hogjowl
Idiot™
Yes
Very much so
“Free carpet cleaning for the tenants”
- Thread starter BIG WOOD
- Start date
Very much so
I’m still waiting for the big boss to schedule a meeting with me. I sent a follow up request to the property manager asking if she ever got a response on her request to meet me. She said no.
So I took another stab at it and said “what if my program reduced your carpet replacement by 50%...would that catch her attention?” She said “it caught mine!” So I’m sure I’ll have a meeting soon.
I’ll update you folks on it soon I hope
So I took another stab at it and said “what if my program reduced your carpet replacement by 50%...would that catch her attention?” She said “it caught mine!” So I’m sure I’ll have a meeting soon.
I’ll update you folks on it soon I hope
hogjowl
Idiot™
I never realized that was what happened.
I was afraid to ask.
I have an 86 unit complex that I have that arrangement with. Matt, you've seen my texts pics to you regarding this place. It's a real pain to clean. When I was first starting out I was happy to have it. Now I pray they never call me. The tenants are thankless pigs and they expect service to the nines. Moving furniture, area rugs, and folded laundry. When they start acting like that, I just show up to their doow with my orbot and be done. The complex is currently going through a management change, My hope is the new manager will try and be a hero by finding a cheaper hack to clean for them. I think i've pretty much grown out of the "complex" type cleanings.
I say that while biting my tongue a bit. I've been stupid slow the last couple of weeks, but things are picking up again. This week was a good one.
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Then I need to learn from your mistake. What was your average price per apartment? And how many did you do in one day? Did you have an agreement to the manager saying that you would do just the open areas only and no moving of furniture?
The agreement was $125 for a two bedroom, and $90 for a one bedroom. The deal was the tenants got a free cleaning when they signed a new one year lease. The understanding between the management and myself that the cleaning is to cover all open areas. No furniture moving or area rugs. The tenants still try to sneak in additional stuff. "Oh, can you just quickly swipe your wand over this rug?" . "Heck-No!"
That place is also risky to clean. Parking sucks and people in wheelchairs everywhere. The last time I was out there I watched a lady in her motorized chair ram into the back of a pickup. She then reversed and rammed it again. The third time's the charm for her. She backed again and managed to adjust her course and scrape herself down the rear of the truck, leaving a nice racing stripe. I'm always scared to park there.
Usually these units are so packed with crap I can hardly walk around. I have another complex I finally had to tell the management to stop referring me to their tenants. I told them i'll only clean the vacant units.
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Get in good with the maint man. Buy him a 12 pack or some cash during a holiday. Be his friend. Listen to him as he gripes about management. He'll get you more work and make you look good to his boss.
hogjowl
Idiot™
Looking good is somewhat of a STRETCH
But I get your point
But I get your point
ruff
Member
Jimmy's advise is actually golden:
Yeah, just what I need in my life. Some janitor talking me up to the manager of low income housing. Kill me now please.
For what my goal is here, I"m gonna need to get in good with 50-70 maintenance guys
Since this contract is gonna be so big and risky, someone close to me advised me to getting their credit score Dun&Bradstreet. So I payed the $62 for the credit report and saw that their a very good company when it comes to being a very low risk
Have any of you felt the need to see how good these big companies pay?
Have any of you felt the need to see how good these big companies pay?
Just keep a watch on how long it takes them to pay. Some will stretch it out and think you lost track so they won't pay you until you bitch. Most of mine pay within 30 days but I have had some go out 4 months. I dropped them. This could be a exhausting adventure for you. That and wearing out that TM.
I'm coming up with a different pay scale for them to make certain they pay on time. I don't plan on invoicing each and every apartment. If I'm cleaning at 50 -70 of their complexes, it'll make it too easy for them to "lose" or "forget" to enter the invoice and I don't plan on hiring someone just to call them for late payment on each apartment. Once I tell them that I"m going to invest in another setup DEVOTED just for this account, I'll tell them how many I can do in one day, and I'll charge a flat rate per day, depending on how many we can squeeze in an 8hr day, which should make it easy for them to enter it into their system to send out a payment. I'm just dreaming right now, so I'll let you know how that goes when I approach this to them at the meeting.
steve_64
Member
- Joined
- Aug 11, 2012
- Messages
- 13,371
Good luck Matt but I'd focus on more commercial.
