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Things to Remember in Finding a Good Property Manager

Things to Remember in Finding a Good Property Manager
By Wolfgang O

With the sudden surge in the number of people engaging in the business of real estate and property management, we can’t help but ask ourselves what to do in order to survive the business. The business itself has evolved from the simple offering of properties for sale, lease or rent to the investment of opening up resorts and villas. The global financial meltdown also has contributed to the evolution of the business and the people within the industry. So how do you survive?

Arguably, one of the best ways to best survive the business is to get a good property manager that would manage and take care of your properties, especially of those with real estate nature and buildings. Getting one would entail a cost since you would have to pay the manager a salary, but it sure beats managing the business on your own, especially now that the real estate and leasing business has become too competitive for starters.

So how do you get about in finding a good property manager? There are several ways to contact property managers, but how sure are you that this or that property manager can indeed manage your properties well? Here some tips in trying to determine a good property manager for your assets.

First, choose a reputable name of a property manager or a reputable firm for property managers. This would ensure the quality of their services as they have reputations to protect as well. Finding prominent names would also mean higher salaries for them, but it never is a gamble to know that your properties are in good hands.

Secondly, try to get to know your prospective manager better. Ask about personal and educational background. As mentioned earlier, the business has evolved and so has the people. So in order for your business to be better handled, you should choose a property manager with a good personal and educational background. Education plays a crucial part in this since the more educated people in property management can easily find the trends and also the sudden irregularities in the business.

Lastly, try to find a property manager that has a charming and approachable personality. These days, we have to admit the fact that sometimes good-looking people can easily snag a sale or a lease from prospective clients due to their charms and wits. It would also contribute to the reputation that your properties would have. And we’re not talking about the flirty kind.

So what are you waiting for? Get ready and head out that door or pick up your phone. In these days when the business is slowly becoming cutthroat, you should move and act fast. You wouldn’t know when the next best property manager would be hired by some big shot. Good luck in your hunt!

Rental Property Management

Rental Property Management – It Will Make Or Break Your Rental Property Investment Business
By Mark Petrelis

Don’t get freaked out about the term “rental property management”, it sounds threatening but all it really means is:

A game plan to keep your rentals headache free, cash flow animal .

Does that sound a little better than rental property management?

You better believe it does and guess what. Managing rental apartments is simply a matter of having the proper mind set and doing some planning in advance.

I don’t care if your talking about one two family property, a six unit property or twenty rental properties, having a game plan for managing your rental units is key!

Before I go any further, you should know that I always manage my own rental units. The most I ever had was I believe 42 units comprised of 2-6 unit buildings. I would never have an outside property management company manage my properties. It costs too much, they do a lousy job in my experience and its easy to get ripped off. I knew a roofer who had a gig set up, where he would give a kick back to the guy in charge of getting bids for a property management company!

Learning whats involved ahead of time for managing rental houses will save you a lot of time and aggravation.

Your rental property management plan has to cover:

Who is going to do the basic maintenance repairs,i.e. clogged sink or toilet, broken facet, doorknob ,window, electrical plug not working, etc. Are you going to do any basic maintenance? If not, you’ll want to find handymen that won’t break the bank. How do you find these guys?
Will you be able to financially handle more severe problem, such as roof leaking, need to replace a hot water tank, need new furnace, vacancies…
How to screen tenants. After all, they are the source of your profit center.
How to manage your tenants so that their personal/financial problems are not your concern.
When someone moves out or you evict someone, who is going to prep the apartment for the next tenant.
Speaking of evictions, do you know how to do one? How much does it cost? How long does it take?
How to adapt the proper mindset for successfully owning rental property.

You have to have a property management plan that works for you. This is key. You see, some people are white collar, some are blue collar, some are hands on, some can’t and don’t want to know how to turn a screw driver, every bodies situation is different. Understanding this and having a system to manage your property will keep your rental property a cash flow animal.

Let me rephrase that. Having a property management plan that works for you will keep investing in rental property headache free and running like a well oiled machine.

Having your rental units be a cash flow machine is a primarily a function of buying the rental property at the right price. However, even having bought a multifamily house at the right price, you can end your rental property being a cash flow animal without a good property management plan.

Remember, a good rental property plan will

Help you find good paying tenants who won’t do much more harm to your apartment than normal wear and tear.
Allow you to charge top rent because your apartment warrants it.
Make sure things get fixed quickly and cost effectively when needed.
Keep your tenants happy, so you don’t have frequent vacancies due to poor property management.
Make owning rental property stress free.

