Frequently Asked Questions

Estate Management Systems FAQs

A businessman walks away from his private jet

How does EMS compare to other private software systems?

It boils down to ownership of your information and cost. You will own and manage the data and templates by purchasing an EMS system. At the lowest initial investment in the business, the only fee (beyond our templates) will be $120 per user per year, paid directly to Trello.com.

I’m not sure I’m ready to go digital. How can I tell if my services warrant a move to an online system?

Based on the number of hours most of us spend on our phones daily, every estate manager needs to have all their work info available in an app-friendly system. Need further clarification? Take this quick test.

I’m already so busy; I don’t have time to implement a new system. What do you suggest?

There’s never a better time to start uploading everything you do into one program. Start small (like with your daily property walk-through notes). You can voice-record these into your phone as you walk the property, and then later at your desk, move them over to your housekeeper’s/landscaper’s boards, etc., to assign tasks to your staff and set deadlines. Try our How To Manage A Mansion™ System for all the tools and training. And when your principal is ready to invest in a system, contact us for full customization.

I use Excel spreadsheets and Word documents to manage all of my contractor and maintenance details and don’t want (or need) to create a new system. But I want to improve communication with my team to track project progress, assign tasks, and set deadlines. Can I use my housekeeping checklists and SOPs in the EMS system, or do I have to use yours?

Use yours! This is the best and fastest way to get started. Our templates and checklists are provided in case you don’t have this information already in place or if you need to fill in gaps in your current system. Try our How To Manage A Mansion™ System so that we can show you how to format and upload all of your information online.

Estate manager sitting in front of a computer at a desk and interviewing new personnel

I manage smaller properties, and my employers don’t entertain a lot, don’t have high-profile guests, and don’t have full-time housekeeping staff. Does the EMS system work for these types of clients?

100% yes! If you get paid to manage these properties and gather information on behalf of the homeowner, check out How To Manage A Mansion™ System and purchase only the modules you need to do your work.

How can I make sure my principal’s personal information (i.e., medical prescriptions, jewelry inventories, etc.) are held private while also sharing information with my staff (like housekeeping tasks)?

All boards are marked private. However, you’ll have the ability and control to invite staff members to any board, card, or checklist you choose. If you add or change staff, remove them from your workspace. We also recommend the following policy when building your system: Don’t use addresses, last names, or bank or credit card information. Even without these, you’ll have a fully functioning house management system. Also, Trello provides an option to enable two-step login verification for added security.

Estate manager sits with a married couple at the kitchen table to review important documents about managing their estate

Does the EMS system provide monthly expense reports?

Trello is a great project management software. However, we suggest QuickBooks for financial record keeping and reporting. An important note: Most of our estate-manager clients don’t manage bookkeeping services. These are typically handled through the principal’s family office or an outside accounting firm. We provide an annual operating budget spreadsheet and cards for your monthly expense receipts, approved invoices, credit card reconciliation statements, and employee expense reports.

How long does it take to implement an EMS program?

It depends on how much help you have with the household inventories and the complexity of your property systems. We recommend planning on 3-12 months to upload information and train your staff to use it.

I manage multiple properties for multiple homeowners. Can I purchase one EMS system and, if so, which one is best?

We suggest purchasing modules from How To Manage A Mansion™ to develop your online system. We’ll show you how to create a system that serves each of your clients.

Trello & General Questions

Why Trello?

We compared multiple house inventory and maintenance software programs (i.e., Homezada.com, Homebinder.com, etc.), along with generic online project management software (Asana, Monday.com), and Trello was the easiest to learn for the entire team, the lowest cost, and very app- and user-friendly for low-tech staff.

An important note: None of the home management systems listed above incorporated ports for managing domestic staff, VIP guest information, event and travel planning, household protocol, and homeowner’s data, so we created templates specific to those needs and uploaded and organized them into our systems.

What is the file size limitation on Trello attachments?

For Trello Premium accounts, there is a 250 MB file upload limit per attachment. However, account storage is unlimited.

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