Property Management Blog

Jacksonville and North Florida in general have been getting a good amount of press lately! Whether its touting the area as a great place to live/relocate for businesses as well as individuals or a place to visit and enjoy recreation, we truly do have a lot to offer here!

Much has been written as well about which are the” best” neighborhoods and particularly for certain demographic groups. We say Jacksonville has numerous neighborhoods or areas and all have something unique to offer so it’s just a matter of finding your fit. Are you renting or buying? What can you afford? Are nearby schools or public transportation an important factor? Where will you be working and is there a commute involved—and how does it relate to proximity of what neighborhood(s) you are considering?

No matter what you decide, the options are plentiful in our many and diverse neighborhoods and it seems everyone is finding out!

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/dun-and-bradstreet-headquarters-and-two-more-deals-headed-to-city-council

https://www.atlantamagazine.com/southbound-articles/jacksonville-florida-weekend-getaway/

https://www.floridaforboomers.com/25-most-popular-retirement-cities/

Important to think about this now, especially since storm season starts TODAY!  We have made available the 2021 City of Jacksonville Preparedness Guide to all of our residents in advance of storm season but we’ll hit some highlights here…. most important to remember: if a storm is coming here (like Irma and Michael in past years) it will not matter if you are in Atlantic or Neptune Beach, San Marco, Riverside or Julington Creek. From one end of the area to another, you are likely to experience some kind of symptom—and maybe multiples. This awareness is important no matter where in Clay, Duval or St. John counties you reside!

• Know your evacuation route and have a plan for using it 
• Know your flood zone status (and how it relates to above!)
• Have your emergency preparedness kit ready
• Know your family and pet plan (going to shelter? Have your personal supplies, i.e. prescription meds)
• Have your home preparation done (secure loose items, remove loose branches, etc.)
• Know your resources/contact information (insurance agent/carrier, JEA, City, Family contacts)

We think a great place to start is with the city’s preparedness guide which you can access right here on our home page “Emergency Preparedness Guide” & “Jax Family Plan”

Check out our newsletters as well for more summer and storm season related information…

Like a lot of property management companies, we take (metaphorical) body blows occasionally over the outcomes of renting properties. Regardless of what you might read (and how qualified those sources may or may not be), professional property managers cannot control all aspects in a rental situation but DO follow processes and adhere to laws.

These processes are communicated up front to our residents and owners and include references to the laws and statutes we are required to follow.

As is the case in many situations and/or industries, the one thing we cannot exercise control over is human behavior and the resulting decision making.  We qualify residents according to requirements and rental criteria. We do not and cannot control lifestyle choices or circumstances. 

When there is a complaint or discontent, it is frequently the result of our refusal to circumvent or side step said statutes, requirements or laws.

So, when you read a rant about us or any professional property management company, refer to the above and consider getting both sides of the story before drawing conclusions. We’re happy to answer any questions about how we work and why.

So, in a follow up to why we made the case for the significance of designations, here’s a quick “real world” way to think about it:

Real estate transactions of any kind can be (and typically are) emotional experiences. They typically involve large sums of money (and the dollar amount doesn’t matter; the numbers are typically big to whoever is involved), require multiple parties to cooperate and seemingly endless steps to conclusion. A lot can happen along the way.

Most recently we’ve seen an increase in having to overcome obstacles from buyer financing as well as (in the past year) the pandemic and storms that shut down banks and other business entities. Those are hiccups that frequently aren’t easily resolved—especially when the clock is ticking. 

This is why you need to make sure you have an agent that can take control of the situation and navigate a difficult transaction. That agent usually has pursued additional education and training beyond their license. They get those intriguing letters after their names like GRI or SRS or are called Realtor® or Broker.  

An experienced, credentialled professional is uniquely prepared to navigate even the uncharted waters of today’s real estate transactions.

We do! You should too!

At FPM Properties, we are always pursuing continuing education. Why? Aside from wanting to always improve and elevate our ability to do our jobs, it’s because of this adage: the only constant is change.

Change is a constant in our industry. Just look at what has changed in the last several years and especially this past year. Eviction moratoriums, forbearance, PPP programs…this list goes on….and on.

Our designations signify a commitment to education, professionalism and commitment to our industry. 

It’s an indicator that we care about what we do and doing it right –no matter how much times change. It means we’re committed to ongoing learning (as some designations have a continuing education requirement). It means we’re putting in the work so you don’t have to!

The property management and real estate landscapes are always evolving and at an ever-accelerating pace. Doesn’t matter where 

Our designations assure you that we will never rest on our proverbial laurels and that we don’t take our responsibilities lightly. 

So just about a week ago it was announced that our Broker, Mike Hodges, was named Northeast Florida Association of Realtors Realtor® of the Year for 2020. We have to comment on this!

