Choosing the Right Property Manager
Perhaps after reading all of the information on being your own landlord, you have decided that this is not for you! For many it is not. Or your property is just too far away for your to effectively manage yourself. Not to worry. There are hundreds of Property Managers in your area to help out.
Selecting a Property Manager is not that difficult. You may find that your local realtor is also a property manager. Or they may know a few and be able to give you some recommendations. If not, here are a few good places to start:
The National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM®) is an association of real estate professionals who know first-hand the unique problems and challenges of managing single-family and small residential properties.
Find a Property Manager (FAPM)
This is a site that has many other services to help the residential home owner not only find a property manager, but also breaks them out by specialties, like Residential, Vacation, Condo, Commercial, etc…
http://www.findapropertymanager.com/
Of course you can always “Google”, residential property management and you city and state to get many local listings.
Picking the Right Property Management Company
Now that you have selected a few companies to call, let’s tell you what to look for and how to interview them.
This is a critical choice, especially if you are considering a career in residential real estate. Think about this, whether you have a 9 to 5 job or if you are a regular real estate investor, an effective property manager allows you “transcend” both time and space. Not only does that company do the daily work for you to keep your property running smoothly, but it can happen with you 1000 miles away!
There are several roles that your property manager will have, and you should (if you already don’t) have a healthy dose of respect for these people since they are doing a job that you can’t or don’t want to do, and are making you money doing it! Here are the key roles:
Collect and deposit rents. It doesn’t get simpler than that!
Fill you property with good tenants. They should be able to give you a written marketing plan, showing you how they plan to get traffic into your property. They should also be responsible for all of the tenant screening; credit and rental history, references, employment verification and criminal background checks.
Keep your property full. Your biggest expense will be your tenant turnover. If your property is not full, you are losing money. Your manager should be able to keep your tenants happy by keeping the property well maintained, keeping the rent at a good value for the amenities and treating your tenants with courtesy and respect.
Effectively handle tenant problems. Whatever the problems may be, lease violations, or collecting late rent, your manager should work from a set of written policies on how these situations are to be handled.
Oversee repairs and maintenance. Your manager needs to take care of the tenant work orders in a timely manner. The lack of response to a tenant’s work order is the number one reason that good tenants leave.
Questions to Ask Your Prospective Manager
What types of properties do you specialize in? Don’t lead them in the question, jusk ask it and wait.
Will you provide written management plans? They should be able to provide marketing plans and references for you.
What will be your fee? You don’t want to be too cheap here, but you don’t want to pay too much. Call around and find out what the going rate is in your area and this should give you a good idea. You get what you pay for and if you beat someone down in price too much, they won’t perform the way you expect.
What services are included in that fee? Get an itemized listing of what is included and compare those with the other companies you are considering.
What is the cost for an eviction process? Some states require an attorney to represent you; others allow the manager to fill that role. Also, ask about the actual process for your state. Some states are more tenant-friendly than others, especially in residential cases.
