*Scheduling calls ahead of time via email ensures focused time set aside for your needs.Â
**After hours maintenance support is always available for emergency situations.Â
View all of our contact information here.
Prevention. Experience. Performance.Â
Prevention: We are vigilant in our care, service, and oversight of your property with streamlined maintenance management. Our goal is to provide you with fewer headaches, and reduced phone calls!
Experience: Locally owned and operated, our team has 30+ years of market knowledge and experience as real estate brokers, inspectors, loan officers, and rental owners. It’s the kind of first-hand wisdom you want handling your single-family home investment properties.
Performance: Focused on your goals, we provide real-time reporting for return on equity performance.
Our founder, Matt Leschber, wrote the book on property management. Check out Property Management #0811, available through St. Edward’s University and the Austin Institute of Real Estate.
We are here to exceed your expectations and give you the peace of mind that your property is in good hands. We pride ourselves on consistency, honesty, stellar communication, and the application of common sense.
We proudly serve the greater Austin area. Unlike many of our competitors, our salespeople and property managers are all local, providing quality management for every property in our service area. Click here for a visual list and map of the areas.
We are investors as well! We know the financial success that real estate investing brings and we practice what we preach.
When founder Matt Leschber started in the real estate business, he saw an opportunity:
“What if, instead of handing off our clients after they’ve closed on their property, we were able to support them as they manage their real estate investment for the long-term?”
Our clients’ happiness is important to us long after they’ve bought their property. We set out to offer the kind of property management care and service that we ourselves would trust, as property investors. Matt created 1836 Property Management to support property owners throughout the lifecycle of their investment.
1836 Property Management is a proud member of the National Assoc. of Residential Property Managers (NARPM). Founder Matt Leschber served as president on the Austin board of directors for NARPM in 2015. Matt and team have also served on the Texas Association of Realtors Statewide Property Management Committee and the Property Management Committee with the Austin Board of Realtors.
All money management activity can be found real-time in your Investor Portal, 24/7, 365 days-a-year.Â
Click here to learn how to access specific items inside of your Buildium Investor Portal.
1836PM does not list properties for lease on the market until they are vacant and move-in ready. Or as we like to call it, “hotel room ready.” Through our years of experience, we realized that this is a necessary step in the process in order to give your property the best possible chance to rent quickly, at a competitive rental rate, and with the best possible renter in contract.
Watch to learn more from 1836PM Founder, Matt Leschber.
It’s imperative to have a reliable source 24/7 resource than tenants can reach in the event of an emergency. Included in our services is a 24-hour call center that receives any maintenance calls tenants may have, documents them, troubleshoots with experts, and can even dispatch if the calls meet specific criteria.
While someone is always available for emergency calls, prevention is much better. Some issues may be resolved without after-hours technicians, saving you money. Through our online orientation videos, 24/7 troubleshooting technicians, and detailed policies and procedures, we prevent many “emergencies.” This extra effort makes all the difference for tenants when problems arise.
Property occupancy depends on the price, quality and condition of the property, along with the time of year and current market conditions. All of our management plans currently include a 30-day leasing guarantee.
As your property management partner, we will apply our experience and market knowledge to help you set the best price for your property. We also provide a checklist for owners to prepare your property for rent. Doing a proper make-ready will ensure that it’s available to show, priced right, and that it rents quickly.
The most important thing we can do before signing a management agreement is to ensure that our investors know what to expect and when to expect it.
Typically, no news is good news. You’re paying us to deal with the headaches, non-emergency emergencies, late night calls, complaints, and minutia, so sit back and enjoy time with your family or friends. Our focus is on keeping your property leased and profitable, and keeping you happy!
Here are the instances when you should expect to hear from us.
UT housing is unique in a few ways. The first thing to know is that this UT housing operates differently than other’s part of the real estate marketplace. UT housing follows the university schedule. Therefore if you end up with a vacancy mid-term, it could last at least until the start of the next term. We recommend that you do a few things to ensure performance and stability of your property. Learn more about what you should do if you have a UT housing investment.
Our goal is to keep money flowing, the property well maintained, and to reduce your risk. The third part of that equation means reducing the risk of a vacancy at a bad time of year or when least expected. Therefore, as a policy, if we don’t confirm receipt of written notification from an owner more than 90 days from the end of a tenants lease, except student housing/UT*, we will act to renew your tenant.
Most of our leases have a 60-days notification requirement, at a minimum, from either party. Tenants are aware of this as well and are waiting to renew their leases 90 days in advance or more. Paperwork, negotiations, planning, moving or not moving takes time. For the best outcome, we must plan ahead.
