It’s that time of the year again when we close our balance sheets for the last year and move to a New Financial Year.

Here’s a detailed video for a smooth and effortless transition

Go to Settings and Help > Financial Year > Click on the “Process” button by selecting the financial year as FY20-21.

Please note the due items will reflect automatically in the new financial year once the old financial year is complete. There is no manual effort required in carrying forward the same.

In the case of non-members, to carry forward the charges we need to choose the third option as per the screenshot. Please click on “Transfer and Process” by selecting the Fiscal year as FY20-21 so, the pending balances of non-members will be carried forward to the new financial year.

Please note that it’s a mandatory process that needs to be done to carry forward the non-member dues/balances to the new financial year.

MyGate

Property dealings can go awry due to a variety of reasons even in a booming seller’s market if the relationship and communication between the homeowner and the real estate agent are not cohesive and honest. It’s your primary responsibility as a home seller to thoroughly vet your real estate agent before you can entrust them with the sale of your property.

Here’s a few vital questions.

Do you have a real estate license certificate?

Well-known real estate agencies usually display their credentials online/on-premises but if you’ve been referred to or stumbled upon an agent online or otherwise, you must ascertain that they have a legitimate practice with necessary legal certificates.

How much is your commission/agent fees?

As a rule of thumb, real estate agent commission is negotiable and depends on different types of properties. It is usually between 1% to 2% but of course, it could vary on last-minute sales, location, and value of the property, etc. It’s better than the agent is also not representing the buyer so there are no disadvantageous deals for either party. Usually, brokers/agents get paid when the deal is finalized and money exchanged.

Where will they list your property?

There are several digital options like property portals and online viewings, but an estate agent should have other avenues, circles, and connections to get the buyers and sellers across the door. Make sure you ask your estate agent his marketing methods, the sphere of influence, and networking strategies to gauge if his approach is solid. 

How fast do homes in your category sell?

Inquire about the local real estate market conditions and get a generally estimated timeframe of the time it may take to sell your home. Each property sells at a different pace and there’s no right answer to this question. But a good real estate agent is privy to the number of properties for sale, time for listing, and closing of similar properties hence can give you a reasonable estimate.

How will the asking price be determined?

Real estate agents should be able to give you a CMA (Comparative Market Analysis) to arrive at the listing price which is the home value based on recent sales in the area and components like age of the property, a number of rooms, amenities, and other micro trends in the market. A responsible estate agent will arrive at an accurate value and determine a realistic asking price, while less reputable ones might quote high rates initially to get your business. You must keep your eyes wide open and do your own research. 

What could delay or negatively impact the sale of your property?

Apart from the obvious red flags, you may be aware of (repairs, painting, and reconstruction), ask your agent if there are any potential pitfalls that could stop the sale of your house such as unusually low appreciation rates, local real estate market conditions, buyer’s market, quality of the neighborhood, availability of public utilities, and the need of upgrades.

How do you screen the buyer?

Your realtor should be able to tell apart genuine referrals and authentic online/walk-in prospects from fraudsters and suspicious parties by asking the right questions. Your realtor should have the experience and intuition to entertain only serious offers. 

How many homes have you sold?

Whether you’re referred to a realtor or found them through online reviews, you must have a conversation with them about their general background, experience in the market, and actual data on the number of properties sold in your neighborhood and similar properties elsewhere. At the same time, don’t just go by the statistical track record alone. If the realtor’s temperament and values align with yours, trust your instincts. 

Keep in mind that while asking relevant questions to your estate agent, if you find them having a tendency to fib or seem untrustworthy, you can always probe for further details to fact-check with other parties. 

What can be done if the house doesn’t sell?

In the worst-case scenarios, does your estate agent have plans B, C, and D? Are they digitally savvy to lure in the right buyers? Do they have the right negotiation skills to rope in prospective buyers? There’s no harm in disclosing to the agent that you’re listing with other agents as well if such is your intention. Your agent should have the counter measures like readjusting the asking price, short sales, offer lease options, or other options as back-up plans. 

Read More: What are Signs that you should sell your home soon

How will the offers be handled?

Real estate agents should not only disclose all offers made on the property to the owner but should also advise on which offer is the best in the context of buyer’s credibility, faster closing period, and recommend strategies like revealing competing bids to get the best and final price.

How will the offers be handled?

While interviewing different estate agents ask them how long their listings stay in the market and compare the numbers. It’s also recommended that you ask them the listing price and the actual sale price as a measure to check their skills. 

It’s great to work with your agent on promoting the best features of your property like amenities, furniture, and fixture upgrades and gated community society management technology like MyGate. Tech-savvy millennial buyers are oftentimes sold on urban community-living solutions like secure and automated gatekeeping, domestic help tracking, digital payments, and real-time complaint resolution.

