owner faq's

• Single-family owners click HERE
• Multi-family owners click HERE

• All tenants must have a minimum of 650 credit score with no outstanding utility or housing debt. The screening report is a hard pull, and uses Experian and Transunion.
• No evictions, bankruptcies or foreclosures in the last seven years
• Gross monthly income must be at least 3x the monthly rent, and be confirmed by previous pay stubs and letter from employer
• Must have positive rental reference from current and previous landlords
• If coming with a pet, both current and previous landlord must give positive reference for approval

Statistically, by allowing pets in your rental property you can widen your potential pool of prospective applicants by as much as 67%.This will also help you increase your leasing velocity and rental rate. We encourage our owners to be open to pets, but if a property owner chooses not to approve animals then we might have to adjust the rental rate downward in order to mitigate vacancy and secure the best tenant as soon as possible.

Fees:

• We typically do not charge non-refundable pet fees or monthly pet rent. We try to be more competitive in the market, as well as not nickel and dime our tenants. This strategy helps us secure the best tenant first.
• In order to protect our clients and the property we increase the tenant’s security deposit based on the number and type of animals they have: $300 per cat, $400 per dog. This money gets added to the tenant’s total security deposit and can be used in case the pet or tenant creates any damages. By having this fee be refundable, it encourages the tenant to take better care of the property so they can have this money returned after they move out.
• We generally recommend a two pet limit, and no more than 100lbs combined weight.
• During the application process, owners will received a pet verification from previous/current landlords

Up to 40 days from the start of leasing. As long as your property is priced correctly in the market, we have found that it takes up to 20 days to receive an application, and then another 20 days until the new tenant moves into the property.

• Yes. We require a security deposit equal to one month’s rent.
• If a tenant has credit below 650 and the landlord still wants to approve their application, we generally recommend increasing the security deposit based information found on the tenant’s credit report.
• The maximum security deposit allowed in the state of North Carolina cannot be greater than an amount equal to two months rent.
• Tenants are required to pay the full security deposit within 5 days of signing their lease. If a new tenant fails to meet this deadline then the lease will automatically terminate. Your property manager will continue to advertise and show the property during this time until the security deposit is paid.

• We generally start with a 12 month lease
• We do not recommend short term leases. If a landlord wants to approve a short term lease then we would recommend adding a premium rent charge to the lease agreement, such as an additional $50, $100 or $150 per month charge.

Anytime! But to be specific, the height of the rental market will always fall between March-August. Therefore we always recommend to our clients to have your lease end dates terminate no earlier than March 31st and no later than August 31st. Leases that terminate outside of this time frame are still okay, however the slower rental market might affect your leasing velocity, rental rate, and potential pool of applicants.

We run a comparative market analysis on your property, searching for comparative rental properties within a close radius of your investment. And then we look at secured rental rates over the last twelve months, and determine an average per square foot. This value is then applied to the total sqft of your property, giving us an approximate rental rate. Beyond this calculation, our experienced property managers have years of management throughout the Triangle and Triad area, and will use instincts and knowledge to give you the best rental range for your asset – best case scenario and worst case scenario.

• At Highland, we do not have a maintenance staff on payroll. We use highly qualified and trusted third-party maintenance vendors. By not keeping maintenance in house, which would increase our business overhead, we are able to pass these savings onto our clients through our commissions.
• This business model also allows Highland the opportunity to switch between vendors if we find prices are increasing beyond norm, or quality and responsiveness begins to lessen.
• We do not charge additional management fees for handling maintenance requests, and we do not up-charge a vendor’s invoice.
• Your property manager is in charge of handling a maintenance request from start to finish. Most smaller maintenance repairs can easily be handled through handyman services, however we will always try to get multiple estimates on larger repairs.
• Any maintenance repair that exceeds $300 will automatically require the owner’s approval before moving forward.
• Single-family properties: Maintenance repairs that exceed $2,000 might require management by the owner of the property

• Standard Form 410T-6 Residential Rental Agreement.
• Standard Form 440T-3 Maintenance Addendum.
• All forms and contracts are drafted by the NC Bar Association, and issued and copyrighted by the NC Association of Realtors.

• Our lease agreement states that both tenant and landlord have to give 60-days notice for renewal or termination.
• As we approach the 60-day deadline, your property manager will run a new market analysis on your property to determine if the rental value has changed.
• We generally reach out to owners 90 days before a lease ends, and discuss a new market evaluation and suggested rental rate.
• Once the owner approves the new rental rate, we typically reach out to the tenant 75 days before lease end date, providing them a renewal/vacate notice.
• If a tenant fails to give notice after the 60 day period has ended the lease will automatically renew for another 12-months at the new rate.
• We do not suggest or offer month-to-month leases unless directed by the owner of a property.

Our software, Appfolio, will advertise your property on at least 20 different rental websites. We also use Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist when needed, and post higher value properties (typically greater than $2,000 /mo) on the MLS. We also suggest to our clients to use premium websites such Zillow or Apartments.com. Websites like these generally increase traffic by 60%, however sites like Zillow charge $9.99 a week to use their service.

If a property is priced correctly then we should receive on average 6-12 inquiries within the first 48 hours. Once an inquiry is received we will screen the prospect with the following questions.

• What is your approximate credit score?
• What is your desired move-in date?
• How many people over the age of 18 will be residing in the property?
• Do you plan on bringing any pets? If so, how many and what type ofanimal and breed?

If a prospect passed the first line of screening, we will immediately set up a showing. All showings are conducted in person by your property manager.

