Apartment Blog

Hashtags, re-tweets, DMs? What does it all mean? For Rent Media Solutions^TM, a leading apartment resource for searching apartments nationwide, and a division of Dominion Enterprises, will answer these questions as they host the industry’s first Tweet Spot during this year’s Brainstorming Sessions^TM held at the Hyatt Regency in Houston, Texas from November 18-20.

Twitter “newbies” and power users alike in the multi-housing industry are in for the ultimate Twitter experience during this year’s Multifamily Pro Brainstorming Sessions. At the Tweet Spot, attendees will have an opportunity to learn more about leveraging the power of Twitter. Topics discussed include:

• How to create a Twitter profile
• How to perform basic functions within the site
• Twitter terminology
• Tools to enhance user experience
• Why Twitter is beneficial for businesses
• How to cross-link with other social media sites

During the show, attendees can participate in “Tweetups,” meetings organized through Twitter and hosted by For Rent Media Solutions, to network and meet other attendees. These Tweetups help attendees turn their online network into reality, allow them to see who’s “following” who and maximize their social networking by meeting and mingling with the industry’s social media savvy. Take a look at our schedule below for the two “Tweetups” scheduled for Tuesday, November 17^th at 5:30 pm and Thursday, November 19^th at 6:00 pm.

Being a “Charlottean” means appreciating the mix of southern hospitality and robust work ethic that make up the city of Charlotte.   This growing business Mecca has been named “#8 of the 100 “Best Places to Live and Launch” by CNNMoney.com- cities picked for their vibrant lifestyles and opportunities for new businesses.”

Contributing to the vibrant lifestyle, It is not uncommon to find a church on every corner in the “City of Churches”. There are reportedly 700 congregations that serve a population of just over 700,000.

The churches not only add to the spiritual growth of the cities inhabitants, but also add to the scenery.   Contemporary churches are known for their state of the art engineering, but the majestic beauty of  old churches still  graces more than a few street corners.

Get more information and search tips on Charlotte Apartments, or view all Apartments for Rent in Charlotte, NC.

Sources:

http://www.helium.com/items/1413517-why-is-charlotte-called-the-city-of-churches

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte,_North_Carolina

There are a lot of different versions out there of how the Seven Deadly Sins apply to social media but here are some that For Rent Media Solutions has put together to assure that you are making the most of your social media marketing campaign.

1.      Don’t Bite Off More Than You Can Chew

We have all been there before and understand this one. When most companies enter the social media landscape they want to have a presence everywhere. In order to be effective both with time and resources, you need to have goals and a solid strategy to support them. It is not necessary to have an account on all of the social networking sites. Choose one or two platforms that best match your goals and target audience and get to know how they work. 

2.      Don’t Get Greedy

One of the main reasons businesses enter the realm of social media is to build relationships with consumers and increase their brand awareness; however this does not mean you need to solely promote it while you are on these sites. Follow the 80/20 rule. 80% of the content you are submitting, sharing, tagging and commenting on should not be yours. Don’t consistently link your content. Offer help to others that genuinely and directly benefits them, not you. Provide value to the conversation and become a trusted member of the community. Move people to engage your brand and be collaborative. You can only build a community by contributing and that contribution needs to provide value for the consumers. Only then will they begin to trust your brand.

3.      Don’t Lose Sight Over Quality vs. Quantity

Social media is about quality not quantity and it should not be looked at like a popularity contest. Having the highest number of followers and fans is not what it is all about. Take the time to build a targeted list even if it is smaller and takes longer. It is important to have followers that take action versus having thousands of followers/fans that will never convert. Social media is about building relationships, so you will also want to make sure that you can manage the relationships that you have.

4.      Don’t Try to Control It
Your relationships are your brand. Anyone can blog, tweet or Facebook message about a good or bad experience they had with your product and it can be seen by millions of people. Embrace the transparency of social media because people are talking about your communities whether you like it or not. We can all learn a lesson from the recent experience of a property management company that is suing a former resident for $50,000 over a tweet complaining about mold. Read more here: What the Horizon Realty Fail Can Teach You About Social Media. Within a few hours, Horizon    Realty became a “trending topic” on Twitter, which means that Horizon was one of the most talked about topics on Twitter. Although trending topics on Twitter tend to be short-lived, the reach and distribution of social media goes further than Twitter.

 If you try to control the message too much, you will lose control. Rather than be fearful of messages made about your brand, engage. Use it as an opportunity to display your customer service and you will win customers for life.

5.      Don’t Be Fake
As we’ve mentioned before, social media is very transparent.  Consumers will know if you’ve entered a space with the intention of only promoting your business and not engaging in conversation with them. This is a big mistake businesses are making. Your company needs to be honest and personable in the online space in order to build relationships, loyalty and trust. It’s ok to make a mistake, admit when you are wrong and move on. People want to do business with people NOT with companies so talk to them versus talking at them.

