Welcome

Thank you for choosing Aloe Property Management to manage your investment. We are aware that you have had many choices, and we appreciate that you have selected us as your property management company.

Aloe works to achieve the highest professionalism in Real Estate/Property Management Services. Therefore, we have prepared the Aloe Property Management Owner Manual to assist you in a successful business relationship with our company. We urge you to take the time to review the information enclosed. We feel this will further clarify many of the procedures for our Property Management services. After reading the material, if you have questions or any concerns, contact your management team immediately, using the company contact information provided in the following pages.

Special note: the information provided in the Aloe Owner Manual is subject to change. Landlord/Tenant laws, personnel, policies, and procedures change accordingly to events that take place. APM works diligently and continually to improve services and personnel training as well as remaining current with all landlord/tenant legislation.

Once again, thank you for choosing Aloe Property Management as your Property Management Company. We look forward to a successful business relationship. 

Owner Documents

A copy of your management agreement has been published to your online owner portal. Refer to it as needed and keep it with this information for a handy reference.

Desert Canyon Properties DBA Aloe Property Management

Aloe Property Management is a property management company operating in Phoenix, Arizona area, specializing in full-service property management and residential sales.

Aloe Property Management ownership

The Owner/Brokers of Aloe Property Management are Rita Weiss and Randi Weiss Harris.

Rita Weiss

Rita@aloepm.com

602-854-9884

Randi Weiss Harris

Randi@aloepm.com

602-854-9884

Aloe PM Communication

Communication is a key to success in any relationship and the Aloe Owner relationship is certainly not an exception. We work constantly to improve communications with all our clients or prospective clients. This includes everyone – owners, tenants, applicants, vendors, buyers, sellers, and the public.

Company Communication

Below you will find all general office information such as addresses, telephone numbers, email address, website, and office hours.

Aloe personnel communicate by:

• Telephone
• Text Message
• Owner Web Portal
• Email
• Written correspondence

Aloe Website

Aloe PM stays current with business technology. The Aloe website, www.aloepm.com, has proved to be a tremendous asset. Here are a few of the benefits for clients on the website:

• Prospective tenants can search our site for available rentals and apply online.
• We can run credit reports and background screening in a matter of minutes after the application is received and make recommendations based on those screenings.
• Tenants can access important information, such as a work order request, or send us an email from the site.
• Owners can log onto our website and view their vacant listing and log into the Owner Portal for real-time financial reports and view work orders.

General Office Information

Owner Communication

Communication works both ways. We need communication from you, the owner. It is important that you let us know of any significant change that can affect your account. Aloe PM needs to know when you are moving, if you have a problem with your account, if your social security number has changed to a Tax ID, or any other important information. Please use the owner portal or email to notify us of any changes.

Email

Aloe encourages all owners to use email or Owner Portal to contact us. It is fast and effective. Please supply us with your email address on all the Aloe forms. We will enter your email address in our database.

Special note: When using email, we request that you put the “property address” in the subject line. This helps us identify the importance of your message and avoids oversights or deletions of messages.

Owner vacation notice

Aloe respectfully requests that owners notify Aloe of vacations that are two weeks and over. Another alternative is to inform your emergency contact listed on the Owner Information Form. The purpose in asking for this information is only so Aloe is prepared in the event of an emergency repair or major problem concerning the owner’s property and/or tenant. Please notify us of using the Owner Portal.

Owner Responsibilities

A successful business relationship works both ways. Aloe takes their management responsibilities seriously, and requests owners to do the same.

Owner responsibilities are:

• Notify Aloe of any ownership change or eminent owner change for the managed property.
• Supply Aloe with accurate information so we can service the management account properly.
• Review statements monthly and notify Aloe of any discrepancies found as soon as possible.
• If using ACH, check statements monthly for accurate or missing deposits and notify Aloe if there are problems immediately.
• Support Fair Housing Laws and guidelines, as well as all necessary legislation.
• Maintain a current insurance policy for their property.
• Review their property insurance yearly and update as needed.
• Exercise responsibility for required maintenance and the safety of their tenants.
• Treat Aloe personnel with courtesy and notify Aloe principals if there are problems with Aloe personnel so they can be resolved quickly.

The Scope of Property Management

What is included in Aloe Property Management services?

Aloe has outlined details on our policies and procedures in future pages of this information.  We can only include the basics in this manual. If you have more questions, contact your management team.  These are general guidelines and when necessary, policies will change.

Company Policies

It is very important in the field of Property Management that Aloe follow local, state, and federal legislation and guidelines. Our company takes pride in our industry, and we further implement guidelines and policies of several organizations, such as the National Association of Residential Property Managers, NARPM, and the National Association of Realtors, NAR®. Additionally, we train all personnel by requiring them to read and follow the Aloe Property Management Policy and Procedures Manual.

Department of Real Estate Requirements

The Arizona Department of Real Estate requires licensing for all persons conducting Property Management and Real Estate Sales in our state. Aloe requires all personnel that are Brokers, Property Managers, and Real Estate Agents to have an Arizona Real Estate license.

Code of Ethics

Aloe follows the Code of Ethics outlined by both NARPM and NAR®. Aloe considers this a top priority in conducting business and is required of all Aloe personnel.

Drug-Free Policy

Aloe has a drug-free policy for all personnel, vendors, and tenants. Aloe incorporates this policy into Aloe rental/lease agreements, tenant, personnel, and vendor documentation.

