How To Find The Right Property Management Company
by Abdul Aziz Mondal Real Estate Published on: 15 November 2022 Last Updated on: 16 November 2022
Running a rental property can be a lot of hard work. There’s the hassle of ensuring that the homes are clean and habitable, finding and screening suitable tenants, handling rent collection and tenant issues, maintaining the accounting books, paying bills, preparing reports and legal documents . . . the list is endless!
Fortunately, there are professional property management companies (or even individuals) who live and breathe property management that is just waiting to free you from these responsibilities, allowing you to enjoy all the perks of running a successful property.
Of course, they will wish to earn a reasonable compensation, but the exorbitant amount of time you save to do the things you enjoy, and the money you can save through engaging a productive and efficient team of trained experts to operate on your behalf pays dividends unto itself.
Top 4 Ways To Find The Right Property Management Company
The only real question is – how do you know which agency is the right property management company for you?
1. Do Diligent Research
In the modern world, everyone has a website, most people have social media, and businesses undoubtedly have reviews and detailed information about their company and its offerings to remain competitive in the dog-eat-dog world of entrepreneurship.
While browsing through a plethora of property management websites might not be your idea of a good time, the internet often makes it considerably easier to locate top-quality services.
Company reviews and feedback are a great way to narrow down your list of prospects, as it gives you a good idea of how they handle their customers and business procedures. If they have a lot of reviews and the comments describe specific reasons why the customers were pleased with their experience, that will offer great insight into how that business operates.
If the reviews are mixed, find out what the problems are, and then you can decide for yourself if it’s a company you want to risk or if you want to put them on the back burner while you contemplate more encouraging results.
Once you have a top 10 or top 5 list (depending on how intensive you plan to be to ensure you make the right choice), then it’s time to dig a little deeper. Look in depth on their website for what services they provide, and how they treat their clients. If everything seems good to you, make an appointment to have an interview with company management.
They want to work for you, so they will be willing to have a candid conversation to set your mind at ease. If they aren’t willing, that’s probably a red flag.
When your research is complete, having at least three top options (and a few backups) is ideal.
2. Get Referrals
Feedback can be invaluable, and while reading online reviews for a particular company can be useful, nothing is quite the same as hearing a recommendation straight from the horse’s mouth.
As many local properties are outsourced to property management companies, locating the property owners themselves can give you a chance to have an in-depth conversation about their knowledge of property management agencies, especially the ones that they have employed for themselves.
It’s an opportunity to learn the pros and cons from someone who has an established relationship with that company and may also know other people who have employed different agencies.
This is a fountain of information, so drink deep when you have the opportunity.
3. Contact Multiple Clients
It can be tempting to settle for the first decent-sounding company you research or speak with about the job. They may even be really good at the job, too . . . but are they the right company for you?
When you find a company that seems like a good fit, that’s a cause to celebrate, but not a reason to quit. Add them to your coveted “top three” candidates list, and keep on searching.
The next PMC interview might be an even better fit for you, offering a better deal or different services that appeal to you more than what the first choice had to offer.
The third company might knock the other two completely out of contention.
A simple truth is that you should always shop around, whether looking for a PMC, a new car, or even a jar of peanut butter.
4. Ensure Licensure
You’re about to place your beloved property in the hands of a team of experts, well-educated in the best methods to encourage growth in your estate, deliver a quality customer service experience for your tenants, and handle all tax and legal paperwork with the utmost accuracy and professionalism.
They are experts, right? MAKE SURE.
States usually require these property managers to hold an up-to-date real-estate broker’s license. Having that is a guarantee that they have completed the required PMC coursework and were able to pass the state-licensed examination to show that they know their stuff.
Having the state-approved licensure is a pretty good indication that you are working with a quality team of professionals that can perform their jobs with alacrity. If they are still unable to do so, well, that’s why we have reviews and referrals.
5. Personality
This might seem like a minor rung on the latter, but it’s a good idea to meet your prospective property manager in person. Have a get-together or go out for lunch sometime, have phone conversations, and really get to know who he is as a person.
Unfortunately, some personalities do not mix very well. While the property manager may be perfectly capable of doing his job, you have to decide for yourself if this person is someone you are going to enjoy working with and having important discussions with regarding your properties.
If you have two highly qualified choices and you can’t make up your mind between them, go with the one you feel more comfortable communicating with. It will be easier for both of you to have serious conversations and come up with incredible plans if you are able to get along.
The Bottom Line
There are many, many property management companies out there, but only one is the best choice. To find out which one that is, you will need to do plenty of research, get referrals, have conversations, meet and speak with leading candidates, and verify that the agency has an appropriate license to verify that they are experts in their field.
The better the PMC you have, the more smoothly your rental property will run, and the happier everyone will be.
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