6.      Don’t Be Lazy
Not only do you need to be honest, but you need to be THERE! Don’t get in the mindset of “Set It and Forget It.” Your brand needs to be involved more than just once a week and response time  is critical. You have to write interesting content, you have to stay current, and you have to be willing to show up and put forth the effort. This is a relationship that needs continuous nurturing.  Setting up profiles on social media Web sites is easy. However, growing those profiles and keeping those profiles alive require time, dedication and resources.

7.      Don’t Be In Violation Of Fair Housing
Fair Housing laws are still applicable with social media. Generally, any postings online should be considered the same as email or text messages. This information is discoverable and can lead to liability. Posting photos of residents and employees? Get a model release and consider fair housing implications! Posting endorsements, testimonials and raves from your residents?  Get endorsement permission! Allowing unmonitored and uncontrolled posts?  Know how to respond to “bad press” about your community. Monitoring and controlling the posts?  Your liability increases - libel and fair housing issues.

Pick up any magazine within the multi-family housing industry or attend an educational conference, and it is likely you will find something about fair housing.  This issue is important to our industry for many reasons, including the dollar impact of not being in compliance with the fair housing laws. If you are charged with discrimination, the defense costs are high, not to mention perhaps having to pay to either settle the case or satisfy a judgment.  You have protected your business and yourself from the ramifications of a fire, a slip-and-fall, or the myriad of other events that create liability for you as a landlord.  But what about fair housing insurance coverage?  Do you have it?  Do you not have it?  Do you know?  Do you really need it?  Do you care (probably, since you are reading this article)?  Is there really any such thing? 

Yes, there is coverage available. But it is up to you to find it, evaluate it, and make good business decisions regarding your needs. This article won’t give you all the answers, and will most likely raise more questions for you, but it is a good starting point for you to dialogue with your insurance agent or carrier.  So, here goes…

The first step is to see if you have coverage:

1. Keep in mind that your General Liability and Directors & Officers policies will likely not provide you with fair housing protection.  Personal Liability policies may (or may not!) provide coverage, but Professional Liability will often do so.
2. Check the AM Best’s rating (FSR - Financial Strength Rating) for your carrier’s ability to meet its obligations to you as a policyholder.
3. Discuss whether the carrier is “admitted” or “non-admitted/unauthorized” in the state or states in which you have properties and do business.
4. Next, open up a discussion with your agent/carrier about “Discrimination Coverage” or “Tenant Discrimination Liability Insurance.” The term “fair housing insurance” is not generally used in the insurance industry.

Now, let’s say that your agent/carrier assures you that you have the coverage or that you will be able to buy it. You’re all set now, right?  No, not at all.  As a smart business person you need to know what it is that you have bought or will buy.  And what you think you “see” is not necessarily what you might actually “get.”  You need to know:

1. Are you covered for intentional acts of discrimination?
2. Are you covered for punitive damages? There have been fair housing cases with punitive damages in excess of a million dollars, and one non-landlord fair housing case with punitive damages awarded at one hundred million dollars (that’s $100,000,000 and not a typo!).
3. Are you covered for civil penalties, emotional distress, compensatory damages, legal fees and settlements?
4. There are so many people for whose acts you are responsible.  Are you covered for the issues created not just by your regular employees, but also part-time, temporary, and leased employees, as well as volunteers?  What about issues created by residents, or your contractors and vendors?
5. Are you only covered during the leasing/application process?  What about coverage as relates to residents during their tenancy with you?  (In fact, most complaints are filed by current residents for harassment, evictions, different terms and conditions of their leases, and denial of requests for disability accommodation.)
6. Are you covered for groundless or false claims?  Defending these can cost thousands of dollars!
7. Are you only covered for actual lawsuits?  What about formal complaints made to HUD?  What about an informal claim made to you?  Keep in mind that you likely have a responsibility to notify your carrier even when someone just mentions a fair housing issue to you.  What is the time frame for notification?  And what can it cost you for failure or delay in notification…you may invalidate the coverage entirely!
8. Are you covered for prior acts, those which may have occurred before your policy went into effect?
9. Can you choose your own attorney?  The answer is “not always” and this can be to your detriment.  Attorneys who are familiar with fair housing complaints, the various enforcing agencies and investigators, can often get a situation handled quickly and resolve it efficiently because of their expertise.  A carrier’s attorney may not be able to do that and can run up hours of legal fees while trying to learn about this specialized area of the law.
10. Will the carrier pay up front, as you accrue expenses, before the case concludes?  Keep in mind that fair housing cases (and their costs) can, and do, go on for years and years.  Your carrier may give you a “Reservation of Rights Letter” - they’ll pay you now, but if the event turns out to be non-insurable at its conclusion (perhaps for intentional discrimination), then you will be required to give the money back and pay your own judgment to boot!
11. Who controls a possible settlement; you or the carrier?  Most cases are settled, and few actually make it into an administrative or federal district courtroom.
12. Is there a “hammer clause” regarding settlement?  If you refuse to agree to a settlement offer and insist on going to court, but then lose more than you could have settled for, guess who pays the difference?  (Hint- if there is a hammer clause, it won’t be your carrier who pays.)
13. Will a settlement affect your tax credit properties?  If you are found to have discriminated, you bet. If you settle and thus “admit” liability or lose in a lawsuit, you stand a good chance of losing your tax credit status.

