Savannah Vi has been an integral member of the Pan American Properties family since 2018. As the accounting supervisor, she oversees and manages the accounting department, assists with projects, follows up with requests, and mentors other staff accountants. In addition, Savannah successfully manages her personal portfolio of properties by monitoring financials, budgets, and cash flows.
But for Savannah, it’s not all work and no play. She loves being part of the Pan American family, and finding the next best show on the weekends. We sat down with Savannah to learn about her growth alongside Pan American.
Big company, family atmosphere
Despite her impressive managerial status at Pan American, Savannah still considers herself to be a bit on the “green” side. She strives to balance professionalism with a calm and logical approach to her work. More importantly, she enjoys each interaction with clients and tenants.
“At Pan American, there’s a personal connection with clients,” she says.
As she puts it, although Pan American manages more than 100 different properties with [X] individual units, we still maintain a smaller, tight-knit atmosphere. This contributes to both the family-centric work environment and alleviates frustrations from clients who had poor experiences elsewhere.
During her conversations with clients, she’s learned how much they appreciate working with Pan American, especially compared to other property management firms. “When they’ve worked with other places, they’ve tried to communicate with someone and can’t get clear answers, or they just get the run-around,” she says. Savannah says that Pan American isn’t in the business of forcing clients to hunt for information. Instead, we promote one-on-one relationships between departments, contributing to the family atmosphere while improving the client experience. “If they have an accounting question, they go straight to accounting. If they have a management question, they go straight to management. That’s what clients enjoy about working with us.”
Custom, crafted
Savannah explains that at Pan American, unique properties call for unique approaches. “All of our properties are a bit different, owners have specific preferences,” she says. “How we work for their property is entirely up to the client.”
One client might be interested in investment strategies, while another might be in the maintenance or renovation stage.
From an accounting standpoint, that level of customization also means financial reporting tailored to the client’s specific preferences.
“We report to them as much or as little as they want,” Savannah says. “And as often as they need. Monthly, weekly—it’s totally custom.”
The show must go on
Savannah is an Orange County native and current Garden Grove resident who loves being near Los Angeles and the live music scene.
The pandemic has put a damper on her favorite pastime, live shows, but as venues reopen and events take the stage again, Savannah is excited to get back to her passion and back into the crowd
“You forget about what an awesome experience it is,” she says.
Though she’s already seen the band four times–each at iconic LA venues, the Wiltern and the Greek Theater–Savannah’s ecstatic to put another 21 Pilots concert experience under her belt.
But it’s not just live music. It’s live everything.
“The world was at a standstill for a while there,” she said. “I’m just so excited to experience live events again. Going out, sports, everything.”
Looking to the future
Savannah sees Pan American’s goal—an eventual 10,000 units under management—as ambitious but attainable, and she’s up to the task.
“I look back at where we were when I started,” she says. “We had around 100 properties, and now we’re at 140. There’s a constant growth I’ve been able to witness.”
She credits the company’s growth to several factors: the management’s forward-thinking nature, flexibility, and willingness to try leading-edge practices, whether it’s implementing digital vendor invoicing or adopting new systems that streamline the business experience for clients and tenants.
“Seeing everything I’ve seen, I can say that the reality of growth is getting closer and closer.”
