OWNERS NEWSLETTER – FEBRUARY 2007 

FREEZING WEATHER – In December we experienced several days of below freezing temperatures. We again dropped into the twenties for close to a week last month and experienced freezing rain, snow, and sleet. Our maintenance department visited all of our vacant properties in advance of the hard freezes and winterized each unit. The preventative measures we took helped to prevent plumbing lines from freezing and subsequently leaking as temperatures climbed back up. Additionally, we contacted many of our renters with sprinkler systems and pools to remind them to take preventative measures against freezing.  

GRASS & LANDSCAPING – Unfortunately, the fallout of extended hard freezing temperatures is the severe decline and/or loss of certain types of grass and shrubbery. Those of us that have lived in central Texas for many years have experienced firsthand the toll cold weather can take on our yards. St. Augustine grass is extremely susceptible to decline when exposed to prolonged hard freezes as are many of the plants and shrubs commonly sold at our local nurseries. Unless the shrubs and plants are tolerant of temperatures below thirty-two degrees, there is a chance they will not come back in the spring. As we inspect yards in the months ahead and discover dead shrubs and yards in obvious decline, we must take into consideration the harsh winter weather rather than automatically assuming tenant neglect. Renters that have been less than attentive to their yards often get a free pass on charges when harsh temperatures have caused widespread damage to the landscaping. We will do our best in determining chargeability in all cases. 

RENTAL MARKET – We are in a soft rental market, meaning that there are many available properties and few renters to fill them. We rented only 21 properties last month, nine apartments and twelve houses. We ended the month with an overall occupancy rate of 87%. For owners of multi-family properties, the outlook is poor at the moment. In addition to the huge number of new and existing four-plexes with vacancies, there are currently three large apartment communities under construction in Killeen that will collectively add close to 1,000 units into the availability pool. Many of our apartment owners have wisely reduced their asking rents and are offering move-in incentives. Many single-family property owners will need to reduce their asking rents as well. It is much better to accept a reduced rent on your property verses it sitting vacant for an extended period. We are feeling the impact of large military deployments from Ft. Hood and area over-building. If you have a vacant property and would like to discuss your options, please feel free to e-mail me at reltor@aol.com. We will continue to work hard to keep your properties rented.

David Gerke

CO-Owner/Broker