Legislation

Aloe adheres to the laws and guidelines of federal, state, and local legislation, and incorporates this into all documentation, policies, and procedures. Here are some of the agencies and acts Aloe follows:

• Fair Housing (HUD) - Aloe supports and follows Fair Housing laws and guidelines; the Aloe office displays Fair Housing signage
• Equal Opportunity - Aloe is an Equal Opportunity employer; the Aloe office displays Equal Opportunity signage.
• SCRA Act – Serviceman’s Civil Relief Act, which has replaced the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Act of 1940
• URLTA - Uniform Residential Landlord Tenant Act
• FCRA - Fair Credit Reporting Act
• FTC – Fair Trade Commission
• EPA – Environment Protection Agency

Lead-Based Paint

Lead-based paint became a major issue in the 1990s that prompted mandatory requirements for residential housing and continues today. Aloe follows all mandated federal and state guidelines for lead-based paint. All properties prior to January 1, 1978, require disclosures to all tenants and owners. Tenants sign lead-based paint disclosures prior to renting a property and Aloe provides them with the required EPA Pamphlet, Protect Your Family from Lead in the Home Aloe then forwards the required disclosure to owners for signature.

Property owners and/or Property Managers must also notify tenants, in writing, of any scheduled work necessary for lead-based paint on the property. Legislation now provides that owners and managers must use certified vendors to work on lead-based paint.

Mold issues

Aloe regards mold issues as a top priority in property management. Owners should be aware that mold is another leading issue in the property management industry and failure to act if tenants report or discover mold can lead to costly lawsuits. Several cases regarding mold have awarded damages to tenants in the millions of dollars.

This is an area of extreme liability and Aloe takes action if a tenant reports mold. Aloe notifies owners as soon as practical of any mold issues so Aloe and/or the property owner can take the proper steps.

Answers Regarding Funds

When you entered into a management agreement, Aloe established an account for you and your property. Aloe recognizes the importance of accurately collecting and disbursing funds. The bookkeeping program used by Aloe is specialized software designed to handle the many facets of property management and accurate record keeping and complies with the requirements of Arizona’s Department of Real Estate.

Banking

Aloe maintains a trust account as per Arizona’s state requirements.  There is a Rents Trust Account where all money is deposited and paid out.  All rents and owner contributions are also deposited in the Rents Trust Account.  All payments to vendors for maintenance and repairs, eviction expenses, management fees, returned deposits and owner draws come from the Rents Trust Account. A separate Security Deposit Trust account is where we hold the Security Deposits and Cleaning Deposits and are not to be removed until a tenant moves out.

Monthly Statements

You will have access through your Owner Portal to view real-time and monthly reports.

Disbursement of Monthly Funds and Statements

Aloe disburses available funds to owners on the 10^th, 20th, and 30th of each month. If this day falls on the weekend or holiday, Aloe Property Management issues funds on the next business day. Aloe PM does not disburse funds on weekends and holidays. Aloe does NOT issue owner checks or ACH payments unless there are sufficient funds in the owner’s account. It is vital to accurately post rents, pay vendors, and disburse funds for your account. Therefore, it is vital Aloe adheres to this schedule to ensure servicing every owner’s account.  It is recommended that you maintain a contingency fund in your Rents Account to cover any unexpected repairs or maintenance.

You will receive an alert email letting you know the funds transfer has been initiated. Because we send funds via ACH transfer it may take 3-5 business days after we initiate the transfer for the funds to arrive in your account. Please contact us if you do not receive an alert email or if your funds have not arrived by the 20th of the month.

Your monthly statement will be emailed to you on or before the 15th of the month. We kindly ask you to review your monthly statement prior to calling or emailing with questions about your owner distribution.

Note: If a resident’s funds are returned for any reason, you will be required to return those funds if they were already paid to you.

Disclosure: Any time a resident or prospective resident pays funds to us via ACH transfer it is possible for them to later dispute the transaction through their bank and get the funds back automatically with no dispute resolution process whatsoever. This is very rare in our experience but if it happens you will be required to immediately send funds to us to cover the amount deducted.

TPT Taxes

We prepare and file the required monthly city TPT tax reports and remit payment for you. We typically charge the TPT tax to the resident in addition to their rent. Your TPT license must be renewed each year. You will see a renewal charge equal to the cost of the renewal fee on your statement annually.

End of Year Procedures

At the end of each year, Aloe is required to file 1099’s for income received over $600. Please note that this amount is for “total income received,” and not the yearly total of owner disbursements. The Internal Revenue Service dictates the “total income received” requirement. Please note that security deposits are not included in this amount. Your 1099 will include total operating income in the tax year plus net change in prepaid rent in the tax year. The IRS considers advance rent taxable income even if the owner does not receive the prepaid funds until January.

It is necessary that you supply Aloe with a W9 with the necessary Social Security/Tax ID information so the 1099 is accurate. Aloe will send the 1099 for the rent by January 31 for the previous tax year. If there is a change in your tax information such as a new trust or address, please notify us with the Owner Change of Information form. If you need another W9 change form, please contact us.

Aloe also issues 1099s for disbursements to vendors for work over $600.00. Therefore, owners do not have to issue 1099s for work completed and paid through the Aloe trust account. Owners are responsible for issuing 1099s to any vendor paid through the owner’s personal account.

