6 minute read

Where else but at…

Vertical Blinds

(We customize to your opening onsite)

MINIBLINDS

(Aluminum or vinyl 1”, 1.5” or 2”)

Faux wood miniblinds 2” (Call for pricing)

We can fix your old rail and purchase vane per piece or set

Gas or Electric: 20” 24” & 30” Brownstove, Hotpoint, Amana, GE & Whirlpool

Dishwasher: 18” or 24”

Hotpoint or Frigidaire

General Wire

Replacement Cables: 3/8”; ½”, 25’, 50’, 75’ or 100’, Regular head, DH or DDH

CLOSETDOORS: VINYL OR MIRRORED

24GA Steel, 1pc top channel & bottom track, 26GA frame molding, cameo white prefinished panel, steel braces are glued to each panel for added strength & rigidity & prevent warpage

VERTICAL MAILBOXES: 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 doors

Walloven: Brown or GE

Hill Bros & Life Paint Decks (Magnesite & Concrete)

Wall Furnace

Thru-the-Wall A/C: 12k BTU (115V/220V) Frigidaire, Friedrich, Garrison

WE CARRY:

Cabinet

1) APPLIANCES: stoves, air conditioners, wall furnaces; dishwashers; OTR microwave; wall ovens, cooktops; water heaters, range hoods & appliance parts

Nylon or Polyester 17oz–30oz

Range Hoods:

White, bisque, black, S/S Vented or non-vented

2) FLOORING MATERIALS: carpet, vinyl sheet, vinyl planks, 6-12mil wear layer, 12x12 & 18x18 tile

3) PLUMBING: toilets; kitchen and bathroom faucets; shower valves, repair parts for Mixet, Pfister, MOEN & Delta

4) ELECTRICAL: ceiling fans, indoor & outdoor light fixtures, repair parts

5) LOCKSETS: entry, double or single cyl deadbolts, privacy and passage locks; dummy knobs

6) REPAIR PARTS: for windows, kitchen drawers & cabinets, shower doors, screening materials, exhaust fan motors

7) VARIOUS OTHER NEEDS: garbage disposers, exhaust fan motors, vertical mailboxes, closet doors, medicine cabinets, cutting boards, deck paints, maintenance coating paints, vertical blinds sets & parts; hose bibs and lock, cleaning chemicals Come On Down Check Us Out!

Standard, Bradford White, & Reliance screen repair parts 7472 Orangewood Ave., Garden Grove, CA 92841 (888) 255-6726 • Fax (714) 379-0380 www.orcoaptsupplies.com/

COOKTOPS: 24”; 30” & 36”

Criminal Background Checks

Take, for example, criminal history. In an age of electronic background checks, asking whether a prospective renter has a criminal record is standard practice in the industry. But because statistics show people of color are arrested at a disproportionate rate, applying blanket prohibitions against applicants with any criminal history could lead to a discrimination claim.

Instead, property managers need to set their criteria in terms of whether providing housing to the applicant would pose an undue risk to other tenants. That might include denying rental applicants who have committed violent crimes, serious felonies reflecting financial fraud, illicit drug manufacturing, burglary and arson, or sex offenders.

Occupancy Limits and Families

Occupancy limits can also be problematic. With the exception of properties specifically designated for seniors, it’s illegal to deny housing to families based on the number of children they have. At the same time, specific ratios of persons per bedroom or square footage can be applied in certain situations to maintain health and safety compliance.

Persons With Disabilities

The majority of Fair Housing violations — 59% — fall in the area of landlords not making reasonable accommodations for people with physical or mental disabilities. A cardinal rule in this area is not to ignore a request for reasonable accommodation. Have an established process for how residents can request one, and a procedure for responding to each in a timely manner.

A reasonable accommodation could include providing a ramp for someone in a wheelchair, or permitting their service animal, covered under the Americans with Disability Act, to live at a property that otherwise doesn’t allow pets.

Emotional Support Animals

But service animals are different than emotional support animals. While ESAs are allowed as a reasonable accommodation under the law, they’re also an area where renters often try to get an unjustified accommodation for an otherwise traditional pet.

Landlords shouldn’t ask about the condition the pet helps address, but they can request legitimate documentation from a third party certifying the need.

Retaliation

Landlords also open themselves up to liability for retaliation against a tenant who makes a Fair Housing claim — and that could extend to areas not normally associated with discrimination. For example, withholding service or repairs to a resident who’s filed a complaint could be considered harassment, even if it was simply a case of a maintenance request that fell through the cracks.

