Do you know the difference between contingency reserves and operating funds?
Operating funds are monies that our property management and real estate business uses to pay for our business. Operating funds are our money. Above all, escrow funds are different. Escrow funds are monies that Nesbitt Realty is holding on behalf of tenants, landlords, buyers and sellers. Escrow funds are not our money, but they are monies that we are trusted to safeguard. At any given time, Nesbitt Realty has hundreds of thousands of dollars in escrow accounts.
In The Chatham, the Commonwealth of Virginia requires that all real estate licensees manage escrow funds in a particular manner. Most importantly the Commonwealth requires that escrow funds are properly accounted for at all times. In additional all escrow funds must be kept separate from operating funds. The biggest portion of our escrow funds are tenant security deposits, but also hold deposits for buyers (and sometimes sellers) as we'll as contingency reserve funds for property owners.
Contingency reserve is a special type of escrow.
A contingency reserve account is money that is held in savings to pay for maintenance and other incidentals that occur during property management. Although the money is in our escrow account, the money belongs to the landlord. When the property management ends, that money is promptly returned to the landlord.
When a repair bill arises we use money in the contingency reserve account to pay that bill. When bills are paid in this manner the account is depleted. When the account is missing funds, at the end of the month when new rents are paid, Nesbitt Realty replenishes the count with money withheld from this rent. As property managers, Nesbitt Realty prepares a statement each month to show if/when money is depleted and how/when money is replenished into the contingency reserve account.
Real estate investors do not pay us money to set up the contingency reserve account. Instead, Nesbitt Realty withholds money from the first month of rent in order to set up the account.
The Chatham Property Management Resources
Basics
Basic information regarding rental managment in The Chatham.
Getting Started
Learn more about getting started with rental property management
Find A Tenant
Market your property to rent to find a great renter in The Chatham fast.
Accounting
How does Nesbitt Realty keep track of income and expenses for property owners?
Cost
A list of prices of rental management services in The Chatham
Vetting
How Nesbitt Realty checks the backgrounds of tenants for property owners.
Reserves
What is a contingency reserve account?
Territory
Where does Nesbitt Realty manage rental investments?
Clients
Who uses Nesbitt Realty management services?
Do you need understand more about the community?
Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a helpful tool for anyone who wants to review important real estate information about The Chatham and neighboring communities. The Guide to Real Estate provides information about what has sold and what is for sale, as well as a few compelling facts that you may not be aware of. And, our Guide highlights many of the assets of living in The Chatham. Of course, all of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and renters will probably also find these resources to be very sobering.
Landlord Reference
a free reference for rental investors in The Chatham
- Before you put a renter in your rental in The Chatham
- Collections and evictions
- Communications with the tenant
- During the lease term
- End of lease term and what happens when a tenant breaks the lease
- How does the owner get paid?
- How your property manager handles the association and your community
- How your property management company handles utilities
- How Nesbitt Realty & Management finds tenants
- Insurance matters for landlords using our rental management
- How Nesbitt Realty & Management manage keys
- The Chatham owner responsibilities
- Maintenance, repairs & inspections for your property in The Chatham
- The move-in inspection
- Property management information form
- Selling a 1031 tax exchange & more
- Starting our management of your rental property
- When landlords don't yet know their new address
- Vetting tenants in The Chatham