The last statement of the year will reflect “total amounts” for income and expenses that have transpired throughout the year, such as management fees, leasing fees, landscape, utilities, repairs, and maintenance, etc. The amounts will not reflect any funds issued through the owner’s personal account. Owners can submit their last statement to their tax professional along with other information for income tax reporting. Aloe does not issue statements to the owner’s tax preparers.

Renting Your Property

Preparing To Rent the Property

Prior to marketing your property, we will conduct a ‘Rent-Ready’ Inspection to assess the condition of the home to ensure it meets our standards. Please review this link to familiarize yourself with our ‘Rent-Ready’ standards. We want to meet any reasonable expectations a quality resident would have for the place they call home.

During our inspection we may write up a list of items that need to be addressed and help you coordinate their completion. If you choose to manage the work to get your property Rent-Ready directly (we call this a ‘Property Turn’) with your own service providers, we ask that you notify us once the work has been completed and marketing will begin after we confirm the work is done. If we are managing the Property Turn for you, we can begin marketing as soon as the home will show well even if some repairs are still pending.

We can usually save you money and time by managing your Property Turn for you. We can also usually achieve a higher level of quality workmanship and attract quality residents more quickly. If you want to manage the Property Turn yourself, we ask that you manage the entire Property Turn, not just parts of it. If we arrive after you tell us the Property Turn is complete and find it is not, we can either initiate work orders for the balance of the unfinished work and manage them to completion for you or charge you $50 per visit to report status back to you as you continue your follow up.

Property Keys & Community Keys/Fobs

Replace or rekey locks as needed to ensure all exterior door locks are keyed the same.

Be sure to provide us keys to the property, pool, entry gate, side gate(s), clubhouse, mailbox, padlocks, etc. Please be sure to obtain and provide all keys, fobs and passes needed for the community.

If you are unable to provide all community keys, cards, fobs and/or remotes prior to a resident moving in, please be prepared to contact the HOA to order, pay for them and authorize for the new resident to pick them up.

Personal Items Left at Your Property

Please do not leave tools, supplies, personal items, storage, etc. at the property except for paint or extra flooring. Before renting the property, please make sure it is free from all chemicals, gardening tools, and all personal items stored in sheds, crawl spaces, cabinets, etc. Please understand Aloe Property Management accepts no responsibility for personal property left at the property.

Tracking Fixtures at Your Property

We ask that you take sole responsibility to track fixtures, appliances, hardware, drapes and flooring at your property by reviewing the photos and videos we send you. Our process does not include taking inventory of fixtures at the properties we manage. Please alert us if you notice something missing or changed that is important to you when reviewing videos or photos we send you.

Pool Barriers

Ensure a pool barrier solution is in place. This can be a fence or self-closing, self-latching doors to the backyard. Please check your city guidance.

Mail Forwarding

If you lived in the property prior to us leasing it out, please notify the US Postal Service to forward your mail. This can be completed online at usps.com. Also, update your address with Amazon, etc. Residents are instructed to return mail or parcels not addressed to them back to the sender.

Advertising/Marketing

Internet/Website

Aloe PM has found that the Internet and the Aloe website, www.aloepm.com receives tremendous exposure, and syndicating to Hot Pads, Zillow, Trulia and many other rental websites.

Marketing Your Property

Please let us handle the marketing of your property. We utilize a service that syndicates ads across dozens of the highest volume rental sites.

Please don’t run your own ads for your rental property. While it may seem like a good idea to market your property on social media or otherwise to supplement our efforts this can create confusion for the prospective tenant on who to contact, may look like fraud, and leads to unfavorable communication. We ask that you let us be the sole point of contact with prospective renters. Prospective renters getting in touch with you directly compromises our ability to clearly communicate with and manage expectations with incoming residents.

Signage

We do not recommend putting up signage as it shows the property is vacant. This causes homes to be extremely vulnerable to theft and squatters. We have plenty of attraction online for leads.

Showings and Applications

We use an industry application called ShowMojo to coordinate viewings at the property when it is vacant. After answering pre-screening questions and after we verify a copy of a photo ID, prospects are given the opportunity to self-access the property at a scheduled time using a CodeBox (a lockbox code that gives different access codes each time and valid for only 2 hours). This allows them to access the property faster than coordinating the time with an agent and helps us rent the property more quickly and keeps our costs lower. We have been using this showing method for years and with thousands of showings have not experienced any instances of property damage, theft, or abuse. Many others in the industry use this type of lockbox and if anything were to happen in the home, it could happen by breaking into any lockbox, window, or door.

Weekly Updates

ShowMojo gathers data and provides detailed weekly reports to you that show the number of clicks, scheduled & completed showings, and exit survey results from those showings so you can adjust price with confidence when needed to avoid a prolonged vacancy. ShowMojo automatically reaches out to prospective tenants by sending E-mails and text messages asking for feedback, to schedule a showing, fill out an application, or if they have any other questions.

If the property receives less than 5 showings per week a price adjustment should be considered. If you are unwilling to respond to market activity with the appropriate price adjustments, we may need to terminate your services.

We ask that you follow our recommendations on price adjustments if needed to avoid prolonged vacancies. Please consider that our interests are aligned with yours - our success is based on your success in renting your property.

Processing Tenant Applications

Tenant Screening

Thorough screening is crucial to successful Property Management. Aloe Property Management requires all applicants to fill out a detailed application online from your website and submit it for processing/approval. A credit check is NOT enough! Our company conducts a careful review of their credit, income, bank statements, and tenant history or ownership.

