Do you know the difference between contingency reserves and operating funds?
Operating funds are monies that our real estate brokerage uses to pay for our business. Operating funds are our money. But, 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 Forest Villa, 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 purchasers (and sometimes sellers) as we'll as contingency reserve funds for real estate investors.
Contingency reserve is a special type of escrow.
A contingency reserve account is money that is held in savings to pay for repairs 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 property owner.
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.
Owners 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.
Forest Villa Rental Management Resources
Basics
Basic info regarding management services in Forest Villa.
Getting Started
Learn more about getting started with property management
Find A Tenant
Market your property to rent to find a reliable renter in Forest Villa fast.
Accounting
How does Nesbitt Realty keep track of income and expenses for real estate investors?
Cost
An overview of fees associated with rental management services in Forest Villa
Vetting
How Nesbitt Realty checks the backgrounds of tenants for our clients.
Reserves
What is a contingency reserve account?
Territory
Where does Nesbitt Realty manage rental property?
Clients
Who uses Nesbitt Realty management services?
Do you need know more about the community?
Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a handy resource for anyone who wants to review important real estate information about Forest Villa and nearby communities. The Guide to Real Estate compiles data regarding what has sold and what is for sale, as well as a few interesting facts that you might not know. And, our Guide spotlights some elements of living in Forest Villa. As might be expected, most of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but property owners and tenants should also find these tools to be very useful.
Landlord Reference
a handy source for landlords in Forest Villa
- Before you move a tenant into your rental in Forest Villa
- Collections and evictions
- Communications with the renter
- During the lease term
- End of tenancy and what happens when a tenant breaks the lease
- How does the owner get paid?
- How your management company handles the association and your community
- How your rental manager handles utilities
- How Nesbitt finds tenants
- Insurance matters for property owners using our rental management
- How Nesbitt Realty & Management manage keys
- Forest Villa property owner responsibilities
- Maintenance, repairs & inspections for your property in Forest Villa
- The move-in inspection
- Property management information form
- Selling a 1031 tax exchange & more
- Starting our management of your rental
- When property owners don't yet know their new address
- Vetting renters in Forest Villa