A fire can occur at your community, someone can slip and fall.  There could be wind damage, hail damage, a tragic drowning in your pool.  You have likely protected yourself from these possibilities with insurance.   But be sure that you have done what you can to also protect yourself from the wrongful denial of a reasonable modification or accommodation request; sexual harassment or harassment based on protected class status; eviction or differential treatment because of protected class status; saying the wrong thing; treating applicants differently; linguistically profiling on the telephone; having community rules that unreasonably target children; automatically evicting the mentally disabled; not allowing assistance animals in pet-free properties; failing to have accessible housing where required or failing to allow modifications for the disabled.  These are the most common bases for fair housing complaints.

Make smart business decisions.  You may be disinclined to pay the premiums for tenant discrimination insurance yet just a few hours work on a fair housing issue may result in legal fees that are as high as the premium for coverage would have been.  Know what you are buying. Hopefully the ideas shared above will help you evaluate that. And consider this closing message from this trio of authors…complying with fair housing law is the right thing to do and avoiding fair housing complaints in the first place is the best insurance of all. 

REQUIRED LANGUAGE FOR ALL REPRINTING OF THIS ARTICLE:  “Fair Housing Focus” is written by Nadeen Green, Senior Counsel with For Rent Media Solutions^TM, Anne Sadovsky, CSP, CAM, CAPS, RAM and DJ Ryan, Fair Housing Specialist, Kimball, Tirey & St. John, LLP.  The information contained in this article is not to be considered legal advice, and the authors and their companies strongly suggest that you consult with your own counsel as to any fair housing questions or problems you may have.

Who doesn’t love Dr. Seuss? He is one of my all time favorite authors. Not only for his rhyming words that just flow with ease, but for the lessons each book holds.  I read a posting on the Haystack Needle blog dated March 2nd, 2009 (Happy Belated Birthday Dr. Seuss) where the writer stated “I think Oh the Places You’ll Go should be the theme of this year, in light of all the flux with lost jobs in this economy. It’s a sweet book of hope.”

And I thought what an interesting thing to say? Have a book that is meant to be read to children be a theme of the year given the state of the economy? So I took to researching other Dr. Seuss anecdotes that could be taken for reflection of this year for companies.

The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go. - Dr. Seuss

This is a motivating phrase to get everyone to learn more; to crave more knowledge. Learning will not only help your business in current situations but will also help prepare your business and employees for future changes.  If you are up to date on the ‘here and now’ then you will be one step ahead of your competitors. 

Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the things you can think up if only you try!
- Dr. Seuss

If you have absorbed so much information from reading, reading and doing more reading, can you imagine all the ideas you will come up with for your corporation? Outside the box ideas will come freely as more information pops into your head. Answers to your customers’ problems will become clear when you try to find one. The possibilities are endless.

And when you’re in a Slump, you’re not in for much fun. Un-slumping yourself is not easily done. -Dr. Seuss

Just like Dr. Seuss mentioned in Oh the Places You’ll Go sometimes there are hang-ups and bang-ups and it’ll happen to you. Your company can generate ideas, think outside the box, struggle, work hard and it may still seem like you’re getting no where.  But no matter what, don’t go to the useless place. The waiting place, for people just waiting, that’s not for your organization! You must persevere. When you least expect it, things will happen. So keep your eye on the goal; continue learning, coming up with solutions, thinking creatively and it’ll work out so much better for your business than just waiting for something to happen. 

And will you succeed? Yes indeed, yes indeed! Ninety-eight and three-quarters percent guaranteed.-Dr. Suess

If only there was such a number at 98^3/4 % to base your success.  But even the doctor said so himself. You will succeed.  If you continue to work hard, stay out of the waiting place by engaging new, innovative ideas, your business will succeed. Only you can determine the measurement by which it achieves and there will be a victory!

And the final sentiments to end today’s post, is this:

Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So… get on your way.
– Dr. Seuss