you have a contractual agreement with the tenant and may pose a landlord breach, so It is best to wait to sell the property when the lease is within 90 days from the termination date of the lease and the tenant is required by the terms of the lease to allow showings of the property for the purposes of acquiring a buyer.

This is sometime a difficult situation to deal with, as tenants have the right to restrict showing opportunities to "reasonable" times. This is usually defined as day-light hours with a phone call/text/email the day before the scheduled showing. If it becomes clear that they are not cooperating, then we will circle back with the owner to strategize the best course of action.

No, unless the tenant was procured by our firm, then you will owe us, however, if a tenant desire to purchase your property, then a separate brokerage agreement will be required. It is our hope that you will be happy with our services and will want us to further assist in facilitating the sale; however, there is no obligation to do so. If the tenant has a broker agency then you may be liable to compensate that agent.

We keep the all fees/commissions reasonable for our Property Management clients as Real Estate transactions are always negotiable. The commission to the buyer's agent will reflect the most commonly occurring percentage at the time of the listing so as to encourage agents to show your property. The listing commission will be reduced in consideration for your ongoing business relationship by an amount to be determined at the time of listing.

Yes, but in our experience, it is very confusing to the consumer to have two separate companies simultaneously representing the property. In this situation, it is best to either take the property off the sales market first, from one company to offer the property for sale and/or rent and have BANKS Property Management and Sales process the rental applications for potential tenants, i.e. run credit checks, write the lease, and begin management at the time the tenant is procured, accepted and moves in.

What is the difference between "Property Management" and "Tenant Only" services?

"Tenant only services" include listing the property in the MLS, arranging for other advertising as requested by the owner (such as MilitaryByOwner.com), screening and presenting applications to the owner and preparing the lease. "Property Management": Is typically a full service that for a nominal fee, that provide and owner with on-going tenancy and lease management, rent collection, repairs, inspection, etc. during the term of the entire lease.

What is a "repair escrow"?

A repair escrows the desired amount of money an owner wishes to retain in their property cash flow, this fund allows for minor repairs during vacancy or when rent is paid late any deduction from this escrow are replenished from the next rental payment.

The VRLTA is the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. Are a set of rules by which individuals are protected of both the Landlord and the Tenant and all leases, and property management obligations are governing by this set of law.