Inside This Newsletter – May Edition
- Important Dates to Remember
- Announcement: Office Hour Updates
- How To: Use Your Garbage Disposal the Right Way
- Q&A: Does the condo I’m looking at buying really need a professional inspection?
- Maintenance Tip: Get to Know Your Electrical Panel
Important Dates to Remember
May 11: Food Trucks at the Zoo
May 12: Mother’s Day
May 27: Memorial Day (Hales Office Closed)
Announcement: Office Hour Updates
Normal Office Hours: Beginning May 28th, our normal office hours will change to Monday through Thursday, 8:30am to 5pm, and Friday 8:30am to 1pm.
Memorial Day Holiday: Our office will be closing at 12pm on Friday, May 24th in observance of Memorial Day. We’ll be back at it again on Tuesday, May 28th. The online web portal will continue to be available 24/7 for any resident requests.
How To: Use Your Garbage Disposal the Right Way
Garbage disposals are universally detested by sewer workers. While convenient, garbage disposals convince people that things that shouldn’t be going down the sink are safe do so. When you put things down the sink that don’t belong there, you risk damaging the pipes within the building.
When you have any solid matter left on a plate, put it in the garbage. If you have something that’s more liquid and you’re afraid it might leak out of your garbage, dump the liquid in a used grocery bag to contain it, then put it in the garbage.
As a general rule, you should never dump any kind of fat down your disposal. Some people think that if they run hot water it will keep the fat liquid and will prevent problems. In fact, fat hardens when it hits the cold pipes and causes problems further down the line. If you absolutely must dispose of some fat with the disposal, keep the running water cold so that the hardened fat can be chopped up into tiny particles by the disposal. Although, the best practice is to dump fat into a spare jar and then dispose the fat into the garbage.
Company Tools & Processes
Have a question regarding your ledger or have a maintenance request for the common areas of your building? Simply log on to the online web portal to submit requests directly to our property management team. The site is mobile friendly and allows for a photo to be attached as well!
As a friendly reminder, owners who are currently renting or plan to rent their unit need to contact renting@halesinc.com prior to moving a tenant in or out of the building. Additionally, per the Illinois Condominium Property Act, all leases need to be supplied at the time of signing.
Are you aware of the Hales Rental Management Program? For more information, please fill out our rental services form.
If you are selling or refinancing, please visit www.halesinc.com/selling.
Q & A
Q: Does the condo I’m looking at buying really need a professional inspection?
A: Yes! There are plenty of things to check indoors – insulation of windows and doors, covered up water damage, mold, etc. Buying a condo is a huge investment, and we always recommend getting a full inspection before you move forward. A general review of the exterior areas should also be completed to ensure there are no glaring issues that may be costly to the Association down the road, which may translate to a special assessment that will be your responsibility to pay.
Maintenance Tip:
Get to Know Your Electrical Panel
You don’t need to know anything about your electrical panel, until something goes wrong. Why not familiarize yourself ahead of time so you’re ready when you need to operate it? This video should help.