Prefer to change directions with your rental property? Notify your property manager in writing and confirm receipt of your notification, more than 90 days from the end of your tenant’s lease. We’ll be happy to assist you as appropriate.
It is not in your best financial interest to wait until the last minute or to attempt to plan the sale of one property with the purchase of a primary residence. There are too many things that can go wrong. Planning a year or two years out is the only way to ensure the best outcome.
*For student housing be aware that some properties lease one or two years in advance. You will need to plan well ahead.
First, we document the condition with photos and a written report and compare it to the move-in documentation. We may use a 3rd-party inspection and documentation company at no cost to you as an owner as well as obtain vendor estimates.
Then, we will determine what is “normal wear and tear” which is, by state law, the owners responsibility, and what is “beyond normal wear and tear” which is the tenant’s responsibility. The repairs will happen at the same time to avoid duplicate or additional charges as they overlap. We will order the repair work and handle billing to ensure everything is coordinated efficiently. If additional funds are required from the owner for items such as painting or flooring we will present a written estimate and request funds for those repairs before scheduling the work. Time off the market or property that sits vacant is potential revenue lost, so we handle this process as quickly and efficiently.
*Note: When funds are due to an owner from a tenant’s deposit or tenant related damage, those funds may be held for 30 days to reduce the likelihood the deposit funds are disbursed should the itemization be contested in court.
The involvement of an owner in picking applicants is a considered a bad business practice, and it dramatically increases your odds of a federal fair housing lawsuit. It places more liability on your shoulders and can lead to the dissemination of sensitive personal information. Finding the highest quality tenant is what you pay us to do, as your property manager. We apply rigid requirements to each applicant, in the same manner, ensuring that tenants are selected on objective legal criteria and not with emotion. And, we never share applicants’ personal information such as credit reports, social security numbers, or dates of birth with anyone. Learn more about our tenant criteria.
The ultimate decision is up to you as the owner. Our experience shows that if you decide not to allow any pets, your vacancy time could more than double. Statistically speaking, the longer your property sits vacant, the higher likelihood of increased costs beyond the risk of potential damage by pets.
Our recommended pet policy*:
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We’ve found this limited policy to be the most effective overall. However, we’ve had no overly significant damage from being more liberal on pets. Keep in mind the more restrictive you are, the longer you’ll sit on the market.Â
*We allow for some exceptions when it makes business sense because we have a fiduciary obligation to your best interest.
Please request that your HOA copy us on all notices to cut down our response time. If you receive a notice, forward the entire note to us right away so that we may follow up. If you get fined please forward to us a copy of the bill. We will post fines, send copies of the notices to your tenants, handle property maintenance, and send tenants the bills as necessary. Failure to submit notices to your property manager could result in additional fines from your HOA for which the tenant is not responsible.
Pay any and all HOA fines immediately. We will note the funds due to you on the property account and will reimburse you as soon as the funds are either paid or become available from the deposit.
It’s cheaper to “float” a $40 fine for 30 days than it is to evict a tenant who pays on time but forgot to mow the yard. If the issue continues to be a problem or the fines begin to stack up we can always evict someone for breaking the lease, but that should be the last resort as it’s very costly for the owner.
Over our years in business, 1836 has developed relationships with trusted vendors who will show up and who will warranty their work. Keep in mind that property maintenance is not the same as property management. Outsourcing maintenance to our preferred vendors, allows us to efficiently manage your property and keep your tenants happy and renewing.
We will provide you with one estimate from our preferred vendors. If you’d like to obtain other estimates by licensed, insured and bonded service providers you’re welcome to do so. We do not coordinate with or permit owners to do the work themselves, or arrange work through their friends on occupied properties. Maintenance must be done on time and to safety and code standards. Anyone completing work at one of our properties is required to provide a copy of their insurance to us and sign an extensive vendor agreement. Hiring an unlicensed vendor, just because they offered the cheapest rate, is not a good business practice, and can lead to further damages, theft, and tenant dissatisfaction.
You are hiring us to manage your property and the maintenance. We receive greater performance and consistency by using reputable, approved providers that we can count on and who ensure client satisfaction.
Please keep in mind that we have a legal and ethical obligation to maintain properties that we manage correctly. Tenants’ rent includes the expectation of living in a maintained property.
We recommend that you put away at the very least 10% of the money you bring in for maintenance needs, 20% would be very conservative. While there is no guarantee, we’ve found the majority of this varies according to the agent of the property.