It’s common knowledge that Managing Committee and RWA members have their hands full with daily society issues, over and above handling certain monthly and periodic society management tasks. With Mygate’s diverse and intuitive ‘Task Assignment and Management’ functionality, a great deal can be set on auto-reminder/auto-update mode so that you never have to run around for chores at the last minute. Mygate has multiple easy-to-use in-built tools to handle the smallest to the most complex society management tasks with highly user-friendly features and customizable templates.

In practical matters, a society functions through the collaboration of MC, maintenance staff, service providers, and residents. Each stakeholder must do their part on time for everything to flow smoothly.

Common examples of routine and recurring management tasks done by MC, facilities manager, and/or service staff in a typical housing society:

1. Financial/administrative

• A monthly collection of maintenance dues
• Salaries of maintenance and service staff
• Invoicing members for bills and acknowledgment of payment received
• Society bank account maintenance (current/savings/FD)

2. Vendor payments

• Common light and water bill
• Waste collection
• Plumber, electrician, gardener, etc.
• Water tanker services

3. Maintenance

• In-site composting management
• Monthly inventory/supplies/hardware hauls
• Lift AMC and maintenance
• Service/Boiler room AMC
• Gardening supplies and disposal
• Overhead tank cleaning and maintenance
• Fire safety drills/safety equipment inspection
• Pool, gym, clubhouse AMC and monthly maintenance
• Booking amenities for residents monthly
• Solar panels/water/light meter/parking space routine maintenance

4. Miscellaneous

• Task list for society’s festivals and events
• Inspection, repair of electrical devices in common premises (light bulb/fixtures)
• Tasks and communication to be carried out for general/annual/special meetings

Why is it important to schedule society’s tasks?

Professional, swift, and precise management of society’s affairs is the prime responsibility of all committee members. Time management and nuanced scheduling is of the essence to get maximum work accomplished with minimum efforts.

Accounting, financial transactions, bill payments, and bookkeeping, even at a society level, is a set of complicated tasks which need meticulous attention.

Recurring tasks like monthly maintenance payments, lift maintenance visits, sewage treatment plant maintenance, composting unit maintenance, etc. need to be carried out at frequent intervals as required by the owner’s manual. For instance, failure to service the elevators or DC units could lead to potential accidents, injuries, and even fatalities in some cases.

Mismanagement of any of the society’s amenities, such as overbooking or biased booking of the pool, gym, clubhouse, etc. could lead to discontent and complaints against MC.

Running out of inventory like cleaning supplies, waste management tools, electronic supplies, and other utilities could lead to delay in daily general maintenance and repair tasks.

Delayed or stuck payments, either from monthly maintenance dues or pending payments to vendors can lead to disruption of common essential services like water and electricity, hence tracking and automation of financial transactions is imperative to avoid complications.

Lack of accountability within committee members and unruly assignment of responsibility can lead to chaos within the structure and leave a wide-open room for blame game and conflict.

It’s only logical to assign different tasks to different committee members and admin staff officially in one single interface on an all-in-one task management platform so that there’s complete transparency and accountability.

Setting up task assignment and management with Mygate app

1. Here’s how you can add staff

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on People Hub icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Add Staff option
• Enter the required details
• Click on Add

2. Here’s how you can create non-recurring tasks

• Click on the Society icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Tasks option
• Under Non-Recurring Task, click on Create
• Enter the required details and click on Create

3. Here’s how you can create recurring tasks

• Click on the Society icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Tasks option
• Under Non-Recurring Task, click on Create
• Enter the required details and click on Create

Why Mygate ERP?

Managing a society’s various routine and recurring affairs with mnemonic devices, post-it notes and phone reminders is like building a real house with Legos. You wouldn’t get very far and it would be impractical and inconvenient to live in.

Here’s why you should use ‘Task Assignment and Management’

• Auto assignment based on categories of tasks and status tracking

• Ability to add or remove staff members/committee members and reassign workflow assignment

• Easy to use interface

• Simple configurations to get you started

• Assignment of residents’ complaints to the relevant department, like plumbing, cleaning, electrician, etc. with the features to manage staff roster and track status of service requests and auto-escalation.

• Editable Vendor Master for lists of vendors with complete details like department, bank details, contact numbers.

• End-to-end asset management with Asset Categorisation where admin can assign asset management to service staff

• Complete inventory management assignment and tracking with location,  usage, custodians, and department

• Auto reminders for Annual Maintenance Contracts with vendor details and contact information.

