A Caramel Filled April!

From the desk of Leah Calnan, Director of Metro Property Management

Well it has been a productive month here at Metro and with another bumper month to come too!

Recently the team attended a full days training session here at the office with the fantastic Fiona Blayney (of Blayney Potential Plus). Fiona has such energy and enthusiasm for Property Management it was hard for the team not to get excited about what Fiona had to impart upon us all! I have noticed the change in the team already, communication is even better, each team member’s organisation has improved and as a result the vibe of the office is even more positive than before.

This coming month we are attending the 25th Melbourne International Comedy Festival http://ow.ly/4pdJ1 as we tend to do every year and we as a team are going to see the very talented Eddie Perfect with a pre-show dinner at the Red Emperor..delish! Our social calendar is also circled for Sunday the 17th April as we attend & support the Warwick Foundations “High Heel Race 2011” at Whitten Oval, Footscray. (The Warwick Foundation raises funds for young adults with cancer and their support networks). Lot’s of laughs will be had as we race as the ‘Metro Team’ in high heels and race attire, fascinators and all to contend to win the coveted 1st prize. We’ll keep you posted on how we faired on the day and keep an eye on facebook too as you may even get to share in our silly photos too. If you’d like to attend the day too please see the following link and get a group together for a fun day http://ow.ly/4pe5l

In other news I was very excited to be recently quoted in an article in The Sunday Age (3/4/11) regarding the changing face of renters and in particular the new breed of ‘lifestyle renters’ that are forming in the marketplace. If you would like to read the article that also queries builders and architects on what the ‘lifestyle renters’ are looking for in an inner city pad these days please do so here http://ow.ly/4sklz

Easter is again upon us and we thought we’d inform you all of our opening hours over the Easter break. Below are our trading hours over this period:

Thursday 21st April: 9.00-5.30pm (as normal)

Friday 22nd April (Good Friday): Closed

Saturday 23rd April: Closed

Sunday 24th April (Easter Sunday): Closed

Monday 25th April (Easter Monday): Closed

Tuesday 26th April (Anzac Day): Closed

Wednesday 27th April: 9.00-5.30pm (as normal)

So all in all a caramel filled April, much like the easter eggs we will be (or already have begun) eating.

Until next time...

Purple is in!

From the desk of Leah Calnan, Director of Metro Property Management

We here at Metro love to support a great cause and tomorrow (26th March) is Purple Day. People from around Australia and the world are asked to 'Go Purple' and spread the word about the brain disorder known as epilepsy to reduce the stigma and show support for people living with epilepsy..


The following is information about the day from the www.everydayhero.com.au website:

Purple Day was founded in 2008 by then nine-year old Cassidy Megan of Nova Scotia, Canada. Motivated by her own struggles with epilepsy, Cassidy wanted to do something to get people talking about epilepsy and seizures, and to let others with epilepsy know that they were not alone. So with the help of the Epilepsy Association of Nova Scotia, Cassidy's idea became the Purple Day Epilepsy campaign.

In 2010 over 100,000 people from around the world, including school students, wore purple on 26 March. Hundreds of workplaces and community groups also joined the campaign, wearing purple to work and hosting Purple Day events.

All united to help spread awareness of epilepsy and show their support for those living with the brain disorder.

That is why this year the Epilepsy Foundation of Victoria has joined other epilepsy associations from across Australia and the world to make Purple Day for Epilepsy 2011 an even greater success.

So please join us on 26 March and help spread awareness of epilepsy in your local community. Go Purple - wear purple, decorate your home or office in purple, host a Purple Day event.

For more information on Purple Day for Epilepsy and if you wish to donate visit http://ow.ly/4m18x

Until next time...

A Happy Valentine’s to All!

From the desk of Leah Calnan, Director of Metro Property Management…

Although many of us think that Valentine’s Day was a holiday made up by the greeting card companies, chocolate companies and florists of this world, the history of Saint Valentine’s Day is quite interesting and dates back to Roman times. There are however quite a few different legends surrounding the day as you will read below but before you get started we thought we’d give you a few interesting facts about the day...