Understanding what a rental management plan should entail and implementing it will make your rental property business enjoyable and successful.

Mark Petrelis has owned rental property, primarily 2-6 unit buildings since “92″. Some of the rental properties were total rehabs while others had existing tenants and only needed cosmetics.

Did you find the above article helpful?

Why Owning Rental Property is a Great Experience For Some and a Nightmare For Others

Why Owning Rental Property is a Great Experience For Some and a Nightmare For Others
By Mark Petrelis

Proper Expectations and having a game plan for managing your rental property, will determine your experience and success.

Let me show you a comparison of two peoples expectations and plans for managing rental property to see how it would impact their success…

Lets look at person As expectation and management plans for owning rental property:

Decides to buy a rental property for positive cash flow but doesn’t plan for if it ever has a negative cash flow.
Expects to reap the benefits of appreciation but doesn’t have a clue what cycle Real estate in his/her area is in. Flat, appreciating, depreciating. Yep, real estate is cyclical.
Expects owning rental to be completely passive. Expects to put tenants in and get rent checks like clock work. Has no plans for how to manage tenants when they have problems that effect other tenants or their ability to pay rent on time.
Expects the tenants to treat his property with respect and care. We live in a society now where respect and care for other people is often ignored, never mind other peoples property. Has no effective plans how to take care of problems occurring from tenant irresponsibility and lack of caring for the rental property.
Expects his owning rental property experience to be headache free. Has not created a game plan that will fit his/her lifestyle to take care of phone calls, problems and issues that may occasionally occur from owning rental property.
Expects to reap all the benefits that only owning rental property can give with no strings attached.

Lets look at person Bs expectation and plans for owning rental property:

Decides to buy a house for positive cash flow but has plans for when and if it has a negative cash flow.

Knows if Real Estate is trending up,down or is flat – uses that info to estimate when the rental property will appreciate and plans an exit strategy.
Doesn’t expect owning rental property experience to be completely passive. Has plans for how to manage tenants when they have problems that effect other tenants or their ability to pay rent on time.
Doesn’t expect the tenants to really care much at all for the care and maintenance of the rental property and understands that many tenants think every tiny thing is property owners responsibility.. In fact, expects the bare minimum from any tenant, and totally respectful, caring tenants are few and far between. Has effective plans how to take care of problems occurring from tenant irresponsibility and lack of caring for the property.
Understands that the property is a structure in which things wear out, have life expectancies and will break. Understands that a tenants problems, especially financial problems, may cause you a headache. Has created a game plan that will fit his/her lifestyle to take care of phone calls, problems and issues that may occasionally occur from owning rental property.
Expects to reap all the benefits that only owning real estate can give, but understands that there is no free lunches in life and is prepared to take on the challenge to reap the benefits.

Obviously the two people are going to have different experiences from investing in real estate.

Three years down the road, person A will be telling people what a nightmare owning rental property is and it’s a bad investment.

Person B may well be on their way to achieving financial freedom, bought more rental property and would tell anyone that owning rental property is a tremendous investment.

I’ve owned rental property for almost twenty years. I was totally clueless when I started. What saved me was that, I had nothing else going on. I had it in my mind that this was going to a full-time venture with one hell of a learning curve. I had the right expectations and although I had no specific plans for how to manage my property, I expected to learn and I did.

I had the expectation and the plans of “do whatever it takes to be successful at owning real estate”.

But, I realize this is far from the norm of people who decide to buy rental property. Most people decide to invest in rental property as a supplemental vehicle to help them financially.

That’s completely fine. Trust me, people don’t buy rental property for fun and ha-has. But a perspective property owner had better learn what to expect and make plans for managing the rental property if he wants to be successful at it.

What Are the Qualities of a Good Property Manager?

What Are the Qualities of a Good Property Manager?
By Wolfgang O

Having the right kind of attitude helps a lot in any kind of business these days. It makes the company more distinguishable thus, customers keep coming back to have the same experience.

The same thing applies in property management. Possessing the characteristics that leads to the growth of the business is very important. If you own a property and you do not have the time to oversee your business activities, having a good property manager is a must. They will be the extension of your authority over your possessions. They are the ones who will see and manage everything, from big issues down to the last small details. If you trust them well enough, their good qualities would eventually bring your business to success. If you are looking to hire one, then these following criteria will help you learn the qualities of a good property manager.

A property manager should know how to listen and communicate effectively. They are your representative when dealing or negotiating with the clients. Being proactive simplifies things. They are able to direct the deals the way it should be thus, saving enough time and resources as much as possible. Knowing these things, they could avoid misunderstandings and misrepresentations in terms of contract, payments and simple legal matters.