All applicants must submit verifiable information to verify the income so we know they can afford the rent.  Rental history or previous home ownership is carefully checked. Cross-referencing all three areas – credit, tenant history, and income - provides the answers to qualify or disqualify prospective applicants. We also do a separate pet screening application.

Cosigners

Aloe normally does not accept guarantors. Aloe policy is that the applicants should have the ability to rent on their own merits. However, there are sometimes conditions that may warrant taking a cosigner or guarantor on a property. If this is the case, Aloe will notify the owner, discuss the reasons, and obtain owner authorization.  We disclose to the guarantor that they are equally responsible for the terms of the lease.

Pets

Aloe increases the deposit even more. Although the Aloe policy is to increase the security deposit, the amount cannot exceed Arizona landlord/tenant law.

Aloe PM offers a pet guarantee. Any pet damage caused by an approved pet, and APM will cover the costs to repair the pet damage, up to $3000. To offset this cost, we charge tenants a $250-$350 non-refundable pet fee per pet.

Many tenants have or want pets. It is legal for property owners to discriminate against pets. You may wish to do so. However, whether you have or have not decided to allow a pet in your property, the Aloe application has a place for prospective tenants to list pets and how many. It is important NOT to discourage full disclosure on pets while taking an application. If you do allow a pet, Aloe does not place inappropriate pets in a property.

Aloe recommends to owners that when the property is on the market, that pets are “negotiable.” This can solve two problems.

1. First, this encourages prospective applicants to disclose any pets. Then, based on the owner's preference on pets, Aloe can automatically notify the applicant that the owner does not allow pets.
2. Second, by listing pets as negotiable, it avoids eliminating an excellent tenant that does care for their pet, has an excellent tenant history, and owns a pet that is suitable to your property.

Service Animals

Special note: “Service animals” for handicapped/disabled persons are NOT pets by Federal law, and owners cannot discriminate against handicapped/disabled persons with a service animal. Fair Housing legislation does NOT allow owners or property managers to collect deposits of any kind for service animals.

However, Landlords can still process applicants who are on the same criteria as other applicants: income, credit, and tenant history. If they fail to qualify in these areas, the landlord/manager can still deny the application, disabled or not.

Approval/Denial of Tenant Applications

To secure quality residents and to ensure we do not violate Fair Housing Laws we have adopted specific and detailed screening criteria for credit, criminal, income and rental history. Age, race, gender, family status, religion, national origin, etc. are protected by Fair Housing laws and are not considered when reviewing applications.

It is a Fair Housing violation to decline an application that meets the established screening criteria. Because of this we do not give you the “final say” with applicant approvals. Let’s spend whatever time is needed upfront getting you comfortable with our screening criteria because we are unable to modify it on a case-by-case basis. Privacy laws do not allow us to share the applicant’s credit report with you and as a matter of policy we do not share resident’s phone numbers and emails with you to help ensure all communication with residents comes through our office.

The Tenant Move In

Rent And Security Deposits

Prior to receiving keys to the property on their move-in date residents are required to sign the lease agreement, provide evidence they have turned on utilities and pay the balance of the move-in funds owed.

Rental/Lease Agreements

Once Aloe receives funds (earnest deposit), a thorough rental/lease agreement with the applicant is completed.

All persons 18 and over, including adult children, are required to read and sign all rental/lease agreements and make application.

Walk-Through

A vital part of the rental agreement is a detailed walkthrough documenting the condition of the property when they move in. Unless extenuating circumstances prevail, the Aloe PM team completes the walk-through before the tenant takes possession of the property.  Photos are taken of any damage to the property.

When the tenant moves out of the property, there is a sound basis for the security deposit refund. Aloe also documents the move in with digital photos.

We provide residents with a move-in checklist for them to fill out and return to us. It is normal that tenants do not always get the move-in checklist back from the us. Their inspection is used to protect the residents at move out. The residents’ statements on the move-in checklist are not always accurate. We do not review move-in inspection reports turned in by new residents to create service requests to initiate repairs. Residents are provided an online portal and instructed to make repair requests there.

Maintenance Requests during Move-In

It is somewhat common for residents to make maintenance requests within the first 30 days of living in the property. Please expect it. We always do our best to balance the objectives of maintaining the quality of the property, fostering goodwill with the new resident, and keeping costs as low as reasonably possible.

Working with Your Tenants

Collecting Rent

Rents are due on the 1st day of the month and late if not received in the Aloe Property Management office by the 2nd of the month. We send out 5-day notices on the 5^th to pay or quit.

Aloe recognizes that many things can happen where it concerns rent; rent can really be lost “in the mail”; employers can delay the tenant’s paycheck, there are real tenant emergencies, and more. Therefore, we make a serious effort to determine why the tenant is having a problem. If Aloe receives the rent prior to issuing owner funds, Aloe does not contact the owner unless the Aloe management team determines there is an ongoing rent issue. All late fees collected are retained by Aloe Property Management to offset eviction costs, the time and effort to reach a tenant, paperwork and administrative work involved in collecting rent.

Notice To Pay or Quit

If Aloe does not receive rent by the due date, Aloe prepares and delivers a timely notice to pay or quit, as the law allows. APM makes every effort to mail and post notices properly should legal action be required. If APM determines the tenant is not going to pay the rent during the notice to pay or quit period, or shortly thereafter, APM contacts the property owner and works out a plan of action leading to possible eviction.

