Why is Property Management Important?
If you’re a brand new real estate investor, you have a lot on your plate! You may have thought that property investing was passive income, but think again.
If you’re struggling to keep your head above water, it might be time to consider hiring a property management company.
But what do property managers do and why are they so important? We’re here to talk about it. Keep reading to learn more.
What Is a Property Management Company?
A property management company will help you manage and maintain your property. They manage properties for dozens of landlords at a time. They can keep everything organized, set up helpful online portals and property management software for tenants to use, and streamline the entire property management process to make your life easier.
Small-time landlords who only manage a single home often don’t need property management companies, but when they start accumulating more properties (or if they own a multi-family property) it can be difficult to stay on top of things.
For a small fee, a property management company will fill in the gaps.
Finding Good Tenants
A good property management company will help you fill your vacancies with tenants who will treat your property like it was their own.
First, any real property management company knows how to market properties. They’ll make sure that you’re on all of the most popular real estate websites, that your property is on social media, and that all of the photos of your property look professional and aesthetically appealing.
When potential tenants start applying, your rental property management company will screen them and run background checks so they can find the perfect fit.
They can make sure that tenants have all proper qualifications (or that they have cosigners with those qualifications), handle tenant interviews, and more.
Not all tenants are good tenants. As a new landlord, it can be difficult to figure out who’s going to be a good tenant for your property. With the experience that comes from managing dozens of properties, your property management team can save the day.
Connecting With Tenants
Once you have great tenants, you want to make sure that you keep them happy. Tenant retention will save you money in the long run, and replacing perfect tenants is a challenge.
As a landlord, it’s hard to connect with your tenants all of the time. They may have questions or requests that you don’t have time to handle. A property management company will take care of those things for you.
They can send out notices, deal with lease negotiations, mediate disputes, and more. They’ll keep your tenants happy while you manage your other responsibilities.
Even when your good tenants leave, they’ll be more likely to recommend your property to other people and leave good reviews (which will attract more good tenants). If tenants feel like you’re not communicative or responsive enough, this won’t be the case.
Your property management company will be responsive for you.
Property Maintenance
A well-maintained property is crucial. Do you take good enough care of your property maintenance?
Property maintenance isn’t all about tenant requests. While a company that provides these services will respond to tenant maintenance requests and find contractors for you, they’ll also help you with routine property maintenance.
Routine property maintenance helps you prevent expensive maintenance problems in the future. If you’re keeping up with your plumbing, HVAC, and parking area, you’re making sure that you don’t have unexpected disasters.
While you may be too busy to remember to schedule routine maintenance, your property managers are ready to do it for you.
They can also handle maintenance requests, even late at night. Emergency maintenance requests can happen at all hours of the day. On your own, it’s hard to manage them.
The property management company is ready to handle emergency maintenance.
Behind-the-Scenes Work
There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work to navigate when you’re a landlord. You have to write airtight leases, deal with late rent payments, and make big decisions. If you manage several properties or work a day job alongside your investment, you’re going to be buried in work.
Property managers will help you. They can offer guidance based on years of experience and plenty of happy clients. They know how to navigate the legal issues that come alongside real estate investing and owning rental properties so you don’t have to worry.
Making Your Income Passive (Almost)
Many people go into property investment thinking that it’s going to be passive income. While you can make good money as a landlord, it’s a lot of work, especially at first.
Many first-time property owners have day jobs. This makes it difficult for them to allocate the necessary time to their properties. Overwhelmed property investors often end up selling their properties because they’re unable to handle all of those responsibilities.
When someone else is there to handle the responsibilities instead, income becomes passive. While you do have to do a bit of work and you’ll be paying a small fee to the property investors, you no longer have to dedicate your life to the property.
Property Management Is More Important Than You Think
Professional property management can turn your real estate investment into (almost) passive income. Good property managers will find and retain great tenants, take care of behind-the-scenes work, and make sure that your property stays in good condition.
Make your investment more worthwhile by hiring a property management company today.
For more helpful articles about real estate and more, visit the rest of our site.