A. 
It is the general policy of the Town of Barnstable to manage its real assets in order to maximize the desired return from a real estate holding over the life of the property through the implementation of the appropriate strategies. Another important purpose of property management is to ensure that tenants live in a safe and clean environment and have their property-related problems resolved promptly. Property management is structured to generate one or more of several objectives:
(1) 
Cash flow to the Town;
(2) 
Maintenance of the Town's current property portfolio; and
(3) 
Appreciation of the Town's real assets.
B. 
The Town of Barnstable recognizes that the keys to successful property management are policies on rent collection, income and expenses, adaptability to the market and attention to the environment.
The underlying purposes of these policies are to:
A. 
Adequately manage the Town's physical assets;
B. 
Adequately manage leases;
C. 
Institute appropriate reporting and controls; and
D. 
Develop effective administrative procedures.
Property information is public information to the extent provided in the Massachusetts General Laws and Section 8-9, Open meeting of the voters, of the Town Charter and shall be available to the public as provided in these statutes and ordinances. The Town shall also disseminate these policies in the following manner:
A. 
Distribution. This policy shall be publicized and distributed to the greatest extent possible; distribution will include but not be limited to Town employees, the general public, and minority organizations. Reference to this policy shall be included in all notices and advertisements for bids distributed by the Town.
B. 
Inspection. A copy of this policy shall be available for inspection and will be maintained by all departments involved in the management of property. A copy of this policy shall also be available in the Town Manager's office.
The Town Manager shall appoint the Property Manager. The Property Manager should be a person with demonstrated executive and organizational ability. The Property Manager shall be a full-time employee of the Town and may be removed by the Town Manager only upon a showing of just cause.
Consistent with the provisions of this policy, the Property Manager may adopt operational procedures governing the internal functions of property. Except as otherwise specifically provided in this policy, the Property Manager shall exercise general supervision and control over all property inventories belonging to the Town. These inventories include:
A. 
Sandy Neck cottages.
B. 
Municipal properties.
C. 
Open space and land reserved for conservation purposes.
D. 
Village Green; village parks.
E. 
Shooting range.
F. 
Recreations facilities, lands, playgrounds and parks.
G. 
Lombard Trust properties.
H. 
Municipal buildings and facilities.
I. 
Beaches.
J. 
Municipal parking lots.
K. 
Municipal leaseholds with private parties.
L. 
Municipal easements and rights-of-way.
A. 
Custodial maintenance.
(1) 
Custodial maintenance encompasses all day-to-day maintenance activities. Custodial maintenance includes, but is not limited to, the following tasks:
(a) 
Trash removal;
(b) 
Policing the grounds, including property entrance and parking areas;
(c) 
Basic landscaping care;
(d) 
Cleaning common areas, including stairwells, elevators, halls;
(e) 
Checking that light bulbs and smoke detectors are working; and
(f) 
Snow removal from sidewalks, in season.
(2) 
Custodial maintenance will be performed by the Structures and Grounds Division of the Public Works Department. In addition, maintenance tasks may be contracted out.
B. 
Corrective maintenance. Corrective maintenance is performed to repair and restore items after problems are identified, but before major breakdowns or emergencies occur. The following information should be recorded on all corrective maintenance assignments:
(1) 
Name of individual requesting work;
(2) 
Location of problems;
(3) 
Time and date of service request;
(4) 
Phone number where individual requesting service can be reached;
(5) 
Nature of problem and its priority;
(6) 
Amount of time spent on repairs and materials used; and
(7) 
Cost of labor and materials.
C. 
Preventive maintenance. Preventive maintenance is performed on a regular basis to keep the level of services at the property high and to reduce equipment breakdowns and service interruptions. The preventive maintenance program should address the following areas:
(1) 
Building exterior;
(2) 
Building interior and unit (if applicable); and
(3) 
Major equipment and grounds inspection.
D. 
Deferred maintenance. Deferred maintenance is needed maintenance that is performed at a later date. The reasons for delay include budget limitations, management plan, or negligence. The Property Manager should document which large maintenance projects are being deferred and to estimate, if possible, additional costs that may be incurred later when repairs are finally made.
The objective of the Town of Barnstable is to set leases consistent with the marketplace and sensitive to any special objectives that some properties may contain. The Town shall use appraisals on a regular basis to assess how current its leases are and should account for any items that go over budget. The rent schedule should be reviewed and approved by the Town Manager and should reflect the Town's income objectives.
The existing lease schedule should be reviewed once each quarter or at least semiannually. Lease increases should be reviewed on an annual basis and occur once each year if necessary. For leases exceeding one year, rent increases should be provided for in the lease. A lease increase letter shall be used to notify tenants of a lease payment increase.
These procedures apply to long-term property leases. Once a satisfied prospect has been identified through a RFP process, the Town shall follow careful selection procedures as part of the RFP:
A. 
Make a credit and reference check of the prospect;
B. 
Make the property ready for use;
C. 
Process the necessary paperwork; and
D. 
Follow orientation procedures and explain rules.
The following information should be obtained from all prospective lessees for all properties:
A. 
Names and ages of all lessors;
B. 
Social security numbers;
C. 
Premises: unit or space to be leased;
D. 
Lease term with start date;
E. 
Amount of monthly rent, security deposit and other charges (e.g., application, credit check, and/or cleaning fees);
F. 
Rent adjustment, if any;
G. 
Real estate taxes owed, if any;
H. 
Responsibility for utilities;
I. 
Responsibility for repairs and maintenance;
J. 
Responsibility for refuse and disposal;
K. 
Procedures for enacting alterations to the property;
L. 
Provision for the Town's access;
M. 