Did You Know …

- 141 million Valentine's Day cards are exchanged annually, making Valentine's Day the second-most popular greeting-card-giving occasion. (Hallmark Research)

- Over 50 percent of all Valentine's Day cards are purchased in the six days prior to the observance, making Valentine's Day a procrastinator's delight. (Hallmark Research) (Well we understand it can be a hard & very considered decision for some).

Saint Valentine’s Day History (Source www.history.com)

The history of Valentine's Day — and its patron saint — is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men — his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first "valentine" greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl — who may have been his jailor's daughter — who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed "From your Valentine," an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

Whatever it is you decide to do to celebrate the day we at Metro hope you have a great day (& get spoilt too).

Until next time…

Happy New Year & "No Tan Jan"

From the desk of Leah Calnan, Director of Metro Property Management...

Well it’s the New Year 2011 and we are off and racing like most of you out there and feeling a little more refreshed. The office is a buzz with plenty of properties to lease, twilight & weekend open homes are in full swing and the listing of numerous new properties from existing as well as brand new clients. We are also gradually updating the interior of our offices with new painting, tiling, carpet & a kitchen upgrade which all make an exciting start to the year.

As you would know by now when we see a fantastic cause we like to get right behind it and this month we are supporting “No Tan Jan”. For the month of January we are encouraged by the Warwick Foundation to give up tanning (in the sun & with the use of solariums) for good and change the way Australians view tanning in general. The foundation is Australia's first and only organisation focused on supporting 18 - 40 year olds with cancer. They are encouraging us this month to “Fake It! Don’t Bake It!”

Their website (http://ow.ly/3BwqT) states that ...sadly, melanoma is the most common cancer for this age group and we want that to change! ‘No Tan Jan’ is all about ditching the solarium, breaking up with sun baking and embracing fake tan for the month of January. At the same time you will raise much needed funds for all young adults with cancer.

Being part of “No Tan Jan” is so easy! You just need to register, set up your personal fundraising page and give up solariums and sun baking for the month of January. If you must have a tan, then make sure it is fake.

The Warwick Foundation asks you to have your family, friends and co-workers to sponsor you for encouragement! This will not only help you kick the habit for good and decrease your chances of developing skin cancer, but you will also be supporting all young adults with the disease.

There are many companies willing to donate proceeds from spray tanning and related products to the foundation so check out the companies involved and purchase your products from them http://ow.ly/3BxlT .

If you’d simply like to donate to this foundation to support this specialised group of 18-40 yr olds living with cancer then please go to this page http://ow.ly/3BwwO and simply make your donation.

And remember it is important to get your fake tan right! As the Warwick Foundation state on their site you don’t want to end up looking like bad fake tan victims Donald Trump or Paris Hilton, worse still with a real tan like Donatella Versace!!!

Until next time...

A Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to all!!!

From the desk of Leah Calnan, Director of Metro Property Management…

Well can you believe it, it’s that time of year again, Christmas! It has snuck up on us again but it has been a great year here at Metro that’s for sure.

This past month our team and their respective partners had our Christmas Party, a weekend away in lovely Queenscliff, a beautiful town that we think everyone should visit.

We stayed in the grand old Queenscliff Hotel with its antique furniture and ‘Olde World’ feel, so very lovely. Being such a big group some of us stayed at Athalstane House which by all reports was a relaxing bed & breakfast style of hotel with all the mod cons. We surprised the team with a game of Lawn Bowls in the afternoon complete with prizes for the winners (pink glittered lawn bowls) and for the runners up a copy of the ‘Crackerjack’ DVD. We also had a delicious 3 course dinner and drinks at the Ripview Bistro and the following morning a fabulous buffet breakfast back at the Queenscliff Hotel, although there were a couple of us with sore heads. So all in all a fantastic time was had by all.

