- Important Dates to Remember
- Updates at Hales Property Management
- Reporting Small Building Issues
- Best of the Hales Blog
- Maintenance Tip: Sealing a Leaky Window
- From the Desk of Keith Hales
| Jan. 4 – 29: | Free Entry to Museum of Science and Industry (weekdays only) |
| Jan. 5: | Elvis Fest |
| Jan. 13 – 15: | Cubs Convention |
| Jan. 16: | Martin Luther King, Jr. Day |
| Jan. 27 – Feb. 9: | Chicago Restaurant Week |
| Jan. 28: | Polar Bear Plunge |
Updates at Hales Property Management
2017 Assessment Increases-If your Association increased assessments for the 2017 budget year, please make sure to update your recurring payment on the web portal.
Announcement- Congratulations to Mary Lou Brown on her retirement with Hales! Mary Lou was a tremendous asset to the team and we wish her the best in her future endeavors.
Reporting Small Building Issues Before They Turn Into Big Ones
We’ve all heard the old saying about an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure. In the case of building maintenance, this saying makes a lot of sense: taking care of minor maintenance issues before they turn into full-blown problems can save everyone a lot of time, money, and stress.
Some of the minor issues to be on the lookout for as an owner/occupant are:
- Burnt out lights in the common areas
- Exterior doors that may be malfunctioning
- Leaks of any sort
- Cracking or other problems of the building exterior
- HVAC and boiler units that are acting up
- Any pests
Even the most vigilant property manager would have a difficult time catching all these potential issues, while they may be obvious to someone who actually lives in the building. For that reason, it is crucial that the owners remain diligent about reporting issues, even if they feel like they might be overreacting. The best policy to follow is “Tell the building manager, and let him or her decide if it’s important”.
Q & A
Q: What property tax increases can Chicago homeowners expect this year?
A: The property taxes for which the first installment will be due next month are the property taxes for 2016 (because property tax is always paid on the previous year). After last year’s property tax increase, which averaged 13% per household, it’s understandable that homeowners would be concerned. It looks like the property taxes for 2016 will increase, but homeowners can expect a more reasonable 4% increase on average.
Maintenance Tip: Sealing a Leaky Window
Have a cold air leak coming in through one of your windows? Don’t just live with it-it’s easier to fix than you might think. Here’s a segment from This Old House to show you how:
From the Desk of Keith Hales Happy New Year and best wishes in 2017! Over the past several weeks, we’ve been busy preparing preparing the Association’s year end financials as well as setting up new procedures to further enhance and streamline internal processes that will ultimately result in even faster and better overall service. We are also in the process of tightening up any open building issues as well as begin planning for upcoming projects. Even our most diligent managers need your help in identifying issues or potential projects within your building so please continue to submit requests or inquiries through your Association’s web portal. That way, we’ll be able to quickly address it with your Board and you’ll be able to track the ongoing progress. To date, we completed or closed out over 3000 resident tasks in 2016 which is over twice as many as the previous year meaning that our system is indeed working! Please keep them coming and our team of property assistants along with your property manager will address your inquiry in a timely fashion. As always, your opinion matters to me. Please let me know how we can improve our services by sending an email or contacting me directly at 312.757.4651 with any suggestions. Wishing you all a very prosperous 2017! Keith J. Hales | President | CAM | Managing Broker |