Thus, out of $1500 monthly rental income, you should be saving a minimum of $1800/year for maintenance. Maintenance may include big items such as replacing a water heater at $1200 or an HVAC system at $6000. It may also include gardening and landscaping to draw in tenants, painting, cleaning gutters, repairing fences, fixing leaky faucets, repairing garage door openers, bringing that 1965 wagon wheel light fixture into the new millennium, and more. If you skimp on maintenance, you can expect significant expenses down the road, lower rental income, higher turnover, and more vacancy. Expect to maintain the home if you want the maximum return on your investment.
Just for reference, the IRS depreciation for a single family residence is the value divided by 27.5 years. Thus a $150,000 home would cost over $5,400 per year to be maintained appropriately.
In the event of an emergency, we will make a reasonable effort to contact owners with at least one email and one phone call, leaving a message if able at a bare minimum. If we don’t receive a response within 24 hours, we will try to reach the owner through their emergency contact on file.
If no response is received utilizing both contacts, we will proceed as required for any repairs to a property to protect the property or the health or safety of a tenant and maintain the overall value of the property and our obligations to the tenants.
Cheap and easy usually end up being expensive and problematic in the end. Our policy on appliances is as follows:
The best way to ensure your overall satisfaction is to ask questions and listen to your particular situation and goals. Next, we discuss what type of services you may need. Then, we can talk details and pricing specific to your needs.
Over the long run, a great manager who applies insight and care may cost you on a few bucks more per month but will save you thousands in frustration, lost rent, vacancy, maintenance problems, turn time, and property deterioration due to lack of oversight. We consistently hear how hard it is to get other property managers to return calls and emails. Experienced investors know to look below the surface to reduce avoidable expenses and increase tenant retention.
Our goal is to ensure the property, and related processes are properly managed, and that we exceed your expectations. We strive to offer a high level of customer service that saves you money over the long run while maintaining your investment for years to come. Companies that charge $50/month cannot offer you this level of service. Learn more about the services and care that go into our pricing.
4% is our rate for acting as your intermediary in the event of a sale to your tenant, as long as you were not referred to us by a local agent. The 4% fee includes work that is typically completed by both a buyer and listing agent(s). There are more work and liability involved in completing a transaction without an agent representing both sides.
Ensure that you have put in a forwarding address with USPS for the bills and the utility providers. We need electricity, water, sewer, and gas service. If you have already cut off the gas and it’s not winter don’t turn it back on as someone will have to be home to verify there are no leaks. If it’s winter, we need the gas for the heat.
Are you purchasing the home? We can’t officially help you until you own the property which means closing and funding and sending us a copy of the title or settlement statement. Once we have that in hand, we can sign the management agreement and work on your behalf.
No. It not only complicates things but also subjects your personal property to theft and damage for which we’re not responsible. Owners do not have access to any property during a tenant’s lease term. Please make every attempt to empty the home of your possessions. This also sets the expectation for tenants that the house must be completely clean upon departure.
Once our management agreement is signed, 1836 will create a new account for you. Owners use that account to transfer money to our operating trust account and have it tracked. Our online portal uses the ACH debit system.
We’ll send you a management agreement. This management agreement may be signed off electronically. Then, we’ll coordinate picking up keys from the title company, if this is a new investment, or set up a time for access as required. Contact us today!
In addition to the management agreement, signed by all owners and managers, here’s the short list of necessary items to help you get prepared:
Paperwork:
Access and funds:
First available date:
Utilities:
Property management companies do not offer credit. Each owner is required to send at least $500 to 1836PM as an operating budget. These funds are not a fee but instead working capital so that we can adequately manage your property and pay bills as they are due.
These bills can include turning on the utilities, getting the property re-keyed, getting the smoke detectors and locks up to code. On a monthly basis, we use these funds as needed; then your account is replenished with the rental income. Anything above the reserve, not previously approved for repairs, is sent out to owners each month.Â
Learn more here: Why Investors Must Pay Upfront for Monthly Property Expenses
Should you reach the end of the management agreement and want to change directions, if you have a zero balance, we will return the owner’s reserve to you at that time.
You can cancel at any time however there may be fees due for services rendered. This is very similar to purchasing a cell phone with no money down and signing a long-term contract. That contract enables the wireless carrier to recoup the cost of the phone.
We have a similar arrangement with our clients, which not only to ensures that we perform as intended but also to ensure that owners deliver on their part of the bargain. Our leasing fees are lower than our low-cost competitors, and some monthly plans require us to prepay fees to other agencies on your behalf. If you’re unhappy, you should not have to stay. However, if we spend money paying out expenses on your behalf, it’s only fair that we get reimbursed for those expenses.
See our pricing page for specific details.
