One of the most important aspects of the work of a property management company is being smart with a building’s finances. When cutting building costs becomes necessary, the goal is always to reduce them with as little impact on building operations and on the residents’ needs as possible. When you find yourself in need to cut building costs, here’s where to look first:
Negotiate contracts
Contracts across all service lines and utilities should be taken to market at every renewal. If nothing else but to see what else is out there in an effort to drive pricing down with a current provider. Involving experts that understand your building, as well as the various markets being explored is imperative to make sure all contracts continue to provide sufficient service levels and remain in compliance with IL Condo Law, while providing optimal pricing. Tapping into bulk services provided by your management company can also lead to reduced pricing.
Embrace energy efficiency
This is not so straightforward because while you sometimes have to spend some money upfront on a green upgrade, you can benefit from long-term savings and conserve funds in the long run. Nonetheless, because it saves money across the board and does not actually have any downsides for building residents, this is one of our favorite ways to save money on building operations. For a start, consider converting common area and outdoor lighting to LEDs to save up to 60% on their operation.
Encourage residents to go paperless
Distributing building news and communications digitally rather than on paper is much easier and about 20 times cheaper for the property management company. With everyone being online in this day and age, there’s no reason to still be sending printed letters.
Appeal your property taxes
As Chicago has been called one of the worst cities for property taxes in the nation before, this is more relevant here than anywhere else. With property taxes consistently on the rise in the past few years, it’s possible your building is paying more than it has to. It’s very much worth it to appeal your building’s assessment every year to save money on taxes. Consult with appeal attorneys that have experience with a building your size.
As a property management company with more than 200 buildings managed since 2003, we understand the importance of keeping your building running smoothly and efficiently. Click here to learn more about our Association Management services.