Breaking a lease

We want all our tenants to stay throughout their lease term. However, sometimes things change, such as a job relocation, a marriage, or a divorce, and it is necessary to allow a tenant to break their lease. Aloe Property Management has a lease break termination fee, that is assessed after the final prorated rent, in the amount equal to two months’ rent. This additional rent covers our owners for 30 days of vacancy if needed and covers the costs of re-leasing the property for Aloe Property Management. Should the owner decide to sell the home or cancel management with Aloe, the lease break fee of two months' rent is retained by Aloe. If the tenant does not pay the lease break fee, we will try to continually collect.

Other Notices

There are other notices that may be involved with tenants. Aloe serves notices as situations warrant, such as a notice to clean up the landscape, a notice to enter the property, a notice to perform survey/inspections, a notice regarding an illegal pet, illegal tenants, etc. These tenant violations may be in the form of a certified letter or a legal Notice “form.” Often, these notices are simply to correct minor tenant problems and most tenants comply. However, if necessary, Aloe contacts the owner with the information to discuss the situation.

Tenant problems

Aloe PM has years of experience handling the myriad of tenant difficulties that can occur. The Aloe policy is to obtain good tenants, eliminating many tenant problems. However, even good tenants have problems. Aloe treats each problem with common sense approach, follows landlord/tenant law, and uses the appropriate documentation. If the situation is serious, Aloe contacts the owner, and works to find a solution for the problem.

Legal action

Although Aloe works diligently to avoid the necessity to begin an action, such as an unlawful detainer or eviction proceeding, it can happen. In the event any legal action is required, Aloe will contact the owner prior to acting, discuss what is needed, and obtain owner authorization.

Tenant Communication

We ask that you do not directly communicate with your resident(s) while they are living in your rental property and while we are managing the home. If you feel direct communication with your resident is critical, please contact us first so we are aware of it. We have found that when an owner and resident have direct contact it can make it nearly impossible for us to be effective with the job you hired us to do and it may result in us choosing to cancel management services.

Utilities

How we handle utilities

You are responsible for all utility charges that occur when the property is vacant. You will be sent an email to put utilities in your name, if there is no response, we will turn on utilities in Aloe Property Management’s name and charge a $10 owner administrative charge per utility.

Maintenance

Preventative maintenance

The best approach to maintenance is “preventative maintenance,” and this is the Aloe Property Management policy.

First, Aloe has already started with educating the tenant by:

• Completing a detailed Aloe Rental Agreement outlining what are tenant responsibilities regarding maintenance as well as owner obligations.
• Completing a walk-through documenting the condition of the property before the tenant takes possession.

We want the tenant to know from the beginning of their tenancy that the Aloe PM landlord expectations are to “care for the property.” This approach can prevent costly maintenance.

Next, we use “preventative maintenance” techniques when work is required and utilize competent contractors. Often the minor expenditures save the most money such as doorstops, new filters, checking appliances, testing smoke alarms, adjusting doors, window latches, deadbolts, and more. Many small repair items can prevent maintenance that is more expensive.

Consider the cost of repairs like holes behind doors, clogged heaters and air-conditioners, appliance problems, dry rot, safety issues and more. Then of course, there are the major issues in a home such as the roof, the exterior condition of the building, carpeting, interior, and exterior paint, etc. When left to deteriorate, it usually means the owner will have to spend more in the future.

It is equally important to keep up with maintenance while the tenant occupies the property. Often people think no news is good news; this can be just the opposite. Instead, “delayed news can become very bad news.”

This is why, in our tenant instructions, we require them to report maintenance. For example, what is worse than finding out dry rot could have been prevented or discoloration of the linoleum if the tenant had reported the leaking toilet in the bathroom? Avoiding major maintenance costs are certainly more favorable in such cases.

The Aloe management teams contact owners regarding maintenance above the $350 minimum that is listed in the Aloe Property Management contract, unless the situation is an emergency.

Property Maintenance

We work with service providers who provide good reliable service at a fair price.

With all service providers, we work diligently to deliver the best value for our clients. Value is a blend of skill, price and reliability. We negotiate discounts with service providers whenever possible and pass those discounts on to you. We do not receive undisclosed revenue to our company (kickbacks, ‘early payment discounts’, etc.) from repairs or maintenance in any way so you can trust that you are getting good pricing.

We ask that you invest in good repairs done right, invest in making appropriate upgrades in your property over time and invest in the good will of the resident relationship. These investments do pay off. Please don’t assume the resident is breaking things unless we get proof of this. Please don’t assume agreeing to make repairs at your property will embolden the resident to ask for even more repairs. Trust us to manage residents' expectations and costs for you. Please accept that repair costs under 15% of annual revenue over the long run is an appropriate and successful standard.

We ask that you support our need to operate efficiently. We are striving to offer the most competitive management rates to you. Working through a home warranty, using service providers outside of our network, obtaining unnecessary second opinions or unneeded multiple bids often negatively impacts Resident relations, increases our costs and often negatively impacts relationships with quality service providers.

We ask that you think long-term about maintenance. Patching a roof, for instance, for $1800 when the entire roof needs replaced only increases your costs in the long run.

