Is Your Company Really Getting That “Special” Discount?

I’m a property manager for residential multifamily buildings.  The place I’m at right now consists of 3 high-rise buildings, that peak at 14 stories, and total 560 apartment homes.  Whether or not you’re in this industry, the amount of money spent on a monthly basis to maintain normal operations is exorbitant.  For example, a 300-unit building had R&M (Repairs & Maintenance) budgeted at $500,000 for the year.

Walk into any maintenance shop and you’re likely to see 5 massive dead trees (supply catalogs) lying around.  I’ll assume there will be catalogs for HD Supply, ULine, Global Industrial, & Grainger.  A very popular one seen in the leasing/management office is WB Mason, which is for office supplies.

If you’re using these companies or buying directly from vendors, please PAY ATTENTION.  I don’t want to hear about your “company discount” or “we are a national company, and they give us the lowest prices.”  That’s all nonsense and I was brainwashed too until I did my own research.

Do you spend a lof of money on:

• Light bulbs (fluorescent, LED, high-pressure sodium, metal halide)
• Ballasts
• key blanks
• fobs (controlled access doors)
• garage remote clickers
• general office supplies (paper, pens, toner)
• janitorial supplies
• plumbing supplies
• HVAC/Boiler parts

This will continue until everything you purchase for your building is on the list.

Rule #1 – NEVER BUY PARTS DIRECTLY FROM A VENDOR – If you have a major repair, get the proposal from your vendor broken down in detail showing the cost for parts and labor.  When alone, type that part # in google and you’ll see all the places that sell for at least 30% cheaper.  Tell your vendor, that only the labor is needed.  If they refuse to do the job, so be it, and start looking for a new company.  They’ll likely do the job for you…

Rule #2 – You MUST buy all light bulbs and ballasts from online outlets.  Here are the companies I use:

www.1000bulbs.com

Look at 2 bulbs that we purchase mass quantities of and the price difference:

www.atlantalightbulbs.com

Rule #3 – All Key blanks MUST be purchased from online outlets.  My source:

www.mysecuritypro.com

Rule #4 – NEVER BUY fobs, remotes, garage door clickers from your access control company.  DO NOT let them tell you that the fobs and remotes are not compatible with your hardware.  All it takes is 15 minutes of programming in your software to make them work.  If they give you a hard time, write down the name of the software used and I’ll do the research for you.  That $50 “custom programmed” clicker is really only $5.00.   My source:

www.communitycontrols.com      – ask for Floyd.  He provides excellent customer service

Rule #5 – Don’t believe your “special” corporate deal from WB Mason or any other office supplier is unbeatable.  A quick look on amazon.com will show otherwise.  I now buy all office supplies from:

www.amazon.com 

Don’t let vendors or heavy workloads take advantage of you and your budget!!!   All you need is 30 minutes and I guarantee you’ll be saving thousands in no time.  Best of luck and hope this helps.