County landlords organize

Landlords in Wayne County now have an opportunity to become part of an organization created specifically for their benefit. The Wayne County Landlord Association (WCLA), formed in early 2006, began with a small group of concerned and frustrated landlords and it has continued to grow. The WCLA is fully organized with officers, an executive steering committee, bi-monthly meetings, a charter, bylaws, membership requirements, bank accounts, retained legal advice, and a professionally developed website complete with password security. The organization is now also reaching out to become a friend to potential tenants, by readying a portion of the website, viewed free by the public, where available rental units in Wayne County owned by WCLA members are listed.

The WCLA has banded together a number of member landlords, and it shares experience, guidelines, advice, contacts, skills, networking, and critical information. Membership requires you to be a landlord owning rental property in Wayne County and costs only $50 per calendar year.

WCLA President Chris Avery notes, 'Fifty dollars a year is an incredible value, when a landlord considers that the avoided costs of heading off problem tenants can easily run into the thousands of dollars for damage and legal fees, not to mention lost rent. Then there are the other costly intangibles such as shattered relationships with good neighbors, businesses, and authorities. On the more positive side, many tenants with good reputations have been recognized as well, and that is a huge advantage and cost saver for landlords, as well as a super benefit for good reliable tenants.'

The WCLA website has a free area open to the public, and a password protected members only area where there are several databases and tools to benefit landlords. One of the key features is a Tenant Database, which is now approaching 2000 names. WCLA members have agreed to place all their tenants or applicants from at least the last 3 years in the database. The organization makes it clear that this is not a blacklist in any way, shape, or fashion, as it contains all tenants, and passes no judgement on anyone. In accordance with legal advice, it is a simple opinion free list, sterile in that it only lists names of the tenant or applicant and the associated landlord, and a date of tenancy or application. It provides an information path for member landlords to have private conversations as citizens on how wonderful a particular tenant is - or possibly the opposite. Avery notes, 'It's been used successfully both ways many times. While simply only their names are listed on the password protected portion of the website, there is at least an avenue for an unsuspecting member landlord to follow and investigate. It's great to get connected with a tenant with a good reputation '

Mark Shaw, Chairman of the WCLA Executive Steering Committee, states the organization continues to strengthen it's presence in Wayne County. 'Interest is growing rapidly. There are over 1,200 landlords in Wayne County, so our potential resources and cooperative impact are only now just starting gather momentum. We welcome potential members to visit the website or come check us out at the next meeting.'

Shaw notes that in addition to the tenant listings, there are several other features of the website that are valuable to landlords, such as a secure eviction database where court approved evictions are now being listed. 'This ability alone has saved more than one landlord some real heartache. Also publicly available is a website feature that lists member rental properties in Wayne County with vacancies. Folks looking to rent love that feature.' The website also contains a publicly viewable feature listing WCLA properties for sale, and a password protected Wayne County arrest database whose source is public information printed in local newspapers.

The general meetings are held on the last Monday of every other month. The next meeting will be January 29 at 7 at 1526 Rt. 88 North in Newark (Four Seasons Rental). The meetings and membership are open to owners and managers of residential and commercial rental properties in Wayne County. The WCLA can be contacted at PO Box 86, Newark, NY 14513 or through their website at www.wclandlord.com

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