Our standard for approving maintenance requests is to meet any reasonable expectation a quality resident has of the home. This includes things like having screens on all opening windows at the property, having two garage remotes for a two-car garage, side access gates shutting and latching smoothly, etc.

We commit to being responsive to all maintenance requests and to use reasonable care and professionalism in the selection and coordination of service providers for your property.

Maintenance requests (work orders) are processed in this manner: 1. Request is received 2. Troubleshoot by phone with the Resident if possible and/or defer if appropriate, 3. Send a handyman, if possible, at a lower hourly cost or licensed contractor if appropriate ($89 - $160/hr.), 4. Ask service professionals to report back if resident neglect/abuse/misuse caused the needed repair and bill the resident if applicable.

To avoid surprising you we will usually try to call you to discuss repairs over $350. If we do not reach you or if circumstances necessitate urgent action, we will use the authority given to us in the management agreement to authorize an appropriate repair. We are looking for your support to get A/C or heat or hot water restored in 48 hours or less if it goes out. If you have a home warranty and they cannot meet this time frame we will dispatch another service provider that can.

The only confirmation you may receive that work is completed is the charge displayed on your owner statement and the published invoice in your owner portal. If you never see a charge for a requested repair it may mean we were able to troubleshoot over the phone, the resident never scheduled with the assigned service provider, a service provider was dispatched but the repair was so simple they never billed for their time, the item was under warranty from a previous repair, etc.

If a property becomes uninhabitable until a repair is made, the law provides a rent credit to residents equal to 1.25 times the daily rental rate. You will need to support us in providing this to your residents upon request if they do not have A/C or hot water or if there are other significant repairs going on that make it difficult or unsafe to live in the property.

We do not expect service providers to provide free estimates for work except for painting, flooring installation and landscape installation.

Urgent weekend and after-hours service calls typically require a premium to be paid for the service call.

Residents are expected to report any obvious signs that something is wrong with a repair. Service professionals are also expected to stand behind their work according to reasonable commercial standards.

We do not visit properties in person to view maintenance issues before processing them. We also do not troubleshoot maintenance issues at a property visit (including irrigation timers, A/C thermostats, etc.)

We do not require before and after photos from service professionals for work done at the property.

We pay invoices received promptly upon receipt as soon as funds are available in your account. We do not request invoices or follow up with reminders to service providers for invoices not submitted. Because of this, if a service provider invoices slowly, you may not see a bill for a repair until 30 or more days after the repair is made.

We require owners to repair or replace appliances that are present in the home when a resident moves in. This includes repairing and replacing icemakers if they fail. Doing so helps retain good residents longer and it can help rent the property out more quickly when vacant. If you do not want to fix it, it is best to remove it.

Home Warranties

We ask that you support our approach to maintenance to 1. Get the right maintenance done, 2. For the long-term good of the property, 3. At a reasonable cost and 4. In a way that fosters good will with the resident(s) and allows us to operate efficiently.

Home warranties sometimes accomplish #1 above but rarely accomplish numbers 2, 3 and 4.

Our experience with home warranties has been overwhelmingly negative. If you have a home warranty now or if you are considering purchasing one, please read reviews on home warranties, look up why not to use a home warranty with a rental property, and are home warranties beneficial.

PLEASE UNDERSTAND WE WILL NOT TOLERATE POOR OR UNRESPONSIVE SERVICE FROM A HOME WARRANTY PROVIDER OR THEIR ASSIGNED VENDOR. IT IS BAD FOR TENANT RELATIONS, AND IT IS BAD BUSINESS THAT HURTS OUR COMPANY REPUTATION.

If any of the following conditions apply, we expect your full support to stop working through your home warranty and their assigned vendor and contract with another service provider at your cost:

• Waiting on hold for more than 20 minutes with the home warranty company.
• Having to make more than 2 follow-up calls with the home warranty company or assigned vendor for the same issue without a timely response.
• Waiting for more than 2 business days for parts to be ordered or arrive that are readily available in local supply stores.
• Having to personally supervise or check work done by a home warranty dispatched vendor.
• No hot water or air conditioning for more than 48 hours for any reason.
• The same or similar problem recurring within 30 days.

If you have a home warranty and you would like us to attempt to use it, please do the following

• Call the home warranty company and have them list us as the property management company on the account (and ask them to remove any previous property manager on the account if applicable).
• Please instruct the home warranty company to communicate with us directly regarding the service appointment: scheduling and completion. We require that you remain the primary point of contact with the home warranty regarding billing and account renewals.
• Please establish an online login for purposes of submitting service requests and email us the login URL, username and password so we can submit requests online quickly for you,
• Whenever you receive email updates regarding a service call from your home warranty, we ask you to forward them to us within 4 business hours. Forward them to info@aloepm.com

Homeowner Associations

Please plan to be the primary point of contact for all communication and information related to the HOA and the HOA management company. Please do not provide our address as the contact address with your HOA and please list us as an Agent to receive communication on your behalf.

Please understand we will not be reviewing the CC&Rs and Bylaws for the community. If there are important rules or conditions that will affect how we manage your property, property maintenance or that will affect the resident (no parking on the streets, resident registration, etc.) please notify us of these in writing. Send us a copy of the CC&Rs to share with all tenants.

If a tenant is charged a fine, we will add to their ledger and will be sent with next month's rent. Please pay fines to avoid late fees and higher fines for not paying.

