Property Management News
Property managers make judgment calls every day. Most can be handled through established policies, training, and good documentation. But fair housing has a way of turning an ordinary operational question into something much more complicated. A resident asks for an unusual accommodation. A new HUD announcement appears to change a familiar practice. Corporate guidance conflicts with something staff heard at a conference. A complaint is threatened, and suddenly everyone has a different opinion about what should happen next. The goal is not for property managers to become fair housing lawyers. It is to know when a decision has moved beyond routine operations and into territory where legal... Read more
A new federal housing law is putting limits on some of the country’s largest buyers of single-family homes. But for the typical independent landlord, the story is...
A resident has been violating a community rule for months. There has been thorough documentation, staff has issued reminders, and management is finally ready to...
The tenant screening market is competitive with numerous tenant screeners (aka consumer reporting agencies or CRAs) battling for business from property managers and...
A Portland-based landlord accused of wrongly evicting a Vancouver renter and her ill mother has agreed to pay $725,000 in what tenant attorneys say is Washington’s...
The moment a property manager issues a denial letter, the professional relationship enters a high-stakes phase. While automated screening tools provide a necessary first layer of defense, they often lack the nuance required by modern fair housing standards. The core conflict lies in the tension between a property’s need for uniform safety standards and the legal requirement to treat each applicant as an individual. When an applicant chooses to appeal a denial, the management team must shift from a simple gatekeeper to a deliberative body, akin to a court of law, to ensure the final decision is both fair and legally defensible. The Evidence Phase of Individualized Assessment In a... Read more
A New York appeals court struck down a state law banning discrimination against tenants who use Section 8 vouchers, ruling that the 2019 source-of-income protections...
In property management, it’s tempting to lean on zero-tolerance screening policies. They’re fast, efficient, and feel like a safe bet against discrimination claims....
Most operators are underestimating how much fraud is getting through their current screening process, even if they think they’ve “tightened things...
The natural instinct for any good property manager is to double-check everything. You have a duty to protect the property and follow the rules fairly for everyone on...
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