For Landlords

You might own a condo unit, a 6-unit townhouse, or a high-rise rental property. You might self-manage or hire a managing agent. You might rent your own units out, hire an in-house rental team, or have a relationship with a brokerage. You are a New York City landlord, and we are your best partner. This is why:

Highline’s rental agents are smarter, faster, and more sophisticated than agents at other firms. Our agents are trained by both property managers and brokers. We understand the fundamentals of what makes your building tick. When we approach an apartment in your building, we don’t just see 300 square feet on 28th Street with no elevator. We understand the fundamental issues you deal with, and the objectives you seek to achieve.

At Highline, we understand the importance of controlling one important aspect of a landlord’s business: The tenant body. When leasing units, your foremost concern is to avoid vacancy loss. Our agents rent most standard apartments within two weeks. In a small building, even a small vacancy loss makes a large hole in the cash flow.
However, we also believe that high quality—paying, law-abiding, quiet, clean—residents, are the foundation of a profitable, well-run building. All too often, landlords do not pay sufficient attention to their choice of residents. They merge leasing with their general management affairs. As a result, they do not consistently rent to reliable residents, and have longer vacancy periods, and rent loss. Our agents have years of experience in carefully choosing quality residents.

A simple example: A mid-range rental in Brooklyn Heights has a new tenant. He pays rent regularly, but goes to work one day and leaves his tub faucet on. He floods his bathroom. The water breaks through the ceilings of several bathrooms below him. The landlord pays $35,000 to fix the apartments. He sues this tenant, to no avail.

Vetting potential residents is our career, our obsession. A resident is both the basis of your profit, and a liability. Highline agents are trained to conduct rigorous credit and background checks.

We are careful to call multiple references, employers, and prior landlords. We ask for bank statements, tax returns, and employment letters. Our investment lies in our relationship with the landlord. We’d rather not make the money from a rental deal than ruin our credibility by referring a bad tenant.