Residential yards are the core of most scooping companies, but HOAs, apartment complexes and some commercial properties can be the steadiest accounts you have. One contract covers many visits, the property manager pays monthly, and the work is predictable. It is also different work: emptying pet stations, refilling bags and sweeping common areas instead of walking a fenced backyard. This post covers what these accounts usually need, how to scope and price them, how to schedule them, and how to bill and report to a property manager who answers to a board or an owner.
What These Accounts Usually Need
Most HOAs and apartment complexes have pet waste stations: a post with a bag dispenser and a small trash can. The core service is emptying those cans, replacing the liners, refilling the bags and making sure the station is in good shape. Many also want the common areas swept for waste that residents did not pick up, especially near entrances, along walking paths and in dog parks.
Some properties want more: a dedicated dog run cleaned and sanitized, odor treatment on turf areas, or new stations installed. Others only want station service and nothing else.
Ask for a map of the property and walk it before you quote. Count the stations, note where they are, and look at the common areas they want swept. A complex with 12 stations spread over a large property is very different from one with four stations by the front door.
Scoping and Pricing the Account
Price commercial accounts per visit, based on the number of stations, the area to sweep, and the frequency. Station service is fairly predictable: a set number of minutes per station plus the walk between them. Common area sweeps vary with how many residents have dogs and how well they pick up after them.
As an illustrative example, a company might set a base visit charge for the property, a per-station charge for emptying and restocking, and a separate charge for sweeping a dog park or path. Bags and liners can be included in the price or billed as materials. If you supply bags, put them in your materials list with their cost so job costing reflects them.
Write the scope down. The estimate should list the stations, the areas to sweep, the frequency and what is included. Property managers need a clear scope to take to their board or owner. A detailed estimate also protects you from scope creep, like "while you are here, could you also clean the pool area."
Scheduling Commercial Visits
Commercial accounts usually want service once or twice a week, sometimes more for busy complexes or dog parks. Set each property on its own recurring service with the right interval. A complex served twice a week might have two recurring services, one on Monday and one on Thursday.
Fit commercial visits into your residential route days where you can. An apartment complex in the middle of your Tuesday zone fits naturally on Tuesday. Some properties prefer service early in the morning before residents are out, or at times when the dog park is empty. Note those preferences on the property.
If a commercial account has several properties (a management company with five complexes), set it up as one client with each complex as its own property, each with its own notes, stations and schedule. The scheduling features page shows how recurring services work across many properties under one client.
Billing Monthly
Property managers rarely want a charge after every visit. They want one invoice a month that they can approve and pass to accounting. Monthly (period) billing does that: the visits for the month roll up into one invoice, broken out by property if the client has several.
Some smaller properties will keep a card on file. Larger management companies usually pay by check or bank transfer on their own terms, often net 30. Ask during the sale and set the account up accordingly. If they need a purchase order number or a specific invoice format, note it on the client.
Commercial clients sometimes pay late because invoices get stuck in approval. Three automatic payment follow-ups handle most of it politely. If you send your bookkeeper a QuickBooks export each month, keep property names consistent so invoices match the books. In IndustryBossPro, the payments list shows which commercial invoices are open, so nothing ages for months without someone noticing.
Reporting to the Property Manager
A property manager has to show their board or owner that the service is happening. Make it easy for them. After each visit, send a completed alert with notes and a few photos: a full station, a clean dog park, a restocked bag dispenser. Over a month, those messages are a record the manager can forward.
Report problems, too. If a station is damaged, a can is overflowing because residents are using it for household trash, or a dog park gate is broken, note it and send a photo. Property managers value a vendor who spots problems before residents complain.
When visits are skipped (weather, locked gate to the dog park), skip with a reason so the manager gets the skipped alert. A manager who hears from residents that the stations were not emptied, before hearing from you, will start looking for another vendor. The reporting and analytics features show visit history by property.
Growing From One Property to Many
Property management companies often manage many properties, and HOA board members talk to each other. One well-run account can lead to several more.
Ask for referrals once you have been serving an account well for a few months. Ask the property manager whether they manage other properties that need the service. Offer to quote other properties with the same scope.
Keep commercial accounts in a tight area if you can, the same way you build residential density. A cluster of three apartment complexes and a few dozen residential yards in one zone makes for a very efficient route day. A single complex on the far side of town does not. Our post on pricing your service covers how travel affects your rates.
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