Scott Safadi Is Revolutionizing Property Management in Silicon Valley

Scott Safadi is the president of Cal Bay Property Management (CBPM) located in Palo Alto, Calif. Scott Safadi graduated from Dartmouth College in 2003 and moved to Saratoga, Calif., where he began working in property management. Scott Safadi founded CBPM in 2009 and then proceeded to revolutionize the property management business in Silicon Valley. Scott Safadi holds a CCRM (California Certified Resident Manager) designation.

Information Nation: We’re talking with Scott Safadi, president of Cal Bay Property Management. Thank you for meeting with us today, Scott.

Scott Safadi: My pleasure.

Information Nation: How would you describe CBPM to someone who is unfamiliar with your company?

Scott Safadi: CBPM is a property management company based in the San Francisco Bay Area that specializes in multifamily properties, asset management, and real estate financial analysis.

Information Nation: What sets CBPM apart from other property management companies?

Scott Safadi: Personalized service. We specialize in one product and one area—multifamily properties in the South Bay/Peninsula market. CBPM keeps its finger on the pulse of current industry trends. No one else can match our level of service.

Information Nation: How do you define your special level of service?

Scott Safadi: Service, as you expect it. It’s a simple idea. When you need something, call us and we’ll answer. No waiting on hold, no keying-in of numbers or information into an electronic system, just us, ready to serve you. We respond within the hour.

Information Nation: How does CBPM go above and beyond its competitors?

Scott Safadi: One example is that we don’t view expenses as someone else’s money. We manage our own properties together with our clients. If we find something isn’t up to our high standards, we make sure it’s improved upon for our clients as well. Also, as a CBPM client the contact for our comprehensive management services is one man, the man in charge—me.

Information Nation: Are you saying you personally respond to calls?

Scott Safadi: I take an active role in CBPM. I believe in maintaining a one-on-one relationship and, yes, I visit all of the properties personally. It’s my responsibility to ensure each of CBMP’s properties run smoothly, so we only manage properties within an hour’s drive of our main office.

Information Nation: Does that mean you limit expansion projects to an hour’s drive or less from your office?

Scott Safadi: Correct. I add only as many properties as I can personally administer on a continuing basis. We offer property management solely to properties in the San Francisco Bay Area, which allows us to be specialists in this particular segment of the market.

Information Nation: You concentrate on multifamily properties. Do you have plans to expand into other property types?

Scott Safadi: I aspire to the old adage of “do one thing and do it well,” so I prefer to keep CBPM as an apartments-only property management company. In doing so, it’s possible to focus on details that are fundamental to apartment communities.

Information Nation: Do you have a particular goal in mind when working with your owners and clients?

Scott Safadi: To provide excellent service and help keep operational costs low. I do that by working with my contacts in the construction industry in order to realize the best value with the highest quality results on projects. Our clients also receive regular upgrades to their units. This keeps properties as up to date as possible and provides added value.

Information Nation: Are you actively searching for new opportunities for CBPM?

Scott Safadi: I’m always open to new opportunities, but CBPM’s area of expertise is the 20- to 100-unit properties. CBPM is personally invested in those types of properties. We manage our client’s property alongside our own, so that area of concentration is our No. 1 objective.

Information Nation: What is the most important part of your property management business?

Scott Safadi: That’s easy—tenants are a property manager’s most important assets. Our objective is to take care of the tenants and give them the very best apartment experience possible.

Information Nation: What exactly does the “very best apartment experience” entail?

Scott Safadi: It’s a simple concept: Discover what a client’s greatest expectations are and then exceed them.

Scott Safadi and his wife, Rachel, were married in 2007. Scott Safadi and his family live in Saratoga, Calif. To learn more about Scott Safadi and Cal Bay Property Management, visit the company’s website at calbaypm.com.