Commitment to indemnify the Town;
N. 
Responsibility and amount for liability and fire insurance;
O. 
Provision for subleasing;
P. 
Responsibilities in the event of damage and destruction;
Q. 
Provision for permission to mortgage, sell premises;
R. 
Responsibilities in the event of default by lessee;
S. 
Employment history for past three years;
T. 
Current address and previous addresses for past three years;
U. 
Name, address, and telephone number of closest relative (if applicable);
V. 
Warranty that information is correct, and permission to verify; and
W. 
Signature of all adult occupants (if applicable).
Lease renewals are encouraged versus advertising and marketing properties on a recurring basis. A lease renewal option must be included in the original lease, or the lease must be solicited through the RFP process as dictated by Chapter 30B of the State Procurement Laws. The following steps should be followed to ensure renewals are handled effectively:
A. 
A lease expiration report and renewal log. This report should contain the lease expiration dates for a minimum of three months in advance.
B. 
Review. The rental rates should be reviewed and new rates set 90 days prior to lease expiration. The lease expiration report should be reviewed and approved indicating which residents management would like to renew and which will not be renewed.
C. 
Notice. Lease expiration and renewal letters should be sent 70 days prior to lease expiration. Nonrenewal letters should be sent no sooner than 45 days prior to lease expiration in order to minimize nonpayment of rent.
D. 
Contact with residents. The Property Manager should meet with residents not later than 45 days prior to lease expiration to execute lease renewals. This contact can also be performed by mail.
Applicants must submit a detailed request 30 days prior to the desired use of Town-owned land which shall entail proposed use; purpose of proposed use; and organization/individual seeking to use Town-owned property along with address, telephone number, and contact person. The following steps shall be followed for the short-term lease/rental of Town-owned land:
A. 
Approvals. The Police, Health, Recreation, Planning, and Public Works Departments must provide their consent for the use of Town-owned property so that appropriate support services are made available.
B. 
Obtain Town Manager approval;
C. 
Distribute the Town policies for trash removal, alcohol, parking, particular property uses, and other regulations; and
D. 
Obtain vehicular access permission from Public Works, if necessary.
The development and maintenance of a good collection system requires the establishment of sound collection policies. Policy statements are required for the following:
A. 
Property lease requirements. Depending upon the use of particular properties, the Town shall ensure appropriate permits for food, toilet facilities, rubbish disposal, and animal control are made available.
B. 
Rental due date. To reduce the likelihood of conflicts, rental due dates should be set accordingly.
C. 
Date rent is considered delinquent.
D. 
Schedule of late penalties/charges and other fees. Late charges are $10 for each day late. Returned checks are assessed a charge of $15 for additional administration costs.
E. 
Repository of payment (e.g., Tax Collector, Town manager's office).
F. 
Payee (e.g., Town of Barnstable, Lombard Trust).
G. 
Acceptable form of payment (cash, check, money order). Cash collection should be limited to local banking hours, and staff should be instructed to issue a receipt as proof of payment.
A. 
The monthly lease roll serves as a recordkeeping journal that accounts for each property. Items to be included in the lease roll include:
(1) 
Property identification;
(2) 
Lessee's name (if applicable);
(3) 
Past due balance;
(4) 
Current lease;
(5) 
Other amounts due;
(6) 
Amounts and dates paid;
(7) 
Total balance due for the period covered.
B. 
Automation of this information is encouraged. Additional statistical information that might be recorded for comparative and decision-making purposes includes:
(1) 
Total number of property units;
(2) 
Occupied/vacant;
(3) 
Percentage occupied;
(4) 
Average market lease per square foot;
(5) 
Average billed lease per square foot;
(6) 
Vacancy loss.
A. 
Lessees can be evicted for the following reasons:
(1) 
Nonpayment of lease for 10 days, or
(2) 
If the lessee shall default in the observance or performance of any other of the lessee's covenants, agreements or obligations for 30 days; or
(3) 
The lessee is declared bankrupt or insolvent according to law; and
(4) 
Termination of tenancy (i.e., lease expiration or holdover).
B. 
In general, the eviction process begins with the filing of a complaint for eviction in a court of jurisdiction after a notice to pay or quit has been served.
A. 
Budgeting. Budgeting for property management will be part of the Town of Barnstable's operating budget process. The budget will consist of estimating revenues from rents and expenditures for maintenance and other administrative costs.
B. 
Reporting. A system of reporting is essential for monitoring and controlling operations and is an integral part of the budgeting process. The reporting system should include an operating budget and the following items:
(1) 
Lease roll. The lease roll is a detailed listing of properties, residents, lease, and other amounts due and received from residents.
(2) 
Schedule of disbursements. The schedule of disbursements lists expenses for the reported period and the reason they were incurred.
(3) 
Management summary. This summary contains certain indicators of management effectiveness on a comparative basis. This may include rent loss and occupancy, etc.
Assets under management of the Town of Barnstable should be protected against three types of losses: losses form casualty, losses from theft; and losses from conversion of an asset to another form (e.g., cash). Safeguarding of assets also includes:
A. 
Internal controls. The Town of Barnstable should ensure the following controls are in place:
(1) 
Clearly defined goals and objectives;
(2) 
Formal code of conduct (see Town of Barnstable Code of Ethics);
(3) 
Administrative Code;[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 241, Administrative Code.
(4) 
Accurate and timely recordkeeping;
(5) 
Effective budgeting;
(6) 
A policy requiring senior management to review and formally discuss the results of all internal control audits.
B. 
Insurance. The Town of Barnstable shall carry the appropriate insurances for the protection of the Town and the properties under its control. The Town shall also require tenants to carry the appropriate insurances depending on use of property.