Owning an apartment community comes with its fair share of uncontrollable expenses. However, it is how you handle the controllable expense that could mean the difference between making a profit or losing money. A controllable expense is best defined as cost that you can proactively avoid or reduce by planning ahead or negotiating. The top three controllable expenses are:

• Utilities
• General Ground Maintenance
• Property Insurance

The apartment community experts at Top Floor Insurance recommend these cost-saving measures.

Utilities

If utilities are included in your tenants’ monthly rent, then keeping track of how much you are spending per unit is key. Monitoring usage levels throughout the year to budget accordingly will help you better manage your cash flow and be able to spot irregularities that may occur from a tenant’s overuse of electricity, water, or gas. The best way to control utility expenses is by reigning in the usage.

General Ground Maintenance

Keeping the outside areas  of your property in top shape can be expensive, especially if you add in shrubbery and flowers. Some apartment community owners have been able to get great savings by agreeing to multi-season, or multi-year deals with one landscaping vendor.

Staying ahead on preventative maintenance on your equipment is a sure way to reduce costly repairs and equipment replacements. If you do not have a regular maintenance schedule, then now is the time to create one and to stick to it.

Property Insurance

The unfortunate reality is, most apartment community owners forego “shopping around” to save themselves time, but in the end they cost themselves lots in the form of inflated insurance premiums. The process to get a quote can be a chore, requiring you to complete mountains of paperwork and compile even larger stacks of documents. However, partnering with an efficient and reputable insurance provider like Top Floor Insurance can mean that you get the best rate with little to no administrative hassle.

Keeping track of the monthly or recurring expenses you have for your apartment community can help you quickly identify and address any escalating costs before they balloon out of control.
We, at Top Floor Insurance, can help you keep your controllable insurance costs to a minimum, without sacrificing your coverage. For a fast, no paperwork needed quote, contact us online, or give one of our seasoned insurance specialists a call today at 404-266-3218.