Fair Housing Testers

Fair Housing testers regularly evaluate landlords on compliance and candidly record their interactions with leasing agents, so how you talk to applicants and what you say matters. Focus on the attributes of the property itself, and not the type of people who live there. Emphasizing how a pool is a great place to entertain guests, for example, is a better approach than saying it’s ideal for kids and families.

Standardizing Fair Housing Practices

This list of Fair Housing challenges isn’t exhaustive. Training staff and consulting with your attorney is a must. Property managers should have established policies and procedures for their lease application process to ensure Fair Housing compliance.

First and foremost it is to give everyone an equal opportunity to apply for an apartment, no matter their background, and to make leasing decisions based on clear, consistent criteria.

Best practices include asking every potential tenant the same questions.

Documenting why someone is denied a leasing opportunity, based on legitimate standards, can also help protect property managers if a claim is made.

How Technology Helps

Using prop tech in the apartment tour and lease application process can help ensure all applicants are treated consistently.

Bots: The increased use of automated chat bots to answer incoming questions at the beginning of a housing search makes sure all questions receive consistent answers.

Self tours: Enabled when a community’s smart locks are tied into a property management system, self tours can reduce Fair Housing gaffes between prospects and well-intentioned, but under trained staff.

Tenant screening applications: Setting criminal background criteria to only flag serious crimes ensure blanket prohibitions don’t unintentionally refuse housing to protected classes.

Application vetting and fraud prevention: Apartment application fraud has skyrocketed during the pandemic. Bogus paystubs and bank statements are widely available online, and now show up in one out of every eight applications.

But these savvy fraudsters are also often quick to cite Fair Housing laws when their applications are questioned. Using AI-powered proptech to flag bogus documents automatically gives agents a nonconfrontational out, because they can simply say “the system” rejected an applicant’s statements as invalid.

Automated maintenance requests: Not only does this show equal treatment for everyone, it helps track requests for accommodations, as well as routine maintenance tickets to show each is serviced on an as-submitted basis.

While Fair Housing law is anything but straightforward, training staff and using technology can ensure property managers are in compliance, without triggering expensive liability when leasing agents inadvertently get it wrong.

8:15—9:00 a.m.

Y ou’ve Had a Death in the Unit... Now What?

Speaker: Joe DeCarlo, MBA, CPM, CCIM, CRE

The unthinkable has happened. There’s been a death in one of your units. Now what?

It’s something that most rental-housing providers will eventually face if they’re in the business long enough. Find out what steps and protocols should be followed to successfully navigate the potential legal, financial, and operational pitfalls while dealing with this traumatic situation.

9:30—10:15 a.m.

Rental Housing Economic Outlook

Sponsored by:

Sponsored by:

Moderator: Nick Lieberman, President, Bona Fide Mortgage

Speaker: Jon Giannola, Vice President/Regional Manager, Marcus & Millichap

Speaker: Jay Lybik, National Director of Multifamily Analytics, Costar

Speaker: Dr. Ed Coulson, Director, UCI Center for Real Estate Professor of Economics and Public Policy, UCI Merage School of Business

Speaker: Tyler Greer, Esq., Duringer Law Group, PLC.

• Collecting past due rent & handling evictions in postpandemic California

• Emerging legal threats and trends

• Staying compliant with Fair Housing laws

• Best management practices to protect your interests

Sponsored by:

he ABCs of DEI: Why Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is Good Business

Speaker: Angel Rogers, ARM, CCRM, Star Training

Speaker: Valerie Sargent, President, Yvette Poole & Associates

There has been much talk about Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) in the multifamily industry lately. If you thought it was a fad that would fade away, think again! It is definitely here to stay, and it’s important to learn how changing demographics and societal values play a part in rental housing and employment decisions.

Join two AAOC favorites to learn some of the basics on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. You’ll walk away with a good understanding and how DEI can be good business for your company.

1:45—2:30 P.m.

P et Screening, Emotional Support Animals & Service Animals

Speaker: Victoria Cowart, CPM, Director of Eduation & Outreach, PetScreening

One of the most common issues for rental housing providers is just how much accommodation is required when a resident wants to include an animal in their rental unit. The laws are pretty clear when it comes to the accommodation of service, assistance, and emotional support animals, but questions remain over what constitutes a legitimate accommodation request versus a resident simply trying to get around “no pet” policies.

Find out what you need to know about complying with HUD requirements regarding assistance, service, and emotional support animals, how to best handle and validate accommodation requests, and more. If you own or operate rental property, this session is for you.