Pandemic Guide For Real Estate Managers

IREM® Pandemic Guide
For Real Estate Managers

Resources for Reopening Your Property

Once the spread of the infectious disease has slowed to a manageable level, public health authorities typically begin to lift restrictions on life and business. You need to be prepared for when this happens—and your property must be ready to reopen in a safe and responsible manner.

It’s important to remember that reopening your property will not be a “flip the switch” event. It will require some planning, preparation, and prioritization. Reopening may occur in phases to support social (physical) distancing and other disease prevention measures.

Operations at the office, retail, and industrial properties will be different than those under normal circumstances. Balancing how to prevent the spread of disease and meet the needs of tenants will be a challenge. Life on residential properties will move forward in steps as you make areas and amenities, such as clubhouses and swimming pools, available for use again.

You may have had ways of doing things that worked for your property prior to a pandemic and that may work again – but were those ways the best? Or did you discover new, better ways as you shifted on the fly to respond to the pandemic?

Your goal is to end up with the most effective processes in leasing, maintenance, and other areas of operations—those you’d had in place before the pandemic, and those you’ve applied for the pandemic that works even better than previous practices.

You’ll likely need to adjust as there are new developments and guidance from public health authorities. You’ll also adjust as you learn lessons in the initial phases of reopening.

We’ve created this guide to help you navigate these issues. The checklists in the guide serve as a framework for reopening your property and getting back to, if not pre-pandemic operations, a new normal where you and your stakeholders can resume your businesses and lives.