• Flexible slot configuration for amenities bookings on a per-flat/monthly basis with custom slots with minutes, hours, or days duration along with sending amenities booking notifications to the facilities manager.

• Automation of monthly maintenance bill payments based on date/period for auto billing to residents with customised billing options, auto-calculation of charges, and SMS/Email reminders for residents to pay on time.

• Timely auto-settling of bills through advance payments and arrears calculations.

• Auto-generation of receipt of payment and tracking dues and overdues for each resident in app.

As a resident of a housing society, there are many discussions and often debates to be had. Whether you’re part of the managing committee or not, as a member of a gated community, you have the right to engage in conversations and the responsibility to voice your opinion.

Some common examples of society communication topics include:

• Organizing festival celebrations, Independence Day, Annual Day, and other events
• Shortlisting and finalizing vendors, plans, and timelines for installing new assets like composting units, CCTV, smart meters, and other such endeavors for the betterment of society.
• Emergency situations like a break-in, fire, health scares like Covid, or urgent safety parameters.
• Discussions regarding any misconduct or conflict with respect to society maintenance staff, maids, drivers, any other.
• Feedback on implementation of any new plan, event, system (e.g. new revenue generation activities, garage sale, yoga workshops, cleanliness drives, waste management initiatives).

The importance of group communication

All society matters should be handled with transparency and participation. It’s vital that everyone is kept apprised of updates, decisions, development while being encouraged to give their inputs in the spirit of collaboration.

Oftentimes, residents may have internal conflicts or a general grievance/inconvenience regarding a problem. Open and honest resolution can only be brought about through peaceful negotiation involving all parties.

Residents may have questions about a decision or may need clarity on certain procedures and policies of the society. Answering them duly with transparency is essential to build trust and cooperation.

Benefits of using Mygate society ERP for online group communication (with examples):

1. Create online polls

Let’s say the event planning committee is not sure which centrepiece to go with on the day of Diwali celebrations, more routine tasks like which paint to choose for the clubhouse or more serious matters like how much penalty for litterers. It’s difficult to personally contact every one and count votes.

You can run online polls to gather opinions and answers to yes or no questions on society ERP apps in a few steps and make decisions instantly.

2. Invite residents for meetings

Need to call a special meeting with regards to an upcoming decision or an urgent society-wide announcement? Just select the number of people who must attend the meeting, and send them digital invites listing the time, agenda, and date. The same can be applied to committee meetings, however, the minutes of each meeting should be in accordance with the state co-operative housing society bye-laws.

3. Start forum discussions

There’s no better way to resolve a situation or have a civilized conversation over a topic than on a supervised group chat. Residents can not only engage in group conversations like a regular IM chat app but also comment on other participants’ ideas. Even feedback on a particular activity or executive decision can be openly discussed on the forum.

1. MyGate ERP – Creating Polls

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Communication icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on the Opinion Polls option
• Click on Create New Poll
• Enter the required details and click on Create

2. Here’s how you can View Results

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Communication icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on the Opinion Polls option
• Click on View icon against a Poll

3. Here’s how you can Create Meetings

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Communication icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Meetings option
• Click on Create
• Enter the required details
• Click on Submit

4. Here’s how you can Publish MOM

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Communication icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Meetings option
• Click on Past Meetings
• Click on View against the meeting you want to publish the minutes for
• Enter minutes of the meeting and other details and click on Post

The same MOM can be also Printed or Added to Society Documents for future reference via ‘Upload’

5. Here’s how you can Create a Discussion

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Communication icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Discussion Forum option
• Click on Create Discussion
• Enter the required details and click on Create

Annual society elections

Apart from the regular meetings, the society election is a massive endeavour for societies and needs to be conducted in a fair and efficient way. They are to be held on August 14 of every year at the time of the AGM, but most societies don’t strictly adhere to this date. In the wake of the Covid pandemic, even the government had allowed online election for housing societies. However, the elections are to be held in a secret ballot as per the mandate at the completion of five years of the sitting committee.

Each society must appoint a Returning Officer to ensure unbiased voting. To ease this process, the admin/login access to the election votes can be given only to the designated RO who’s in charge of the secret voting process and can access results. However, ensure that you appoint a fair and trustworthy individual who has everyone’s confidence. Because of end-to-end encryption and two-factor authentication, society management apps are completely secure to carry out election voting procedures.

Each state has housing society bye-laws that list the guidelines, timelines and protocols to conduct society election. For instance, Maharashtra allows a housing society with less than 250 members to conduct a month-long election procedure to cover voting lists, nomination, withdrawal and balloting/post balloting disputes and rejections. There’s a deposit fee involved and each contestant needs to be seconded by two members. To know the detailed laws of elections in Karnataka, follow The Karnataka Cooperative Societies Act here.