So it’s back into the swing of things and our offices are open over the Christmas and New Year Period, our opening hours are below…

Friday 24th December - 9am to 1pm
Saturday 25th December - Closed
Sunday 26th December - Closed
Monday 27th December - Closed
Tuesday 28th December - Closed
Wednesday 29th December - 9am to 4pm
Thursday 30th December - 9am to 4pm
Friday 31st December - 9am to 1pm
Saturday 1st January - Closed
Monday 3rd January - Closed
(NB: We resume our normal business hours 9.00am-5.30pm on Tuesday 4th January 2011)

We all hope you have something fantastic planned for New Years Eve this year and we have heard of a couple of great family friendly events being held in and around the city. One of them being the Free Family Friendly event at Yarra Park from 6pm-9.45pm include roving performers, rides, kids activities, workshops and headline acts on the mainstage. Families are encouraged to bring a picnic rug and relax on the grass to countdown to the 9.15pm fireworks. There is also the family friendly event at Waterfront City at Docklands, for more information on both of these events please visit http://ow.ly/3sS7k .

The team at Metro Property Management would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a safe, happy and successful New Year in 2011.

Until 2011…

December and Summer Begins

From the desk of Leah Calnan, Director of Metro Property Management…

And so it’s the 1st day of Summer and it’s raining…ah Melbourne…

Only 24 days until Christmas and we here at Metro are excited (& a little frightened), the tree has gone up in the office today already!

This month our team has been given $100 each to shop for gifts for the Kmart Wishing Tree, it’s a Christmas tradition now and the team just love it! It’s always a competition to see who gets the most and most interesting gifts for all ages, so far the pile is huge! My boys will come into the office and ‘test drive’ them and then each member has nominated a store nearest to them to take the gifts to, so that our gifts are given to the different charities supported by the various Kmart stores. 

In other news Metro Property Management turned 4 today and we have celebrated with a pizza lunch for the team and some delish cupcakes from our favourite store…The Cupcake Bakery, a great start to the Christmas month of eating.

No doubt the shops will be hectic this weekend with people Christmas ‘shopping till they are literally dropping’, however if you happen to be in the city don’t forget to take the kids (big or small) to see the Myer Christmas Window Display, as usual they are fantastic and will have you all in the Christmas spirit. This years theme is ‘The Nutcracker’ http://ow.ly/3hW6k

Till next time…

A Fantastic End to October!

From the desk of Leah Calnan, Director of Metro Property Management…

The last week of October was a very exciting one! For one I was very proud to win the REIV Residential Property Manager of the Year 2010 Award at the 17th Annual REIV Gala Awards held at the Crown Palladium Ballroom. It was so very nice to have many of my team attend and share in my joy. I was very shocked to say the least. I was up against some tough competition and to win was such an honor and a fantastic reward for all of the hard work my team and I put into our business. The REIV tell me that this year there were a record number of entries which makes the win all the more special and it helps my team and I feel like we are doing something right. The congratulations from our colleagues and clients have been overwhelming!

In other news I was approached a few months ago for some comments for an article in the “First Property Buyer” Magazine, this is a relatively new magazine and was first brought to my attention at the Home Buyer and Investor Show that we attended a few months ago. Now in it’s 4th issue this is a magazine that is full of interesting information for those purchasing their first property either to live in or to lease out as the magazine not only targets those who have never purchased before but also those who have never been a property investor before . I was asked to make some comments &/or offer advice for an article called “Hired Help” which discussed the reality’s of becoming a landlord, the benefits of assigning a Property Manager to care for your investment, the costs involved and how to find the best Property Manager.

The article is a great read and it was fantastic to have the opportunity to inform the first time investors out there about the benefits of a great Property Manager. (The article “Hired Help” can be found in the “First Property Buyers” Magazine - November 2010 issue on Pages 63-65) For more interesting reading and information on the magazine visit their website http://www.firstpropertybuyer.com.au/

Until next time…