Do you know the difference between contingency reserves and operating funds?
Operating funds are funds that our property management and real estate business uses to fund our business. Operating funds are our money. Nevertheless, 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 Donna Lee Gardens, 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 rental management. Although the money is in our escrow account, the money belongs to the property owner. 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.
Donna Lee Gardens Property Management Resources
Basics
Basic info regarding property management in Donna Lee Gardens.
Getting Started
Learn more about getting started with property management
Find A Tenant
List your property to rent to find a reliable tenant in Donna Lee Gardens fast.
Accounting
How does Nesbitt Realty keep track of income and expenses for landlords?
Cost
An overview of fees associated with property management services in Donna Lee Gardens
Vetting
How Nesbitt Realty vets tenants for landlords.
Reserves
What is a contingency reserve account?
Territory
Where does Nesbitt Realty manage rentals?
Clients
Who uses Nesbitt Realty management services?
Should you understand more about this community?
Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for everyone who wants to investigate real estate facts about Donna Lee Gardens and neighboring communities. The Guide to Real Estate provides data about what has sold and what is for sale, and a couple of compelling facts that you may not be aware of. In addition, our Guide has quite a few of the assets of life in Donna Lee Gardens. Certainly, most of this is helpful for buyers and sellers, but rental investors and renters should also find these resources to be somewhat eye-opening.
Landlord Reference
a free source for landlords in Donna Lee Gardens
- Before you move a tenant into your rental property in Donna Lee Gardens
- 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 landlord get paid?
- How your rental manager handles the association and your community
- How your management company handles utilities
- How Nesbitt Realty & Management finds renters
- Insurance matters for property owners using our property management
- How Nesbitt Realty & Management manage keys
- Donna Lee Gardens property owner responsibilities
- Maintenance, repairs & inspections for your rental investment in Donna Lee Gardens
- The move-in inspection
- Property management information form
- Selling a 1031 tax exchange & more
- Starting our management of your property
- When owners don't yet know their new address
- Vetting renters in Donna Lee Gardens