Being a property manager is a rewarding job. You get to cultivate communities, help residents live their best lives, and help execute the various day to day operations of properties.
Rewarding jobs are often the most challenging, and as a property manager, we know you've got a lot to juggle. When there's a heap of things on your desk waiting for your attention, it can be difficult to prioritize the elements of a property that need to continuously run smoothly in the background. One of those things is disaster preparedness.
Don't worry, like we said, we know you're busy, so we've narrowed things down. Check out the five disaster preparedness tips you should make top priority as a property manager (besides having RESCON on speed dial at 833.4RESCON, of course!).
An Emergency Plan
Emergency plans are the number one factor of successful disaster preparedness strategy — 40% of small businesses affected by a major disaster do not reopen! Having all the information you need in one place, which can be easily accessed in the midst of a disaster, is paramount to easy execution. Make your tenants and residents aware of the emergency plan specifics for their unit, floor, and building, as well as the overall plan for the community.
A Trusted Restoration Partner
Whether it's a flood, fire, or storm damage, you don't want to spend hours on Google trying to find a great restoration company to work with. As you make your emergency plan, be sure to research reputable companies who can help you mitigate and recover from a disaster. We can think of a one… (okay, it's us).
Educate Tenants and Residents
It's all well and good if you, as the property manager, know your disaster plan and your restoration partner, but what about those within the walls of your property? Hosting community events to help tenants learn about disaster preparedness, insurance, and the restoration process will make things easier for you in the long run. Make it fun (we recommend providing yummy food!).
A Crisis Team & Communication Tree
When disaster strikes and causes property damage (or worse), you don't want to be alone. As part of your emergency plan, establish a crisis team made of colleagues and other important players in your organization to help triage and communicate. Who will handle what aspects of the disaster plan? How will you get the word out? Get specific and make sure everyone knows their job!
Practice
You can have emergency plans coming out of your ears, if you and your residents don't know how to execute or what's in them, they're useless. Take the time to actually practice going through your evacuation routes and executing the other aspects of your emergency plan (like making emergency kits and what to do with pets!). You and your residents will be happier for it when disaster strikes.
