The Management Group - Property and HOA Management: August 2013

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Top 5 design trends in single family homes

1. Smaller homes. According to the results of a recent AIA Design Trends Survey, there is a growing interest in smaller home sizes and volumes due to an effort to contain energy costs. The era of the McMansion could be over, and a significantly higher number of architects have reported demand for smaller homes. The key is to create scale and function over size, while creating more financially attainable homes.

2. Private outdoor spaces. Almost all homeowners-whether baby boomers, empty nesters, or Gen Y-want less maintenance and more privatized outdoor space to gather and entertain without the neighbors watching. This design trend can be achieved by positioning architecture around the outdoor space or by allowing the outdoor space to pierce architecture, affording more living spaces in the house to be exposed to the outdoor area.

3. Super-sized kitchens. In addition to food preparation, the kitchen serves as an entertainment area when guests are present, a conversation area among family members, or even a place for homework or a craft project. Islands and their seating capacity must expand in size, and utility spaces and pantries need to be able to store more packaged foods, which are now purchased in larger boxes and in multiple quantities.

4. Technology. New products create a need for a new lifestyle, which revolves around the use of hand-held electronic devices. How can a family room support two laptops and an iPad notebook and multiple smartphones? Are we designing more electric plug capability to accommodate recharging needs? Are master bedrooms able to accommodate a flat-screen TV?

5. Dogs & Cats. While we design homes for human habitation, don't forget man's or woman's best friends. Approximately 37% of all U.S. households have a pet. Capture pet-lovers' hearts by adding practical conveniences such as built-in doggie doors, pet showers, and storage for pet-related items.

Saturday, August 3, 2013

It’s “high time” we talk medical marijuana!

Medical marijuana has been legal in Washington & Oregon for several years. (The 502 initiative legalizing marijuana in Washington does not amend or repeal the medical marijuana laws (chapter 69.51A RCW) in Washington in any way. The laws relating to authorization of medical marijuana by healthcare providers are still valid and enforceable.)

If you own or manage communities, you need to have a policy regarding residents' use of the substance on your property. Many communities are now smoke free either as a result of owner preferences or driven by resident requests. Smoking is smoking, cigarettes, pipes, cigars, hookahs, roaches. You can forbid it all, but if, because of a disability, someone asks to smoke their medical marijuana as a reasonable accommodation, you will need to consider that request. And unless such marijuana use becomes a nuisance (in the legal or lease sense-be careful in coming to that conclusion), or it conflicts with someone else's disability, you most likely must allow the resident this accommodation.

Medical marijuana is a complicated topic. Several questions come to mind. Can you or the owner deny the accommodation because of federal law (feds still maintain marijuana use for any purpose is illegal)? Does smoking marijuana leave residue in a dwelling? If so, is that considered normal wear & tear? What if the dwelling is not rentable because of the lingering odor and you have to replace carpets or perform other expensive remedies? Can you ask the resident to see if they can accomplish the same outcome, relief from pain and nausea through other means such as take in marijuana in another way (brownies anyone?).

So before you say no to medical marijuana, consider reaching out to your own legal counsel to help you take the right road on this. In some cases, it might be the high road.

Posted by Joanne Vanderhoef
Marketing and Media Specialist

The Management Group
Property and HOA Management in Vancouver WA and Portland OR
http://www.TMGnorthwest.com

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Human Interaction, there isn't an app for that!

Technology has brought us immeasurable benefits; however, in and of itself it does not create nor sustain relationships. In some cases the exclusive use of technology as communication can destroy a relationship. How many times have you received an email or text message and thought, wow, that person is really rude? When in fact they didn't mean to sound "harsh or grumpy", they were just in a hurry. Or maybe you sent a text message and misspelled or misused a word and the receiver of the message took action that you were explicitly asking them to do the opposite. Recently a longtime client sent an email to their property manager asking if they would check on an issue with their financial report. The email came across very casual without urgency but that's not what the client meant to convey. So when the PM checked on the issue and returned the email several days later, the client was very upset that it had taken so long. There was no one at fault here, only a good example of how something very simple goes awry when there is no physical sense of the other person, i.e. tone of voice or body language.

How can we establish a balance between accomplishing tasks quickly through email or text messaging while maintaining quality business relationships? Well, I had this crazy idea! What about actually seeing a client in person every so often??? So I called a few long time clients to see if I could just stop by their office and just say hi. They seemed very taken aback and I believe they thought for sure there must be something up. The visits were enjoyable and they seemed pleasantly surprised there was no "agenda"! A side benefit for me personally, I enjoy connecting with people face to face and to put it simply, it was fun!

Carmen Villarma
President

Posted by Joanne Vanderhoef
Marketing and Media Specialist