What To Check When Choosing A Property Management Company

By Toni Vang


While many people spend a large amount of time and effort researching on the real estate market and finding ways of building their investment portfolio, majority of them forget the role of a property manager. The right property management company can play a major role in preserving the capital value of an investment and maximizing its income. When selecting such a firm, there are a number of factors you need to check.

Before starting your search of prospective management companies, you need to understand how they can be helpful. Property managers have wide roles in management. These include advertising vacancies, vetting prospective tenants, collecting rental income, handling tenant complains and concerns and carrying out property maintenance and repair drills. Depending on your agreement with the manager, other tasks such may be added.

Locating prospective service providers is among the first things you need to do. This can be achieved by either asking for word of mouth referrals or searching online. Fellow property owners who are using similar services can come in handy in recommending their service providers. If you are not able to get credible referrals, searching online is an alternative. However, make sure you are aware of their portfolio before giving them a call.

Before giving them a call, there are a number of things you may check. Consider giving them a call disguising as a prospective tenant to some of their houses. The speed at which they handle your request and answer your questions should give you a picture of how they will handle your tenants. Use this to establish how knowledgeable the prospective managers are in this industry.

Another trick is calling them disguising as a potential tenant to some of properties they are managing. If you reach a voice mail, check how long they take getting back to you, how knowledgeable they sound about the issue at hand and how soon they are willing to show you the property. This will give you a great idea in understanding their service quality and knowledge of the industry, hence be in a better position of making informed choices.

When evaluating the suitability of prospective managers, it is important to check their level of experience and industry portfolio. In any industry, selecting experienced service providers is always beneficial. Check how long they have been in the industry and if they have handled properties that are similar to yours. Experienced managers will most likely have elaborate structures to use in advertising for vacancies and attracting and screening prospective tenants.

Experience in the industry is another crucial consideration. Experienced companies have elaborate structures that will make it easy to take over the management of strategy in a manner that suits your needs. Check how many years they have been in the industry and more importantly the number of similar properties they are managing. Consider checking the reputation of prospective companies in the industry too.

The task of selecting a property manager should be done carefully. Ensure you are well informed on what roles they can play, what roles you will play and the benefits of selecting one. Asking friends, neighbors and owners of similar properties to provide recommendations will start you off on the right footing.




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