RENT Magazine Q2 '23

SQUATTERS TAKE OVER VACANT RENTAL

EMPLOYEES EMBEZZLE $300K

I recently used a rental company to rent an investor's home. They advertised online, put out a lockbox and started showing the home on a Wednesday. That Saturday, my client stopped by the house and found things on the primary bedroom floor and bathroom. He locked the house with a deadbolt and called the cops. The cops came, gathered up all the stuff, took a report, and called the rental company. The next day, two people showed up at the police department demanding their stuff back, claiming they had been scammed on Airbnb. The cops ran their background and found multiple counts of fraud and misdemeanors. The rental company believes they pretended to be a potential renter and watched as the property manager opened the lock box.

One of my clients called me in a panic because they couldn't issue a 1099 form for $139,000 to a repair vendor whose phone was disconnected and whose address was fake. We launched an internal audit and discovered $300k was embezzled by two employees who had experience "working with AppFolio." The bookkeeper had not followed our new vendor's SOP. Everyone had access to all accounting functions, and they also failed to conduct employee background checks. Accounting is serious. Even minor errors can have far- reaching consequences. So I highly recommend daily triple tie-out, balancing, and reconciling your books. When I asked why they were only checking on tenants and not employees, they responded, “We were in a pinch.” Their only requirement was the person to be experienced with the software.

THEY PRETENDED TO BE A POTENTIAL RENTER.

THEY DIDN'T CONDUCT EMPLOYEE BACKGROUND CHECKS.

Gita Faust Author of Residential Property Management for Landlords: QuickBooks Desktop

Elizabeth Campbell Lysi Bishop Real Estate Boise, ID Connect with Elizabeth

Read Gita’s Book Connect with Gita

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