Case Studies

Case Study: Rent Maximization & Leasing

Pasadena, CA

63-unit Multifamily Apartment

The challenge

This property is a 63-unit apartment complex delivered during a time when market rents were dropping. The property needed to be leased up quickly to refinance out of a floating-rate construction loan during a period of rate hikes. It was imperative that we lease swiftly while limiting concessions to prevent a drop in value.

What we did

We pre-leased this property to 20% before the Certificate of Occupancy. We marketed on all major sites while utilizing our AI leasing system to empower our leasing staff. The combination of 24/7 leasing communication and the hard work of our leasing staff resulted in a lease-up period of 4 months to 95%+ occupancy.

Results

Case Study: Pricing Transparency & Rent Comps Before Renovating

Alhambra, CA

5-unit Multifamily Apartment

The challenge

The previous property management company spent $60K to renovate a 1-bed/1-bath unit while increasing rent by only $300/month. That rent increase didn't justify $60K of CapEx. The managers also upsold labor and materials, making the renovation more costly than it should have been.

What we did

For the next unit turn, Motiva ran a detailed rent survey that analyzed nearby unit quality, location, and other factors to determine the renovation scope that would justify the highest ROI. We explained everything to the owners and recommended they spend only $10K of CapEx on the kitchen and bathroom. During leasing, we achieved a $350/month rent increase.

Results

Case Study: Habitability Lawsuit Prevention

Downey, CA

90-unit Multifamily Apartment

The challenge

A tenant moved out and hired a lawyer who specializes in habitability lawsuits. The lawyer was paid a percentage of any winnings, while our owner was billed hourly, so time was of the essence.

What we did

Our staff, empowered by our internal AI system, gathered all relevant information about the tenant, sorted everything by date, and wrote a summary for the owner's lawyer on how to navigate the documents. The lawyer praised our efforts, saying it saved him 4 hours of work, which saved the owner thousands of dollars. Our records also showed that the tenant never reported any repairs and refused to open the unit for our pest control inspections. Because of the tenant's lack of evidence, the case ultimately settled for an all-in cost of under $3K, including lawyer fees.

Results

Case Study: Automated Rent Increases

Covina, CA

5-unit Retail Center

The challenge

When we took over management of this property, we found that one tenant hadn't had a rent increase in the 3 years since their lease expired. The tenant was paying more than 10% below market rent. The owner hadn't noticed because they were hands-off and relied mainly on their previous property managers.

What we did

After catching this mistake, our staff negotiated a lease renewal that brought rent up to today's market rate (a 10% increase from the current rent). We also negotiated annual escalations of 3% for the lease term. Finally, we drafted a lease agreement for the owner's attorneys to review.

Results

Case Study: Account Reconciliation

Covina, CA

14-unit Multifamily

The challenge

The previous property management company used overseas virtual assistants for accounting. Because of a lack of training, the T12, balance sheet, and cash flow statement hadn't reconciled for 5+ months. There were also many missing invoices and W-9s from their vendors. The owners hadn't caught this because they were hands-off and relied on their CPA at the end of the year.

What we did

During onboarding, we caught the accounting mistakes, which the previous management company was unwilling to fix. Instead of relying on others, our staff took the initiative and used our AI accounting system to reconcile the previous records. We chased down every vendor with missing invoices or W-9s. After 1 week, all accounts balanced and were operating as expected.

Results

Case Study: Transition Mistakes

Anaheim, CA

56-unit Multifamily

The challenge

The previous property management company stored documents in Google Drive, Dropbox, email, and AppFolio. Storing everything in different places resulted in many missing documents during onboarding. These documents are crucial for any potential lawsuits, loan refinances, or sale of the property.

What we did

Our combination of a rule-based onboarding system and AI audits caught 22 units with missing rent increases, RUBS notices, and concession agreements. We also found 4 mistakes between the rent roll and the lease agreements, meaning several tenants were paying less than they should have.

Results