Craiglist fear

I am managing a suburban garden property (not in a high-crime area) with an all-female office staff of 4. Nothing unusual there. But they don't want ANY Craigslist ads. They are afraid with all the recent crime related to Craigslist ads (though of course those weren't apartment ads). I have talked about taking a 2-way radio, carrying a cell phone, pre-screening, no showings after dark etc. but they just do NOT want me to use this source. The maintenance staff leaves 1 hour earlier & doesn't want to stay till 5:30 just to accompany a leasing agent on tours in that last hour. A couple of nearby properties use Craigslist with no issues. Any ideas on how to convince this staff? I hate to "force" it on them but it seems unreasonable.

Hi there,

Sounds like an excuse to me, but maybe I'm just being negative. Most of our traffic comes from CL. The crimes I've heard involving CL are from someone buying/selling cars or other items. Perhaps if you give them a reality check that, while it's always possible, it's not probable that someone from CL is going to come to a property - where there are numerous people milling about - to do them harm. You may want to call some surrounding managers and ask how many tours they have had in the last quarter from CL and if there have been any problems (I'm sure the answer will be no). Then talk to the staff about it and let them know that it is their job to show units from all sources of traffic (you get photo ID's, right?). It sounds like you've worked with them as much as you can, and forcing them to do their job may be your only route. You may want to throw in an additional safety training. I wouldn't be surprised if there is one person leading that charge and feeding the paranoia to the others. Good luck!

Hi Chuck,

I'm irritated for you. My knee jerk reaction is that this is an excuse not to do their job. It's ridiculous. The CL crimes are typically from car or other types of sales - certainly not meeting at a place of business where there are people milling around. They get photo ID's before tours, right?

CL is our biggest source of traffic. You may want to get the number of tours from CL in the last quarter from neighboring properties and let your staff know how many tours and leases resulted from the CL ads and whether or not any 'crimes' occurred. I'm willing to bet there were no crimes experienced.

It sounds like you have been very reasonable with them, and my advice is to provide a safety meeting (an additional one if you already have done this) and then force them to do their job. I can see not having tours during the last 30 minutes of the day, though it's a stretch now that it is lighter later. If they don't want to show units from CL ads, you can find others who will. I wouldn't be surprised if you have one person leading and feeding into the paranoia.

Good Luck!! I'm curious to hear how this turns out.

Oh - and sorry - the "annonymous" post is from me. I hadn't yet signed in and thought it didn't post.

Chuck:

I managed a large property that was close to a high crime area even though the crime did not spread to the section we were in. We used Craigslist with amazing success.My staff raised the same objections as yours did. I spoke with several other area property managers and asked if they had any issues with Craigslist and they had not. You can use this to reassure your crew. Another thing you may think about doing is having maintenance start work later and end work later so that the office staff is not alone. No, they won't like it but you are the manager. I even extended one day where we were open till 7p.m. maintenance too; this brought in more prospective cutomers and residents were happy because they could come in after work and talk to the office staff.Your ideas are good ones. My staff carried two way radios plus a cell phone and we did not do showings after dark. If you have certian restrictions such as no criminal background allowed, etc ad that to your Craigslist ad. It will help prescreen them and save a lot of unwanted, unqualified traffic.

Based on the research we have performed with prospects looking for an apartment in urban markets - Craigslist is not only a go-to source for the majority, it is often the first place renters 18-35 years of age use to look for an apartment. It is, for better or worse, a trusted source among this high target age - and you pay for not being found there.

I am not so sure that your employees are making an excuse as much as it is a perception of the size of the problem. As the media focuses on crimes (Craigslist murders make great copy).. it is fairly normal for the public to "over-size" the issue.

Females in this business feel vulnerable in the first place.. things can and do sometimes happen. I would say that your primary issue is to create an environment where your staff feels safe and has some sort of safety procedures and response plan to "any" potential threat that may come their way.

Jules Carney
GoToMetrix.com

This argument sounds very unreasonable. I fail to see how the craigslist source differs from any other in this circumstance. I take precautions no matter what the source. It does seem reasonable to limit showings to hours when there is a 2nd person on property, no matter what the source.

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Thanks to all of you for great advice and suggestions! I should clarify that when I said "managing" I mean I'm the district manager. The prop mgr onsite is in agreement with their feelings. But they need leads and leases so I will proceed using some of these ideas. I never thought to call around other property managers and ask them about their results because the whole idea seemed so overly-cautious to me. Previously I was a DM where a company had little direction and so the onsite managers liked "new ideas" and "directions." This case is a bit different. An array of people have proceeded me in fairly quick succession, so there is resistance because it's the "latest person from 'corporate.'"

I could have guessed this was the problem: resistance to a new "corporate person." Maybe you best bet is to start with the managers in your district and approach all with this proposal. With your other Managers all telling how well Craigslist is working for them, this should help the hold out understand how the process works. I would do a conference call and have everyone participate. Also, I wonder if the Manager who is against CL has a deep seated fear she is not expressing, perhaps a personal experience? Sometimes talking to other of your company's managers will help her move toward the idea that leads beget leases.

Wow. I manage a large property in what is considered the "unsavory" part of town, and there are 3 girls in my office (myself included). This really sounds like an excuse. Last month we had 34 leads and 12 applications come from Craigslist, and not one of them were problems (or felons). We have the same rule as not showing after dusk. However, my leasing agents keep pepper spray on their key rings at all times; not necessarily for just shows, but while they are out walking the property as well.

I agree with Ann. While I have heard of realtors and property managers becoming victims of crimes while showing, it's quite rare, and no excuse to not use CL. You should certainly implement reasponable safety procedures to protect them, conduct safety meetings to teach them how to prevent crime and how to decrease the changes of being targeted, and then force them to use craigslist. It's by far the best source of leads most of us have. You're crippling yourself by not using it.

I recently discovered a product that all my Leasing Team members now have called the Guardian. WE saw it at the Brainstorming trade show last year. It's a personal gps/alarm/alert/monitored device kind of thing they can attach to their keys...like a "help, I've fallen and I can't get up" device for Leasing Pros. My team appreciated our leasing them...Not cheap but what's personal safety worth?
That said, SERIOUSLY? They're AFRAID TO POST CL ADS? :ohmy:

I wrote an article on this subject

www.multifamilyinsiders.com/multifamily-...asing-agents-at-risk

Well, I'm using these ideas and will move forward. One thing I've realized is that previously I've worked in city markets where there is somewhat regular turnover in leasing agents and even prop mgrs. I haven't previously managed a group of staffs where all of them have been there years and years--many of them 7-10 years, even some up to 15.

I wholeheartedly agree with Jules on the "over-sizing" of the Craigslist media stories. An Craigslist ad for a place of business is a whole different thing than an ad for doing something dangerous with a stranger who invited you to their bedroom!

Why would anyone in "sales" not want to use Craigslist? I have found 4 great jobs on it. Used it for 5 years on a weekly basis. I use it to sell and buy items. I always take someone with me for meetings, but if you look at the odds, it would probably show the odds of getting assaulted by someone from a Craiglist ad are probably lower than getting hit by a train.

I think a one-on-one meeting then a group training class on how to handle ALL inquiries and show apartments safely would be your best bet in preparation for the ads to start. Once they get those inquiries and leases, they'll calm down.

It's the fear of the unknown. Use psychology on the them. Fear spreads fear.