Managers of the Month
Mary Molnar - Marketing Director
Maple Lane Apartments - Elkhart, IN
Spread over 33 acres of woods, Maple Lane Apartments feels more like a neighborhood than a typical apartment community. Some of that may have to do with the pet-friendly condo-style living and the tree-lined streets. But a great deal of the credit goes to Peggy Brunette and Mary Molnar, Manager and Marketing Director respectively of the Maple Lane community.
Peggy and Mary are constantly finding ways to bring residents together and foster a real sense of community. They sponsor a free breakfast every month where the demand for the home-style biscuits and gravy is rivaled only by that for Mary’s homemade quiche. They’ve also coordinated a weekly painting club, community Bingo nights, regular card parties, and a book club in the community clubhouse. “We’ve got a great mix of residents,” says Mary. “We have seniors, young families and professionals - even 22 executive suites. Our residents really enjoy the chance to come out interact with each other.”
Peggy and Mary brought their sense of fun and community to a recent rollout of ResidentPay™ online payments. They prepared step-by-step instructions to help residents enroll in and use the system for the first time. “Mary has been known to visit residents in their homes to walk them through the payment process for the first time,” says Peggy. “And every document that goes out to our residents includes a reminder to pay rent online along with the website address.”
Peggy and Mary make sure all residents have access to online payments, even if they don’t have Internet access at home. “We set up a computer workstation in the clubhouse,” explains Mary. “So residents can come in and make an online payment, or, even better, set up a recurring payment.” In February, every resident who submitted an on-time online payment was automatically entered in a drawing for $200 off the following month’s rent.
Resident response has been overwhelmingly positive. After one month of offering ResidentPay™ online payments, about 33% of residents are participating. Mary expects that number to climb to 50% in March, and continue to grow from there.
Property Solutions congratulates Peggy and Mary for a great job implementing ResidentPay™. They will receive a gift certificate to a restaurant of their choice.
If you know of a manager who is doing an outstanding job, nominate them for Property Solutions Manager of the Month by sending their story to tking@propertysolutions.com.