• Thankfully at Highland we have less than a 1% eviction rating due to the high level of scrutiny we place on applicants during the leasing process. But every landlord must prepare themselves for the potential day where an eviction may be necessary. Once it has been determined to file an eviction, your property manager will work with a specialized eviction attorney and help manage the process from start to finish.
• The property owner is required to pay all court costs and attorney fees. Court fees are usually $126 for the eviction + $55 for executing the writ. Attorney fees will vary based on the firm hired.
• Due to the court process, it generally takes around 45-60 days to evict a tenant. This process starts as soon as you have given your tenant a 10-day notice and then file eviction paperwork at the clerk’s office.

What does the eviction process look like?

• Tenants have until the 5th of the month to pay rent on time.
• On the 6th day of each month your property manager will send out a 10-Day Pay-or-Quit Notice to all tenants that have a delinquent account balance on their account ledger. The owner of the property will be notified during this time as well.
• The tenant then has until the 17th or next business day to pay their balance in full in order to avoid eviction.
• On the 18th or next business day, the property manager and landlord may file eviction paperwork on any tenant who has a remaining balance.
• Your property manager and attorney will file eviction paperwork at the clerk’s office located in the local court house building. The clerk of court will generally let you pick a court date that is at least 10-days out from the date that you’re filing.
• On the day of court, your attorney and/or property manager will attend the hearing in magistrates court. *It is not necessary for the landlord to attend.
• If the magistrate rules in favor of the landlord, then the tenant will have 10-days to appeal.
• **If your tenant has successfully appealed their case, you will need to discuss with your attorney next steps moving forward. During this time the tenant is typically required to pay any rent balances directly to the clerk of court for holding while the appeals process is underway.
• After the 10-day appeal period is over and your tenant has NOT appealed, then the landlord may then file a Writ of Eviction on the 11th day at the clerk’s office and sheriff’s office.
• The sheriffs office will generally give you a date of eviction 7-10 days out from the day you file your writ.
• On the day your writ is scheduled to be executed, your property manager will need to meet the sheriff at the property.
• Your property manager will need to have keys for entry, as well as change locks on the doors. It is important that the sheriff gain entry to the property to execute the writ of eviction. This means if keys do not work we will have to drill the locks in order to open the door. This might require payment to a locksmith or handyman, which is covered by the owner. Owner will also have to pay for new locks.
• Once the sheriff has successfully entered the property and posted notice of evictions in multiple windows, then the landlord has legal possession of the property.
• At this point your property manager will work diligently to create a game plan for turning the unit as well as leasing in order to mitigate as much vacancy as possible.

Yes. We require tenants to carry a minimum of $300k policy.

• Fully executed lease agreement.
• All monies paid (App fee + Security deposit + first month’s rent)
• Proof of renters insurance.
• Proof that all utilities have been transferred into their name.
• Tenants are given keys ONLY on the start date of their lease.

• Yes. Tenants are required to submit their move in inspection within 10-days of moving into the property.
• It is also important to note that your property manager will be doing a pre-move-in inspection of the property prior to the tenant moving in.

• Yes, we check every 4 months for lease compliance and proper care.
• Your property manager will also conduct an annual maintenance inspection which will include a detailed report and photographs
• If your property manager finds that your tenant has damaged the property then the landlord will be immediately informed and the tenant given proper notice. The manager will then coordinate work orders with the appropriate vendors, and the tenant will be responsible for reimbursing the landlord for these costs. If the tenant is continually in violation of the lease agreement, the landlord will have the opportunity to fine the tenant or terminate the lease agreement.

• Your property manager is on call 24/7 regarding emergencies and maintenance.
• Your manager will work diligently to solve the problem directly with your tenant. But if it becomes quickly evident that a vendor will be required, then your property manager will update you via email, phone call or text message, and then quickly send a work order to the appropriate vendor.
• If the maintenance repair is considered to be an emergency, then your manager will quickly work to get it resolved. If it is determined not to be an emergency your manager will schedule the repair during the upcoming business days.
• If the maintenance repair is considered to be an emergency (fire, flood, etc) and your property manager cannot get in touch with the owner, then the property manager will have the approval to move forward with the repair in order to quickly protect the home and tenant.

• All owners are required to keep $300 on file as maintenance reserves for their property.
• All of our vendors have a 30 day payment policy
• We will try to use collected rents to cash flow all maintenance invoices.
• If the repair estimate exceeds the amount of funds on hand then the owner of the property will need to deposit funds to Highland through their online portal.

• On the first of each month all owners receive their monthly reporting for the preceding month.
• These reports are uploaded to your online portal, as well as copies of any recently paid invoices.
• Single family owners will get a general owner statement that will outline all income and expenses occurring through the month.
• Multi unit owners will receive additional reports such as rent roll, delinquency report, income statement, cash flow statement, balance sheet, general ledger, T12, and renewal tracker.
• Single family investors are welcome to additional reports upon request.

It is honestly up to you… Some owners want to be updated weekly or monthly, while other owners only want to be updated when there is a maintenance emergency. We’re happy to communicate with you in any way that makes you feel the most comfortable about your property.

• At Highland we only specialize in property management, and do not perform buy/sell brokerage services
• We will be happy to connect you with preferred, experienced realtors that can help you search for your next investment.
• In the meantime, we welcome all of our investors and future clients to send us addresses of prospective properties they are interested in, and we will be glad to assist you with rental comps, evaluation of the area, and give you any opinions we can in order to help you best understand the asset and its potential. We want to help you in any way we can so you can always secure the best deal!

• Depending on when the tenant pays their rent, owner draws are sent out on the 7th, 12th and 25th of each month. Once a tenant pays rent, it usually takes 2-4 days to settle into our rent trust account, and then another few days to settle into an owner’s bank account after the ACH payment.
• Owners can receive their monthly draws via check or direct deposit.
• Note: checks sent via mail might take longer to receive.