Aside from that, property managers should be knowledgeable. If your tenants are your clients, then your property is your service or product. Having a broad knowledge about the property helps him close a deal. This helps them explain the “this and that” and the usual “goings-on” that the tenant inquire about.

Professionalism is another thing to look for a property manager. They handle their schedules efficiently solely for the purpose of the tenants and property. For them, personal matters do not mix with business matters. Being able to handle and solve things quickly and timely that is purely business related is also vital. Decisive actions are essential to their job.

Having a profound sense of responsibility separates the ordinary property manager to a good one. They are willing to take full responsibility into whatever happens on a property and people that works for it. From the accountant down to the simple staff extends their duty. They oversee their benefits and well being inside the workplace. This kind of attitude makes the management of the property easier because they tend to break huge amount of work into small and profitable task designed for every staff, making the arduous job meaningful.

Successful Apartment Ownership Requires Efficient and Quality Maintenance

Successful Apartment Ownership Requires Efficient and Quality Maintenance
By Dave Lindahl

Since a professional team is so important to your success as a real estate investor and, more specifically as an apartment owner, I would like to wrap up this article series on how to use these team members in a little more detail.

Just to recap, some of the essential team members that you’ll want to have in place include:

· Bird dogs
· A real estate agent or agents
· A commercial mortgage broker
· A banker (one or more)
· A title company or closing attorney
· A real estate attorney
· Private lenders
· An SEC attorney (if part of your business includes securing private funding)
· An asset protection attorney
· An accountant or CPA
· Property management companies
· Contractors

Contractors are the behind the scenes magicians that can really aid your overall cash flow in the long run as an apartment owner. Units that are in need of complete renovation or simply a few updates do nothing for you if they are unrentable. A good contractor (or collection of them) can minimize the time that units in need of some fixing stay vacant, thus optimizing your income from your properties.

Finding contractors who both do good work and do so in a timely manner can sometimes be challenging but remember that it is a tougher economy out there right now and people are looking for work. Make sure your contractors are necessarily bonded and insured and don’t be afraid to move on if someone does poor work or, worse yet, shows up late or not at all. It is your business and you have every right to expect quality and timely work.

I suggest having a variety of contractors at your disposal. You won’t need all of them all of the time (at least you hope not) but there is something to be said for specialization. Maybe you’re replacing carpet in your units as they turn over from one tenant to another. A professional carpet installer might be a perfect fit for getting a couple of units done at a time. You could make similar arguments for plumbing, electrical work, painting, etc.

Some contractors will claim they can do it all but you rarely need it all when managing apartment units. For assorted odd jobs, a good handyman is always a good bet and they can be great allies when tenants call with fix it items. It is both easy and practical to have budgetary limits set with your property management company so they can coordinate with contractors as needed for small jobs and avoid you getting bombarded with calls for ‘nickel and dime’ issues’.

Remember, this is a business and, as a business owner, it is both reasonable and advisable to delegate as much as you can so you can actually enjoy the fruits of your labor. As we conclude this more detailed article series on your professional team, remember that just about all highly successful business share a common mindset. Success is a state of mind that is shared by few but for which principles are more freely shared than you might think. Make the acquaintance of wealthy people and pattern your own business after what they have done. This is one of the most basic secrets of becoming wealthy beyond your wildest imagination. Now that you have heard what I have to say about building a team, the next step is to find the deals that will help you build the fortune that is out there for the taking!

Rental Property Maintenance Workers Guidelines

Rental Property Maintenance Workers Guidelines
By Wolfgang O

Any property is going to have to have a maintenance worker. It may be the property owner himself or a whole staff of workers. Each worker has certain responsibilities to take care of. There are many questions about maintenance workers that always come up. One, who do I hire for the job? Two, how do I know they are doing a good job? Three, what precautions should the workers take to protect themselves? Finally, when do I need to replace a worker?

When looking for a maintenance provider always check references. The best critics are those that have seen the worker in action. Don’t worry about what the worker’s mother has to say about it. Background checks are extremely important. These workers will be going into your residents homes to perform work. There are too many temptations for you to treat this part of the hiring process lightly. Be discriminate about who you hire. Not by race or disabilities but by history.

Once you have a worker make sure you put in a way for them to be critiqued. Send a questionnaire to the resident after the work is done. Or better yet make a personal visit to check up on things. This way you can keep track of what’s going on. Some questions you need to ask are: Was the work done in an reasonable amount of time? Were you treated with respect? Did you feel comfortable? Did you notice anything missing or not where it should have been? Answers to these questions will go a long way in training or disciplining the worker.