Please understand HOA management companies are not always responsive to our communication. As the primary point of communication with the HOA we may need your help following up with them regularly about issues related to your property.

If resident registration is required by an HOA, we ask that you obtain and forward the HOA registration forms to us at info@aloepm.com

Landscape Maintenance

If landscaping at the property requires watering, an automatic irrigation system needs to be installed and operational. We do not expect residents to manually water trees, shrubs, plants or grass. We also do not expect residents to be available to operate flood irrigation at a property.

We do not require residents to cover plants when there is a potential for freezing temperatures and we have not found any efficient way of ensuring your plants do not die from freezing.

We have clear language in our lease agreement holding residents accountable to report issues with landscaping and irrigation at the property. Despite this, our experience is that neither residents nor landscape maintenance crews can be relied upon to make sure non-indigenous grass, shrubs and trees do not die from lack of watering, old age, pests/disease/fungus, etc. If your property has anything other than native xeriscape landscaping, please expect to routinely pay for irrigation system repairs/replacement and vegetation replacement over time. As a company we will use reasonable diligence in holding residents accountable for their obligation to report problems with landscape care and irrigation. Please understand as a company we are not accepting responsibility if grass, trees, shrubs and plants die over time.

In Arizona, Landlords are responsible to trim/thin any trees or shrubs above a 6 ft height regardless of whether the resident is responsible for landscape maintenance in the lease. We have found most trees require trimming/thinning 1-2 times per year.

Pest Control

Regardless if pest control is resident responsibility in the lease, owners are expected to take responsibility to mitigate scorpion, termite, rodent, bee infestations and pigeon issues when needed, at the owner’s cost.

Pools

If your property has a pool, please be aware it will need to be drained and refilled occasionally for repairs or water quality. You should expect to reimburse/credit the resident for the cost of the water to refill the pool. You will need to clean filters a few times a year possibly.

Lease Property Check

In 2020 we modified our Mid Lease Property Check process to accommodate for COVID restrictions but still achieve the objective of ensuring residents are respecting the property and complying with the lease. The new process involves a resident-lead inspection with extensive photos and descriptions once every 6-9 months. If a resident does not complete the process, we initiate a physical visit to the property.

With the air filter delivery and installation every other month, we obtain a report from Air Filters to You that gives us feedback in regard to the property. We get a picture that the air filters were installed and a front yard picture of the yard.

Our practice is to obtain photos and share them with you of the yearly inspection.

Owner Visits to the Property

Arizona law protects a resident’s right to ‘quiet enjoyment’ of the property. Showing up without prior notice violates this right and can be grounds for you to owe the resident one month of free rent for each illegal entry.

If you plan to visit your property at any time, please let us know 8 or more days in advance so we can provide proper notice to the resident and coordinate our schedule to accompany you to the property.

Any visit to the property, including entering the front yard or driveway, requires either an appointment with the resident or proper legal notice. Please note, the only recognized form of notice under Landlord/Tenant law in Arizona is certified mail which requires a 5-day receipt period, so the quickest we can ensure access to the property is 7 calendar days after a notice is sent certified mail to the resident.

If you ask us to make a special trip (owner-requested trip) to meet you, an appraiser, a relative, your contractor, the HOA Manager, etc., to check on utilities, to see if your vendor is finished, to see if the hail storm did any damage, to pick up your mail, or to see if you left your lights on, there will be a trip charge (See ‘Owner Charges’ section below). Phoenix Metro Valley traffic often causes a “quick property visit’ to take about an hour each way, plus time at the property and gas. We try hard to avoid unscheduled trips, but we do not want to say ‘no’ when asked by the owner to do something special.

How do you protect your investment?

None of us have control of economic factors that might affect the value of your property, but we can help protect your assets by doing regular inspections and providing maintenance and repairs when needed. Some renters don’t have the same pride of ownership that a property owner would have.

You need to have control over the maintenance and repair process. Using our Owner Web Portal, the whole process is totally transparent. We document our inspections with notes, photos and even videos. You can log into your Web Portal and view those inspection details 24/7.

From the signing of the lease, tenants are aware of their responsibility for maintaining the property and they also know that we will be following up with regular inspections. We also instruct them how to enter work orders using the Tenant Web Portal. When a work order is entered in the Portal, an email is sent to us and to you immediately. We have preferred vendors who can do the repairs professionally at a reasonable price or you can opt to do the repairs or maintenance yourself.

• We will do pre-move in and post-move out inspections, which includes photographs and even videos to document the condition of the property.
• We can do optional property inspections every 90 days, which would include checking the roof, water leaks, foundation cracks, plumbing issues and unauthorized pets. We check bathroom fixtures and drains as well as kitchen appliances.
• If there are tenant-caused issues found during the inspections, the tenants are given a timetable to make the repairs, or we will order the repairs and bill the tenant.

During the inspection, maintenance and repair process you remain in control of your property. You know that your valuable assets are protected.

When the Tenant Vacates

Notice To Vacate

When there is a notice to vacate, the move out procedures with tenants are as critical as when APM moves in a tenant. The preparation for this really began when the tenant moved in with a detailed rental agreement, Move-In Checklist and walk-through. All of these documents gave instructions to the tenant on how to move out.

Communication With Owners and Tenants

Aloe PM notifies the owner in writing on how they will proceed with the tenant and re-renting the property. APM immediately places the property on the market to rent unless the owner notifies APM to take other measures.

