Did the title get your attention?  Good.  The original title of this post was Donations - What Have You Done For Me Lately? but it didn't seem very catchy.  Nevertheless, you're here, and you're GORGEOUS BABY, YEAH! so keep reading for a nice little story.

I’m a multifamily vendor in the metro Atlanta area.  I’ve been in this role for about 10 yrs.  We vendors support our property mgt customers in many ways, one way is through donations (monetary and time) to help with charitable efforts.

This story is about the opposite of that – how the industry helped me out when I was in need.

Several years ago GA was in a triple digit heat wave, my A/C unit failed and needed complete replacement, with a pregnant wife and a 2 yr old at home we weren’t exactly comfortable.  It would be a few days before the swamped HVAC companies could get to us.  Completely by accident, the topic came up while talking with customer, just a few hours later that customer called me and offered us the use of a fully furnished apt at one of their communities.  My then 2 yr old thought we had gone on a vacation and had a blast playing in their pool and playground!

Just a few months ago I mentioned on Facebook the situation of an old friend whose son was in a life changing accident.  He had been sent to an Atlanta hospital for treatment that would last months, the family was far from home and going through the most difficult time of their lives.  They used up accrued time off and goodwill with employers, juggled schedules with school and care for their other child. They had to learn the therapies / treatments that Steven would need as he heals, and plan for major modifications to their home to accommodate Steven’s needs.  All this while maintaining their employment and driving to/from Atlanta from 8 hours away.  The last thing they needed to worry about was housing.  I asked for leads to area apts with short term leases.  Before the day was out I began receiving messages from industry friends on how they could help.  Not only did I get leads, I got apartments DONATED!  One company donated a furnished corporate suite for an entire month.  When that month ran out another company donated a 2 br townhouse for 3 months. The generosity did not stop there, a vendor company donated all needed furniture and appliances, another vendor donated the fee to have the furnishings delivered!  The burden that was lifted from this family cannot be calculated.  On another occasion donations were made to help offset expenses incurred when another patient’s cell iPhone and iPad were stolen.  Keep in mind that NONE of the donor companies even knew the family they helped, they were all responding to a simple Facebook status asking for information that would be helpful.

For these donors, no press releases or media alerts were sent out.  They did what felt right, they did for others what they would’ve wanted others do for them.

Sometimes donation requests can feel like a squeeze (sometimes they are a squeeze, it’s OK to say no) but moving forward I’ll consider what property management has done for me a few times.

A special thanks to: Uptown Square, a Waterton Residential Community, Colonial Homes, Matrix Residential, Pollack Shores Real Estate Group, Cort Furniture, & Redi Floors Atlanta