There's a long list of why apartments are not good for business. I do ok with them but I'd rather do residential these days.
There's a long list of why apartments are not good for business. I do ok with them but I'd rather do residential these days.
I see this specific contract as commercial, because it'll be dealing with one major customer, not 20 different apartment companies. I've never tried dealing with property management at this angle, so I can't say "nah it doesn't work" until I've actually tried it. And so far, none of participants in this thread have taken property management at this level yet either, so my feedback is goin to be very valuable to everyone on here when I get my results
Desk Jockey
Member
Big corps often respond to quick pay discounts. Its someone's job to pay those that offer incentives so they can receive a cost savings. Even 1-3% is huge over a years time with all the vendors they pay.
With the size of this contract, that'll be a big incentive. I'll put that in somewhere when I get it put together
Desk Jockey
Member
We had a large fire invoice that we offered 3% if paid in 10-days. The school district was all over it. They were on the phone getting the needed documentation from us so they could save the 3%. It can work, just depends how they are setup.
steve_64
Member
- Joined
- Aug 11, 2012
- Messages
- 13,371
When I say commercial I mean like doctor offices and places like that who clean regularly either quarterly or yearly.
I make decent money on apartments but it's more work and time than good residential work. Getting keys places not ready when you open the door always on the 3rd floor.
Then the whole employee thing.
I chased a management company for awhile doing 4 to 7 homes a day in the Chicago burbs doing 7 to $1000 a day once every couple weeks. Too much management change and dealing with ghetto work made it not worth it and all the travel.
It always comes back to money.
It is a learning experience but what learned was to find easier work that I don't have to put so much unpaid time into.
steve_64
Member
- Joined
- Aug 11, 2012
- Messages
- 13,371
Room price with a minimum two or three rooms to cover set up and travel time and discount just a little for three or more units per stop.
Give them incentive to help you.
As far as raising the rent to pay you I don't see happening. Don't try and create work and cost look for ways to save them money on turn overs and restorative cleaning.
Hallways are big upsell too.
Give them incentive to help you.
As far as raising the rent to pay you I don't see happening. Don't try and create work and cost look for ways to save them money on turn overs and restorative cleaning.
Hallways are big upsell too.
Big companies when dealing with little ones often take the 3% 10 day discount and pay in 60 days. If you tell the company you can do 4 units for $700 per day what happens if you only get 3 done that day or you get 5 done? Or they want two in one complex and two in another that is an hour away? The different complexes might have different sized units... and different ownership so billing might be different.---you are focused on making it easy for you----focus on making it easy for them.... Each facility will probably have their own property manager and some will not like having you as their only cleaner. Also most facilities have turnover on the first of the month---all will want you there on the same day....
Good luck
Good luck
Lee Stockwell
FOJL
Every year the same spiel.
A brand new crop of newbies hungry to take over the apartment world.
Followed by a new batch of broken dreams.
A brand new crop of newbies hungry to take over the apartment world.
Followed by a new batch of broken dreams.
Broken dreams, maybe
Newbie being me? Nope
Taking over the apartment world? Sounds like bulk work that'll give me capital income, not high profit, to help operate my business.
Also, this is the perfect setting for an unexperienced employer, like myself, to practice hiring and firing
Lee Stockwell
FOJL
Lots of "practice," however as Vince Lombadi said,
"Practice doesn't make perfect, only perfect practice makes perfect. "
"Practice doesn't make perfect, only perfect practice makes perfect. "
hogjowl
Idiot™
I’m not buying a trailer when you go bust.
I’m planning to do more than just 3-5 apartments per day. I’m going to push doing 6-9 apartments, depending on how close they are together.
With 50 complexes, I’ll try to break it down into 5 regions and schedule the van to do each region on different days
