Systems to Follow in Shopping Centre Management
In shopping centre management it is really important that you have systems to follow in undertaking daily property management activities. A retail property and particularly a retail shopping centre is perhaps the most demanding property that you can manage. You have lots of smaller specialty tenants to control each day as well as the activities of the anchor tenants. Here are some tips from our Newsletter……
In many retail properties of this type it is not unusual to have a team of people to help you with tenancy issues, maintenance, leases, and customers. After all of those things are controlled you still have the landlord to report to and communicate with. On a daily basis the average property manager is a very busy person.
Here are some systems to help you keep your property under some control and directed towards the plans and targets that the landlord has given you.
- Tenant communications should and will happen every day. This is a big part of managing a retail asset. Most tenants will have issues from time to time relating to their occupancy or the lease that they have in place with the landlord. Communications should be first class in all respects. Records should be kept on all active or current issues as you may need to rely on those records when a disagreement occurs (disagreements do happen frequently in retail property management).
- Lease critical dates are unique to each tenant and lease. Understand each lease document and stay ahead of lease dates and events. Load the critical dates into a diary system that can alert you early of upcoming events.
- Sales figures may need to be collected each month from some if not all tenants. The sales figures will tell you when the property or the tenants are experiencing a trading problem. That problem will soon be reflected in the rent payments for the property.
- Rent arrears will exist and on that basis should be tracked and actioned. If a tenant is not up to date on rent payments, you need to know why and then take action in accordance with what the landlord wants to do about it.
- Lease terms and conditions vary from tenant to tenant, so watch and understand all the leases in the property.
- Property maintenance will be a daily event and should occur based on the authorities of the landlord as provided to the property manager.
- Tenant mix issues will be impacted by lease expiry, lease options, and rent reviews. They are all critical dates. Plan your actions so that the best results occur for the landlord.
- Outgoings payments and charges will vary from tenant to tenant based on the rent types and lease terms. Understand what the tenant has to pay and charge accordingly.
You can add to this list based on the challenges of the property or the instructions of the landlord. Systems in property management help keep things under control. That then means less stress for the manager and a better property performance for the landlord.
