The holidays are over, Christmas decorations are back in storage and, as far as I know, nothing new is happening around here.
Knock Knock, stopped by once last week, to show me her newly pierced ears and again today just to let me know she was around …… but I’m sure she was expecting I’d have a treat for her, which I did not.
I didn’t have a treat for last week either, so maybe she’ll take this as a sign to stop knocking on my door.
It’s not meant that way at all, but I won’t be mad if it's taken that way, turns into a situation like a cat …… If you don’t feed the cat, the cat stops coming by.
This is the Feng Shui Year of the Snake, a time for reflection and spiritual growth in the midst of turmoil, so my mind has been so preoccupied with detaching from appearances, getting clarity so as to see behind the scenes ……… the what and whys of it, listening, that buying something to prepare for Knock Knock next visit never crossed my mind. I even forgot my girls birthday, failed to send them a text on the day of.
I’ve also been too busy with my crafts and further efforts at getting rid of clutter to nose around, ferret out what the seniors are up to.
Not receiving the usual Monthly Calendar is helping me to detach from the happenings.
It’s not meant to aid in my detaching, instead it’s meant as a weapon by management to get me to sign up for the Rent Café.
It’s not personal. No one on the complex received the Monthly Calendar, advising us of events, rule changes, maintenance notes, office hours, etc, because Manager last month announced the Monthly Calendar would go paperless first of this year.
For last two years, management has been pushing for us to pay rent via the Rent Café.
Rent Café is some kind of third-party portal, designed to make work life easier for management.
It seems to me Manager’s work life is already too easy, as she has time to sit in her office, spy on us via her video equipment. So, if signing up for Rent Café to pay rent online makes less paperwork for her, more free time, I’m not interested.
In addition, it’s not free — an additional $3.00 a month.
Not a lot of money, but the nerves ……… you want us to make work life easier for management and pay for the privilege?
I don’t think so.
I’m good with issuing a monthly check.
I’m guessing other residents feel the same way, because management is always coming up with creative measures to try to lure us over to Rent Café.
They’ve offered a gift card lottery for us to sign up, offered to dispense with the $3.00 a month fee ……… but just for the initial signing up month and just generally tried to cajole us into signing up by stressing how easy it is to have rent automatically deducted from our accounts.
Not getting the response they wanted thus far, just last year management dispensed with the paper form we’d fill out for work orders and tied it into Rent Café …… making it necessary for us to join Rent Café in order to submit work orders online.
Management is failing to take into consideration, it's not just that some of us don't trust them or their third-party portal, want nothing to do with it, but that not many here have computers or smart phones to access the portal even if they wanted to.
Consequently, I don’t know what everyone else is doing to bypass that roadblock — maybe just walk into the office and verbally request repairs be taken care of, maybe catch one of the guys out on the property, request service. I myself keep a paper trail by emailing the office when I need something in the unit fixed.
At any rate, the Monthly Calendar is the latest ploy to force our signing up for Rent Café — no more paper calendar posted to our doors. Calendars can be accessed through Rent Café.
Again, I don’t know how others are working around this, but I don’t care if I get a Calendar or not; plus, I can visualize this backfiring, causing more work for management, rather than less.
Say tree trimmers are scheduled to be on site, or another paving project comes up. Inasmuch as I and others have not signed up for Rent Café, management is going to have to notify us to move our cars out of the way …… probably by some sort of paper notice posted to our doors.
Likewise when an inspection or Community Meeting is scheduled …… If they want us to show up, some sort of notification is in order.
No matter how one looks at it — if it’s important, management will have to notify us regardless of our not being signed up for Rent Café; if it’s not important, and we get no notification because we're not on Rent Café, all the better to not know, clutter my mind.
Management is keeping the Scrooge going ... down with the Rent Cafe!
ReplyDeleteFew if any around here are going to trust them with that kind of access.
