Since COVID-19 began, tracking legislation updates has been a hardship for everyone. Depending on your location, you might feel like laws change every other day. For some, that's unfortunately true.
The recent legislation changes in Virginia, beginning on the 1st of March, is an excellent example. Yardi’s ScreeningWorks PRO already informed all its customers, but many still feel lost regarding the law’s implications.
What does it mean? Why does it matter? More importantly, what can you do? That’s our topic for today.
What does this law entail?
The law relates directly to the landlord-tenant relationship. In essence, it's a way to guarantee that applicants rejected by landlords don't feel lost afterwards. That's because it's challenging to know what steps they can take after rejection.
To simplify things, this notice demands landlords to provide additional information to applicants after denying housing. This information primarily goes through their rights and what they can do.
The law applies to all applicants screened and denied housing on the 1st of March and later.
The implications for landlords: What do you have to consider now?
This law was a surprise for most companies and managers because of how sudden it was. Therefore, there's still a lack of information about the notice and what landlords need to start doing.
As a summary, you need to notify rejected applicants about their rights via the Virginia notice. This information is available for Yardi users right now. Additionally, you can set up your preferred communication channel so that it sends the required documentation to your denied applicants.
How can you curb these new challenges?
Now, the main obstacle isn’t to procure the information you need to convey to your applicants. It’s readily available for any users of Yardi’s ScreeningWorks PRO. It’s also easy to find with simple legal advice.
The genuine hurdle is finding the means to communicate everything to your applicants with little effort. It might not sound too challenging, but when you're managing several properties with a dozen applications per space, everything adds up.
Luckily, the real estate sector enjoys plenty of options to improve the relationships between landlords and tenants.
Streamlining communications
The first step to comply with these requirements is to make your communications as straightforward as possible. You don't want to spend too much effort and resources to abide by these new requirements.
That’s mainly because you don’t have to. For instance, most of our software services include comprehensive solutions to communicate with your tenants and teams. If you're implementing real estate apps, it's likely you already have the necessary features.
Modern ERP software
Additionally, modern ERP solutions have all the features you need to manage your properties from a single dashboard. That includes tracking maintenance and statuses, but communications are often overlooked features in these apps.
For instance, ScreeningWorks PRO lets you generate and download adverse action letters. You can email these in seconds to all your rejected applicants. Yardi also made a PDF of the Virginia law downloadable to attach to your email and send it immediately.
Tenant portals
Tenant portals, usually available via the most sophisticated property management platforms, are also remarkable for this task. You can screen and interview all your applicants via these systems, and that includes sending important notifications.
For instance, you can sort out your best applicants and segment those you want to reject. Their contact information can go into an email list, to which you can forward all the legally required documentation requested by the new Virginia law.
Implementing CRM Apps
Customer relationship management is becoming increasingly important in all industries, and real estate isn't an exception. You need to keep tabs on all your current and potential customers, and these apps let you manage your email lists and automate communications extensively.
Some of the most advanced CRM solutions, like Zoho and Salesforce, let you take care of all messages and notifications from a single dashboard. You only need your applicant’s email, and the system does the rest. As long as you set up the right message, there’s nothing else to do.
Do you need to change ERP software? Keep this in mind
ERP systems are an excellent investment for any company looking to streamline its operations. However, they also require lots of care to ensure you're investing in the right things.
ERP software is an extensive catalog. Every system has various intricacies and features that fit diverse requirements and preferences. A wrong choice in software can translate into monetary losses and operational disruptions.
We also have to consider other processes, like implementation, training, onboarding, and more. Luckily, our years of experience working with multiple software and clients has shown us the three vital considerations for successful integration.
Your real needs
The most crucial aspect to keep in mind is why you're getting an ERP system. They're excellent for streamlining communications and collaboration, but they're more than that. If you only want to send notifications, there are cheaper solutions,
It would be best to consider how much you want to do: your ERP software's features and capabilities. Even providers like Yardi have various products for different business sizes.
Cost-efficiency ratio
When choosing an ERP system, it’s common to look for “more bang for your buck” or as many features as you can for the best price. Everyone’s guilty of doing it, and that’s because it’s not necessarily a bad idea.
It's good to find as much value as possible, but if you're paying for more features than what you'll use, there's a problem. Cost-efficiency goes beyond value for money; we always help our clients focus on what they need and scaling later.
Hiring an effective service
Finally, you'll probably want to hire a software implementation service. Our experience has taught us that it's better to tailor our services depending on the client. That's why we recommend you look for personalized solutions.
Additionally, please consider hiring someone who offers implementation, training, onboarding, and support in a single package. That way, you can save considerably.