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If you’re reading this, it’s likely that you took the time to find the perfect investment, a great apartment building full of potential cash flow, but you’re not sure if the property management company you’re using is the right fit. Or maybe you’re thinking about hiring a property management company for the first time.
Wherever you are in your journey, one thing is clear: your investment will be much less lucrative if you do not have the right property management company efficiently running the day-to-day operations of the building. A good property management company is worth its weight in gold, but not all are created equal. Here are five signs that you may need a new one.
Communication Is Broken
Perhaps the most important factor in a productive property management company relationship is up-to-date and reliable communication. It’s imperative that communication is clear, efficient, and reliable. You must also be able to trust that what is happening within the building is being relayed to you in a timely fashion. Consider scheduling weekly calls or bi-weekly meetings to stay abreast of any concerns or updates and choose a property management company who are prompt, as well as professional, in their communication with you.
Online Presence
Living in a digital age, it’s important to approach cyberspace as an additional opportunity to connect and interact with current and potential tenants. It’s therefore really important to work with a property management company who have adapted their practices to stay current online.
One example is making sure their portfolio is strategically present on current and popular listing platforms. It may not be lucrative to be on all of them, but they should be able to walk you through the platforms they recommend for your property and why.
Another is being present on social media platforms. Whether it is appropriate for your property to be on social media or not, having the option of an active social media presence from someone who is trained in the area can help your property be successful down the line. It’s therefore important that your management company has the right people in the right places.
Another consideration is addressing concerns and issues in real time. For example, if your property is receiving negative online reviews that aren’t being responded to, there may be issues that are not being addressed by the property managers. Positively rated properties and ease of accessibility online are more vital than ever to ensure trust and visibility for current and potential tenants. Online maintenance should therefore be a mandatory service and function of your property management company.
The Curse of Bad Tenants
If your property management company reports on bad tenants month after month, it may be time to question their ability to find reliable ones, rather than find fault with the bad tenant. It is a duty and responsibility of the property management company to ensure they are vetting the potential tenants and mitigating any foreseeable risks that a tenant may bring to your property.
A good tenant will be able to pay rent on time, keep you apprised of issues, and treat the apartment with care, whereas a bad tenant can both cause you stress and cost you money. Your property management company should have the systems in place to properly determine who will be a good tenant and who pose risks.
Backlog of Maintenance Issues
Circling back to communication and trust, your property management company should be responsible for maintaining and resolving physical building issues. While it is typical that a building will experience general wear and tear, the job of the property management company is to help ensure that repairs in the building are responded to in a timely manner. If repairs are left unaddressed for long periods of time, they can turn into much bigger problems down the road. Being proactive and on top of needed maintenance helps alleviate future issues and generally makes for satisfied tenants who are proud of where they live.
High Vacancy or Delinquency Rate
If you have apartment units that are sitting empty for weeks on end, or if your tenants aren’t paying their rent on time, you are losing out on valuable income. While there are certainly upticks and downturns in the rental market, if you are not receiving proactive recommendations and ideas from your property management company to help rent empty units or rectify a high delinquency rate, you may need to consider finding a new company.
While the services of your property management company are invaluable for your peace of mind, it can also become quite a headache if management is not good. The property management company is likely handling one or more of your biggest investments, so it is crucial that they are communicative, trustworthy, timely, and up to date on current trends. Finding the best tenants to fill your apartment building, and taking care of maintenance is no small task, but it can be done more easily by hiring the right property management company.