DeleteWhat a bunch of garbage. I wouldn't want management to electronically have access to my banking account! You can get free printable paper calendars on line, even with different styles. Of course, your offspring might now declare you senile if you forgot their birthdays. Try the free calendar. I don't even put my doc appointments on my cell. It's on my 5 year paper calendar on my desk. I feel good when I buy them, so I know I'll live another 5 years. 19 bucks plus shipping from Miles Kimball catalog. Cheers! Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteThe calendars I speak of are the ones where management lists what of interest we should know about month by month. Like what day pest control comes, what day Activity Director is coming and what event she is putting on, what days one can meet with manager, who is coming in to make a presentation of one sort or another for us. It's management's calendar and how they communicate with us. Or at least it used to be.
DeleteMismanagement needs some lessons.
ReplyDeleteCurrent lesson being that withholding the monthly calendar of events is not the leverage they imagined.
DeleteSounds like a real battle of wills is going on!
ReplyDeleteAt least now, with no monthly calendar of events, we won't have to read more of their pushing the Rent Café.
DeleteThe Rent Cafe is beyond stupid, beyond greedy! If management wants people to use it, they should offer a discount, not a fee! WTF! Hard pass on that one.
ReplyDeleteI'd not thought of that but you're right about a discount. I'd still not be interested, but still ... would make more sense.
DeleteYear of the snake, good to know
ReplyDeleteOn the surface, considering our incoming political leaders, the snake seems on point.
DeleteWow, I am really surprised at how stupid the manager is! She really doesn't seem to understand that her dictator moves are not likely to be taken well. As for giving them access to pull rent from my checking account...As If. Stand strong.
ReplyDeleteNina
No worries, but will be interesting to see what they next try to lure us to Rent Café.
DeleteYou just made me think, when was the last time a cut a check? Before moving back I got five new books and cut one. I wonder how long they will be around yet? My Christmas decorations are still up. The tree looks so pretty I don't have the heart to take it down yet, plus we got a inch of snow, so now it feels Christmassy and wintery.
ReplyDeleteYou thinking made me think, LOL, and realize the only time I cut a check is for rent here, everything else is online and automatic deductions. I don't trust these people, this corporation. If I dropped dead, they'd probably continue deducting rent from my account if I sign up for Rent Café and, IF caught, blame my family for not letting them know I was no longer living here because I was dead. I hear you about Christmassy being pretty, hard to take down. I felt the same way about my patio decorations.
DeleteI believe that our condo management company also charges for the privilege of taking the monthly HOA fee from the bank account. We send an electronic check.
ReplyDeleteThe charge indicates to me these companies find automatically deducting as doing us a favor. It should be like krayolakris said .... a discount for us. I get a discount for utility bills being automatically deducted. Less paperwork for them, less personnel needed to process.
DeleteRent Cafe. A rather strange name for their portal. I wonder if AI came up with it.
ReplyDeleteEvidently, Rent Cafés are not new to property leasing organizations, been around before AI. I guess this place decided to jump on the bandwagon as it seems a way to get more money out of us.
DeleteWith a name like Rent Cafe, sounds like you should get a free Starbucks card, not an additional fee. Where's the coffee in that cafe? Linda in Kansas, sittin' in an official blizzard.
ReplyDeleteI thought similarly and would definitely sign up for that cafe, LOL. Sorry about the blizzard, I'm walking in sunshine. I'll send you some.
DeleteIn 2020 my apartment complex went contactless. Meaning we can no longer personally go into the office when they are here, we can not pay by check or money order...everything has to be done via the portal. We have a phone number we can call but they hardly ever answer. We have an email but again they don't respond. All rents have to be paid electronically via the portal and all maintenance requests also have to be done via the portal unless it's a major emergency and then we have the number to call and leave a message.
ReplyDeleteMakes me wonder if this is the direction they're trying to head here. However, inasmuch as so many here are not tech savvy and/or don't even have computers or smart phones (have those little free phones issued by the government instead), I don't see how they can possibly accomplish the Rent Café or Contactless.
DeleteWe had something similar to Rent Cafe at my last apartment. I didn't mind paying on line but I objected to being charged for it.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to check with the seniors at Friday's bingo to see if anyone is signing up for it. I'm guessing no and that they too don't like the idea of the fee.
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