Aloe PM also responds to the tenant notice with a move-out checklist to complete a successful move. Rent is required until the end of the notice unless otherwise stated in the rental/lease agreement.

Tenant Move Out

APM conducts a walk-through similar to the one performed when the tenant moved into the property. Aloe records any maintenance required and discloses a list of damages to the vacating tenant. Photographs are taken when the tenant moves out to document the condition of the property and support any deductions from the security deposit.  After assessment of the tenant move out, APM advises owners of any tenant damages, or any maintenance required to re-rent the property if out of the ordinary.

Security Deposit Refunds

Proper handling of the security deposit refund is crucial. Any tenant deductions are determined in a timely manner, and a security deposit transmittal is prepared in accordance with state laws.  Owners receive a copy of the transmittal with their monthly statement, showing any deductions and monies refunded.

Collections

If collecting damages is required, Aloe will refer the matter to a qualified consumer collection service at the instruction and authorization of the owner. Aloe management does not include recovering tenant damages, but leaves this to companies with expertise in debt collection. Aloe will supply consumer collection companies with the necessary documentation needed. Remember, Collection companies take around 40% of collected funds.

Normal Wear and Tear: Arizona law requires Owners to maintain their rental properties. This means if something wears out over time due to normal use it must be repaired or replaced at the owner’s cost.

Residents are responsible to pay for things they damage. To determine if something has been damaged, we are looking for clear evidence of misuse, abuse or neglect. We rely on the service professional sent to the home to make this decision. Our policy is not to assume resident damage unless there is clear evidence of the damage. If something may have failed from normal use that is the assumption we will be making.

When residents are charged for damage after a repair is made. The charge against the deposit is calculated by multiplying the full cost to repair or replace by the depreciated life of the item.

For example, if the resident damages drawers in the refrigerator and the ‘useful life’ of a refrigerator in a rental property is 10 years and the refrigerator is 5 years old when the damage is repaired and the cost of the repair is $400 then the resident is charged: $400 x (5years/10years) = $200.

Security Deposit Disputes

Resident security deposit disputes are, by far, the most common cause for litigation in Landlord/Tenant issues in Arizona. We have designed our move-in and move-out processes and communication in a way that minimizes security deposit disputes. Despite this, they are still relatively common.

Arizona law provides residents an award of 3 times the amount wrongfully withheld from their security deposit so it is important to promptly and fairly address security deposit disputes to avoid legal action.

If you support our suggested charges against the resident security deposit, we will be happy to stay involved in negotiating a resolution to any security deposit disputes with the resident that may arise. If you disagree with our recommended charges and dictate that they be higher, and if a dispute ensues with your resident’s belief of what they should be charged, we will put the resident directly in touch with you (email and phone number) for resolution.

We ask you to support our efforts to resolve security deposit disputes even in some cases where a settlement may be necessary to avoid legal proceedings. The objective in a security deposit dispute is often to minimize your legal risk and loss of time and resources in what could be a costly legal proceeding. We will work diligently to show the resident we have a solid basis for any charges and negotiate the least possible settlement with the disputing resident that will close the issue for all parties.

Taking Back Possession or Selling the Property

If you have any intention of taking back possession of the property or want to sell the property at the end of the lease term, please notify us in writing as soon as you have come to this decision. A 30-day Notice to vacate must be submitted to the resident at the end of the lease term. As much advance notice as we can provide them helps them have an easier move.

If at any time during our management, you list the property with another agent for sale or enter into a contract to sell the property it is our policy to immediately terminate management services. Please communicate with us in advance if you plan to list the home with an agent or sign a contract to sell it.

Real Estate Services

The Sales Division is available to assist you in buying more investment property or selling your property when ready, including those requiring 1031 exchanges.

A free-market analysis is available at any time with no obligation. Please contact your property management team or one of our sales team listed to provide you with the information or services you need. If you are already working with a Realtor or referred by an agent, please reach out to them.

Cancellation of Management

It is the goal of Aloe to satisfy your management needs and engage in a successful business relationship, but all things do change over time. Owners sell properties; people give notices. If this happens, the Aloe cancellation policy is to resolve your account in a professional, timely, and pleasant manner.

Please review the following policies for cancellation.

Written Notice

• The Aloe management contract accepts a 30 days written notice by either party. Please refer to your management contract.
• The Aloe policy is to give cancellation of management by US Mail or email.
• If an owner sends a cancellation of management by US mail, Aloe must receive the notice within 5 business days of the date of the notice.

Notice To Current Tenants

• Aloe will notify current tenants of the date Aloe will no longer manage the property and that Aloe forwards all security deposits to the owner.
• It is the owner’s responsibility to advise tenants where to make future rental payments and work requests after the notice period.

Distribution Of Documents

• Aloe will supply current tenant documentation to the owner.
• If the owner has employed new management, it is the owner’s responsibility to instruct them to pick up documents, keys, and any other necessary materials at the Aloe office.

Final Distribution of Funds

• Aloe will distribute funds, including security deposits, and final statements to the owner within 30 days of the terminating date of management, as agreed in the management contract
• Aloe will issue a 1099 for funds collected during the current tax year when the tax year ends.

Conclusion

We hope you have found the Aloe Property Management Owner Manual informative and useful. If there is anything we can do to improve the Manual, please let us know.

Again, we want to thank you for your business, and we look forward to a successful management relationship.