California Assembly Bill 1020: Swimming Pools – Effective January 1st, 2010. This bill is basically California’s answer to the Federal Virginia Grahame law that was passed late 2008. The new bill makes it a state law that landlords and owners install anti-entrapment devices on all public pools, new or old.

First Light Property Management, Inc. has been chosen to be interviewed as one of the successful property management companies in Mike Levy’s latest publication:  50 Interviews with Successful Property Managers: Advice and Winning Strategies From Industry Leaders. After my interview with Mr. Levy, he afforded me the opportunity to be a contributing author to his publication.  I […]

1. Exterior Power Wash This is by far the most cost effective way to give your apartment complex that freshly painted look and quick curbside appeal. Here is a link to a plastering company that we use locally to do our power washes: A&D Plastering.  The process is generally a 1-day deal for about an 1/8th of the cost of paint […]

Finding great tenants can sometimes be very challenging, especially with apartment vacancies reaching record highs.  But just because Depression 2.0 is making leasing difficult, it does not mean that we, as property managers do not have a fiduciary duty to protect our clients from dead-beat and/or potentially dangerous tenants. Diligent tenant screening is important and we must, however, keep in mind that […]

I was interviewed by a potential client last week and one of the first questions that he asked me was: “How do you perceive the management style of your company?  In other words, if I were to hire you, what do I tell people your company does for me?”  My answer came quick: “We proactively […]

As the economy keeps doing what it is doing (no need for explanation here, I am quite sure), property manager relationships and trust within business circles become more and more critical. Investors need – more than ever – to be able trust in their broker’s ability to navigate them through the daunting world of short sales, […]

Many of us in the property management field are seeing our