MC/RWA has to ensure that all required election rules, regulations, notices for nominations, last dates, and other pertinent details are followed according to the state bye-laws and relayed to the residents on time (for which society ERP can offer the feature of using a virtual notice board).

Amidst the spread of the Covid pandemic second wave, a lot of myths and falsehoods have created panic among people in terms of safety and sanitization protocols for everyday household products and items. 

Should you use household remedies like vinegar, rock salt, diluted bleach to disinfect eatables and packages or should you simply rinse them under running water? The use of such non-abrasive hacks isn’t harmful and can not only help in curbing the virus, but also create a certain peace of mind, knowing that you’re doing everything within your power to keep Covid-19 at bay. 

It goes without saying that whether out on a shopping run or receiving deliveries, maintain a safe distance (6 feet or two arms’ length). Ensure that no delivery executive at the door is without a mask. 

Here’s what to do when handling deliveries, shopping, and produce.

How to disinfect vegetables and fruits

• Always wear disposable gloves while buying produce. If you’re wearing any other type of gloves, remember to wash them after buying/handling vegetables.

• Before you begin the cooking process, scrub and clean the kitchen sink/counter tops thoroughly.

• Alternately, keep a separate tub/container to dunk all of the produce in and add a little potassium permanganate in it to disinfect it. 

• Do not immediately place produce on the kitchen counter or the refrigerator. Leave the fruits and vegetables out in the sun for a couple of hours.

• Do not wash them with soap, anti-bacterial wipes or detergent because if ingested, they can cause diarrhoea and other gastrointestinal diseases. 

• Instead, clean them in hot water or in hot water with salt. You could add a little chlorine too, no more than 50 ppm. Washing them in potable, running water can do the trick too. The FDA recommends to rinse them before peeling them so that the virus isn’t transferred to chopping boards/knives.

• While cleaning produce like potato, carrot, melons, cucumber, etc., use a brush, cloth or sponge to make sure all the dirt is properly cleansed off. 

• Cut off the outer leaves/skin of cauliflower, onion, cabbage before wiping/rinsing the rest.

How to sanitize food deliveries

Ideally, all customers should opt for cashless, contactless deliveries with a minimum of 3 feet distance and the delivery boys should be instructed to leave the parcel at the door. Even though food delivery apps like Zomato and Swiggy have their own sanitizing procedures, you might not always have the convenience to order from them. Follow the process below to ensure clean food deliveries at home.

• After picking up the package, remove all the additional packaging like plastic, cardboard box, etc., and throw them in the trash bin instantly. Keep the bin covered at all times.

• Sanitize or wash your hands before handling the delivery package or bag.

• Disinfect the parcel with anti-bacterial wipes or mild household bleach.

• Transfer the food from the parcel into household utensils and heat the food before eating it. Wash your hands properly after handling the package.

How to disinfect milk packets

• Whether a milk packet or carton, you need to maintain a safe distance from the milk delivery man (or the store clerk) and wash the packets under running water. 

• Leave the packets to dry completely so that there’s no residual surface water.

• Wash your hands, cut open the packet and pour it in a container before bringing it to boil.

What to do when you’re shopping for groceries? Or having them delivered?

• As mentioned before, wear a mask and gloves when out shopping. Pick a time when there are fewer people around so following social distancing protocols becomes easier (e.g. early morning or late evening). Avoid touching surfaces you don’t need to and don’t touch your eyes, nose, mouth while out on the grocery run. 

• Keep a hand sanitizer handy on your person or in your car so that you can immediately sanitize yourself after shopping. 

• After coming back home, avoid touching anything and go straight to the kitchen sink/designated disinfectant area which should be already equipped with cleaning supplies beforehand.

• Dump your gloves in the bin after removing them carefully so as to not let them touch any other area of the skin.

• Wash all the plastic and glass bottles with warm or cold water and leave them out in the sun. Wipe down all the nooks and crannies of tin cans and other supplies.

Follow the above-mentioned procedure if items are being delivered at home. But if you’ve been out shopping, take a shower immediately after the sanitization procedure and wash your clothes with a good detergent.

Although there’s no foolproof way to handle daily essentials during these times and there will be some degree of risk. But following the instructions in this article will surely add a solid layer of protection in your daily routine. 

About MyGate

MyGate is India’s largest gated community management app, benefiting thousands of housing societies, developers, society facility managers, and millions of homeowners in every Indian city.

