What Renters Want with Jessica Fiur: Should You Have a Personal Social Media Policy for Property Managers?
Could posts on personal social media sites offend residents?
By Jessica Fiur, Senior Editor
Remember when you were little and you saw your teacher outside of school and it was totally weird? Teachers have lives outside of the classroom? No way!
Oh, but teachers do have lives outside of school. And now, they can even get in trouble if they post pictures on Facebook showing their lives outside of school, for example, pictures of themselves drinking or doing anything that parents might consider not very teacher-like. They could even get fired for that.
Now that everyone has a camera on their phones and social media accounts, nothing is really private.
Even when you’re off the clock.
So, what about property managers? A while ago, there was a question in The New York Times, where a co-op member said that the building’s super was often fall-down drunk outside the building, and asking if this was allowed since it was off hours. The answer was that, of course people are entitled to private lives, but since this was in front of the building, management had a right to step in.
That makes sense. But what about social media? Property managers are different than teachers — they mostly work with adults. If residents see a picture on Facebook or Instagram of their property manager or leasing agent having a drink, does that bother anyone?