Of course, this is a bit biased but hey, it’s our site so we can brag on him. Take it from the people who work with him every (literally, a lot of the time) day—this is well deserved.

Yes, Mike is a property manager (with distinction of MPM®) and a community association manager but he is first and foremost a licensed Broker/Realtor®.

No one takes being a Broker/Realtor® more seriously than Mike. We think the fact that he feels so strongly about continuing education as well as gaining new knowledge probably positioned him over time to be worthy of this honor. 

Hard working? Yes. Dedicated? Definitely.  Knows his stuff? Absolutely. We could come up with so many superlatives that accurately describe Mike but if we had to choose just one word to focus on…….

Integrity. He knows the laws and the professional standards and embraces them. Follows them.  Requires his colleagues to do the same. 

We think NEFAR knows their stuff too---they made an excellent and worthy choice for 2020!

Wow what is there left to say about 2020?

We haven’t blogged in awhile because, frankly, we’ve just been coping. Now that we’ve made it through the holidays and the new year is upon us, we took some time to reflect on what went right this past year (needless to say, it’s not a long list)

• We pivoted immediately to working from home when required—we were prepared!
• We were already up and running with contactless showings; again, we were prepared.
• We had no challenges adopting the required protocols so there was never a business disruption
• Our vendors were equally as prepared!
• We upgraded our database and it went very smoothly—and our owners and residents are now enjoying the benefits
• We added 2 CAM licensees
• We worked with residents who were challenged with rental payments, pointing them to resources for aid
• We held a monthly drawing for our residents—it wasn’t a lot but it was a small blessing to the winners each month
• We were blessed to all remain healthy—and to our knowledge, most of our owners, residents and vendors did too

Now, as we close the year, we received some really gratifying and exciting news…our Owner/Broker, Michael Hodges, was named NEFAR Realtor of the Year. He has worked so hard for so long-- but especially this year—and we could not be prouder or happier for him!

While the news on the national front hasn’t been the best re: stimulus, something good appears to be on the horizon here in Jacksonville. We’ve provided the link below so you can read for yourself but some additional aid is on the way for our community. We have to celebrate the small victories, right?

https://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/local/duval-county/jacksonvilles-city-council-spend-millions-cares-act-funding-eviction-foreclosure-relief/2WV55GWXAVHXLHIU5XQKAI7I6Q/ 
To add to all the dynamics going on, we’re at that special time of year: daylight savings time. Most of us don’t care for this and apparently there is some science to back up why! See this for some coping strategies:

https://greatist.com/health/seasonal-affective-disorder?slot_pos=article_1&utm_source=Sailthru%20Email&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=daily&utm_content=2020-10-29&apid=31394128

With the election coming to a conclusion soon (hopefully) our collective angst may abate; however, if you need some general mental health tips (who doesn’t these days?) take a look at this:

https://www.self.com/story/how-to-deal-with-2020

Now, if you need some assistance with a Jacksonville rental property, we have the credentials for that and can alleviate ANY related anxiety!

Does anyone else just feel the need for a little spooky fun? Since the biggest riddle of all (besides the pending stimulus relief for all) is how we might be able to enjoy Halloween this year, we found some good Halloween riddles. Could be good and SAFE Halloween fun to share with your kids, family, friends or co-workers!

If you can’t figure out the answer, email marketing@fpmproperties.com and you might get a Halloween treat as well as the answer!

• Why don’t mummies take vacations?
• How do you know that a vampire loves baseball?
• How do you fix a jack o lantern?
• Which part of the road do ghosts love to travel the most?
• Why didn’t the mummy have any friends?
• What do you get if you cross a snowman with a witch?
• Why didn’t the zombie go trick or treating?
• Why did Snap, Crackle & Pop get scared?
• What do witches ask for when staying at a hotel?

If you’re anything like us, you are looking forward to putting 2020 in the rear view. We’re now in the 4^th quarter of this game from hell; let’s finish with a victory—whatever that looks like!

We (the human race) are still creating words to attempt to adequately characterize what this year has been like.  Now we’re also headed into a contentious U.S. election cycle. Is there anything more 2020 can bestow upon us?

It’s been a journey for sure.  We were collectively asked to make some uncomfortable adjustments; many still linger.

For those of us blessed enough to still be here, we should reflect on that with some measure of reverence and gratitude. All of us have had to tap into reservoirs of patience we weren’t sure we even had. Yes, there has been heinous behavior along the way but by and large, we’ve mostly overcome these various blows and can perhaps reflect on what we’ve learned in order to look forward. 

We’re taking inventory, both literally and figuratively and expect to have a lot to share heading into the holiday season and traditional period of thanksgiving. We’re making our list and plan to share it this Thanksgiving.

There have been numerous small victories to celebrate while running the 2020 gauntlet….

Oh, and Happy Halloween—nothing can be scarier than what it took to get this far!