Disclaimer: Thank you for visiting our site. The information provided by MyGate (“we,” “us” or “our”) on https://www.mygate.com (the “Site”) is for general informational purposes only. We strive to provide our readers with accurate information that helps learn more about the topics. It is not intended as a substitute for professional advice. We do not accept responsibility for the accuracy of information sourced from an external entity or take personal/ legal responsibility for your use of this information.

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Modern apartment complexes and gated communities are known for the appeal of amenities and facilities like clubhouse, gym, community hall, media room, yoga studios, spa/sauna, swimming pool, and private rooftop lounges. Some high-end apartments may even have nurseries, skating rinks, sandpits, board games/library corners, pet care centers, laundry rooms, entertainment lounges, co-working spaces, tennis/multi-purpose courts, mini-amphitheater, recreational sports area, private lounging patios, heated indoor swimming pools, infinity pools, and hot tubs.

But with the multiplicity of several amenities and ensuring fair share to each resident, there lies the challenge of amenities management. No matter how small or big your society’s amenities are, they should be maintained and managed smartly to avail optimum use and member satisfaction.

Here are some commonly faced scenarios due to traditional methods of amenities management:

• Usually, a housekeeping/facilities manager or a supervisor/head guard is in charge of handling different amenities.
• In ‘first come first serve basis’ with time duration limitation, usually the frequent users come and take the spot. For those other residents who may not use amenities too often but always find the amenities crowded due to overuse by regular users, there arises a problem of unfair treatment.
• Amenities are open from a certain time from morning to evening in most societies (unless there’s a 24/7 open rule). Due to pen and paper register booking, there may be overbooking and the systems and operations may have to be kept running beyond the open hours and lead to early wear and tear or breakdown.
• Residents have to run around making calls or personally inquiring about the availability of slots which is a waste of time for everyone.
• Sometimes due to a shortage of a supervisor, some amenities have to be kept closed down.
• Residents often use cash to pay for using amenities which could contribute to theft or loss.

Why is it important to streamline amenities management?

Shared amenities that can be booked fairly and equally are the right of every resident.

When managed effectively with proper rules and timings, they’re a great way to enjoy the many pleasures of a rich and thriving community life.

They’re a hub for community bonding, meetings, and memorable experiences, thus they need to be prioritised, not mismanaged using outdated systems.

To ensure a good return on investment, the amenities should be handled and allotted methodically so there’s no overuse or underuse.

Any mismanagement should not create conflicts or grievances within fellow residents.

Amenities Management with Mygate app

Here’s how you can Create an Amenity

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Amenities icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on the Amenity List option
• Click on Add Amenity
• Enter details and click on Save

Here’s how you can Configure an Amenity

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Amenities icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on the Amenity List option
• Click on Edit against the amenity you want to edit
• Enter the required details and click on Update

Here’s how you can edit Amenity Settings

• Login to api.mygate.in
• Click on the Amenities icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Amenity List option
• Scroll down and edit settings as per your requirement

Here’s how you can book an amenity on behalf of a resident or the office:

• Login to dashboard.mygate.com
• Click on the Amenities icon present on the left-hand side of the screen
• Click on Bookings
• Click on New Bookings
• Select the House
• Select the Amenity
• Enter the required details and click on Book Now

How Mygate makes amenities management easier and organized

Easy to use– Amenities Configuration & Bookings in-app for residents

List them all in the app (such as gym, pool) and create slots with an advance booking system, time slots, and payment options (free or paid options along with multiple amenities management in one place.

The calendar allows for residents to check availability and book slots online. Amenity-related notifications to recipients like facility managers but admin can opt-out.

Intuitive and precise– Detailed slots

The app helps you create custom slots for each flat per day/month based on:

• minutes
• hours
• days
• duration

Each amenity can be configured so that no one or more flats can overuse any amenity.

Flexible & affordable – Payment options

The app facilitates multiple in-app payments options (UPI, Gateways, Wallets, etc) with least charges in the entire market. Managers can even approve offline payments and send auto-intimation to residents on approval. Offline payment reconciliation can occur through “I have paid option” to reconcile cheque, NetBanking payment and generate a reconciliation statement.

Not all bookings are set in stone. Admin can cancel or reject a booking if needed.

Automatic updates – Self-managing

The app blocks the visibility of unavailable slots once booked so that the members can opt for other slots. In here, you can limit the number of slots assigned to each flat. Admin can also track bookings based on houses/flats, status, and amenity and download reports for analysis on past bookings. You also have an option to remove an amenity temporarily for maintenance and upkeep purposes.

Through this digital booking system, even if there are not enough hands on board, Amenities Management can be handled online with minimum supervision or intervention. Residents can avail the benefits of smoothly handled amenities with least inconvenience.