A new year presents opportunities for fresh starts and exciting goals. But January can be a heavy month too, especially if you help manage a large condominium or HOA community.
January is often the time when residents renew leases for parking spots, boat and bike racks, and locker spaces. From a logistical standpoint, it makes the most sense.
Table of contents
- Large communities benefit from having paid parking and storage
- What is the best way to manage paid parking and storage?
- How is a community assets management system better than what we’re doing now?
- Easier parking and storage management
- Better transparency
- Maximized revenue
- Tips for optimum parking and storage management
But, while the process is generally simple, fulfilling renewal requests manually can take many days to complete. That time-consuming task, which must be repeated every year, can equate to thousands of dollars in labor fees.
The good news is that next January doesn’t have to be so challenging. With a digital system to manage paid parking and storage, your team can save significant time and money.
Keep reading to find out how your condo or HOA can transform the way it currently manages paid parking and storage renewals.
Large communities benefit from having paid parking and storage
Even though renewing agreements for premium or paid assets can be a challenge, large condos and HOAs benefit from charging members for parking and storage. The additional revenue stream is the most obvious advantage, but there are other benefits too.
Accountability
Some communities choose to charge annual fees for access to parking and storage to ensure accountability. Creating a formal leasing process allows the condominium or HOA to determine who has the right to use a boat rack or storage locker.
Not only does having this type of system reduce conflict between residents, but staff can easily verify whether or not a car is supposed to be parked in a certain spot.
Fair distribution
In other cases, it’s about creating a fair system for owners and residents who want access to a premium asset. Bike rack spaces, for example, which are often limited, may be leased out on a first-come, first-served basis.
Inventory management
Continuing from the last point, if inventory is limited, staff can see exactly how many lockers or racks have been leased, and how many empty spaces remain.
Revenue opportunity
To be approved for a lease or lease renewal, the applicant must pay a fee. That money can be used to increase the community’s annual budget or fund reserves. Even small revenue streams can add up over time, and as a result, the community puts itself in a better position to pay for improvement projects or upgrades.
What is the best way to manage paid parking and storage?
It is possible to document paid parking and storage using a paper list or Excel document. But both of these methods are tedious, and neither can automate payments.
That means on top of collecting applications, issuing approvals, and distributing tags or barcodes, staff still have to take cash or checks to the bank.
A digital community assets management system for leased assets not only streamlines the process of collecting and approving applications, but it can be linked to a payment processing system so that residents and owners can make payments online.
How is a digital community assets management system better than what we’re doing now?
A community assets management system consolidates and streamlines the process of approving lease and lease renewal applications. Nearly every step can be completed online, making it a convenient and sustainable solution.
In some cases, if appropriate, your team can even use autorenewal for leases. Reminders are sent to owners and residents before the autorenewal date so that they have the opportunity to terminate their leases before they are charged for another year.
If you are a community with 500+ doors or units, a digital system could save your team days of admin work.
Simplified management of parking spaces and storage
Condo Control’s community asset management feature makes it easy for communities to lease premium assets to residents and owners. So much manual work can be completed using the platform. No workarounds or makeshift solutions required.
For example, owners can access and complete a lease application on their Condo Control account. They can also submit payment information with the application so that when it is approved, the payment can be processed right away.
Staff can approve applications, view payment statuses, and look up details of individual leases from a centralized location, offering complete visibility over leased parking and storage.
Better transparency
This type of lease management system also creates transparency for all parties. Owners and residents aren’t left wondering if their application has been approved or denied, and staff have a digital record of every pending and active lease agreement.
Maximized revenue
By creating an intuitive process for leasing parking and storage, residents and owners are more likely to request and hold on to these assets. They have the flexibility to pay with a credit card or bank transfer. However, staff can still record offline payments for people who prefer to pay with checks or cash.
Activating the autorenewal option also helps maintain a consistent revenue stream. People who are happy with their lease agreements don’t have to do anything if they want to keep their bike rack, parking spot or storage locker for another year.
Tips for optimum parking and storage management
If your community does not yet have a formal method for managing paid parking and storage, or if you are seeking an upgrade, keep these best practices in mind:
1. Use a system that reflects your community’s needs
A small building or neighborhood with limited parking and storage can reasonably get by using an Excel spreadsheet. However, a community with 500+ doors will struggle with a manual system. A digital platform with a payment processing integration will do much of the heavy lifting and streamline the time-consuming process.
For example, a resident can link their car to a parking pass application so that the association has all of the information it needs in one place. In the future, if there is ever a question regarding parking authorization, staff can quickly confirm whether a car is parked in its assigned spot.
2. Ensure contact information is contained within the lease application
Up-to-date contact information is required not only to send a response to the applicant, but to remind them of renewal dates if they are signing a fixed-term agreement, or contact them if payment was not successful. With an online submission process, a relevant email address is already attached to the application.
3. Plan for out-of-the-ordinary situations
There may be instances where a resident moves to your community halfway through the year and requires parking or storage. You will need to determine ahead of time if you will prorate fees, or charge the full amount. Similarly, your community may decide to provide a refund to someone if they move out of the community before their lease is up.
Condo Control allows communities to tailor payment options to accommodate unique situations. This way staff aren’t left scrambling when something out of the ordinary occurs.
4. Provide helpful information with the lease application, if applicable
Set residents and owners up for success by providing them with any important information about the leased asset. This could be information about where to place a barcode on a vehicle, or what to do if someone puts their boat on the wrong rack.
By volunteering this information ahead of time, staff can effectively reduce questions and confusion.
5. Use wait lists
In cases where there are a finite number of spaces available, build and maintain a waiting list. This helps fill vacancies sooner, and increases cash flow.
Conclusion
Communities can leverage software to simplify and improve the way they manage paid parking and storage. An online system provides convenience and transparency to applicants, while reducing the workload for staff.