Precautions should be taken to protect the workers. First of all a good insurance program needs to be installed. Whether it’s a single worker or a group of fifty insurance is vital. On the job injuries happen all the time and you need to be ready. Secondly, certain precautions about home visits should be enforced. Some of these are: Always knock before entering a dwelling no matter how many cars are in the driveway. Always ask the resident if it is okay for them to be doing the job at this time. If a teenager or child is the only resident at home at the time, come back later. Always stay above reproach so that no one can entrap you. Always be gracious.

If any of these guidelines fail, then some actions may be warranted. Maybe discipline them with loss of income, suspensions, or last resort termination.

Protect Yourself From a Bad Property Manager

Protect Yourself From a Bad Property Manager
By Julie A Broad

We’re not too proud to say we made gigantic mistakes when we hired property managers for some of our properties. Our biggest errors happened before we even bought the properties, but we continued to make them until one day Dave was reading his name in the paper, calling him “an absentee landlord of a local crack house”, and we were making the discovery that our other property manager was robbing rent money from us.

When my husband and I moved into a triplex we own in Toronto, we dismissed our property manager and started collecting rent from the other tenants directly. Imagine our surprise when the checks were for $100 more than we expected! The property manager had lied to us about the amount of rent we were getting, and he had been pocketing the difference. We figure he stole at least $2,000 from us in that one year. The worst part is that his scam was easily preventable.

Make sure this doesn’t happen to you by asking for copies of every lease agreement. And ask for photocopies of the checks. If the tenant pays by cash or some other method (we use a lot of e-mail money transfers with our tenants), get a printout of the transfer or get copies of the receipts given to the tenants for cash payments. It is good to have this documentation for tax purposes and it will help prevent your property manager from taking an extra cut off the top.

Other things you can do to protect yourself from a bad property manager include:

Before you buy a property, make sure you are able to hire a good property management firm. There are some properties that good property managers will not manage. And if they won’t manage them, there’s a good chance they are more work then they are worth.
Research your potential property manager obsessively. When you’ve found a firm that you think you’d like to hire, get references and find out what other properties they manage. Drive by those properties and see how well they are maintained. Take a walk around and hope to bump into a tenant. See if the tenant is happy with the property management company. And definitely call a few of the owners of these properties the company manages and find out if they would recommend the company.
If there is one unit that always seems to be vacant, check on it. Visit the unit or have someone else visit for you. Confirm that it is vacant. If someone is living there, you want to find out why you aren’t getting rent for it. And if it is really vacant, you need to see it yourself to find out why and fix the problem.
If you are being charged for snow removal, check the weather history and make sure it actually snowed that day. If you are being charged for repairs, get receipts or photographs of the repairs.

We’ve learned a healthy dose of paranoia goes a long ways. So trust your instincts, but check them too. A few extra phone calls and a few extra steps here and there can save you thousands of dollars a year.

Free tips and information on buying and making money with rental property at http://www.revnyou.com
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* How to select a location and begin the search for your next (or first) property purchase.

Always Be Represented!

Great story about being a Commercial Real Estate Investor:

Always Be Represented
By Lambert Munz

“I have been licensed 44 years with the CA Dept of Real Estate.

Years ago I inherited some money and was always interested in real estate. I asked around looking for someone to help me find investments and represent my interests. Those that were recommended to me offered listings they had or offered their own investments. I soon discovered that nobody represents the buyer they all represent themselves or the seller. This is traditional in the real estate business as the training given to agents are to list properties because if you don’t have inventory you have nothing to sell. That is true.

What I did was not traditional and I made my own rules by building relationships with investors and replacing the necessity of having inventory by having loyal clients. This not only created steady buyers, but created inventory to sell or exchange later.

I decided to enter the real estate business and focus on Commercial Properties. Many agents told me to focus on homes as that was the bread and butter of the business. But I just didn’t want to compete with the majority that are showing homes on weekends and working the phones in the evening. I plunged full speed ahead with commercial because I liked it and took many educational courses to learn the business. I starved for about 5 years, but then I became associated with heavy weights in the business and gained their respect. These broker contacts helped me finding inventory for my clients. I developed clients and became very successful with this niche.

There was one large commercial brokerage firm that would not cooperate with other brokers, but would list and contact investors for possible purchase. Their agents would come to me because I controlled investors and inventory and they wanted to represent me. I told them I didn’t need them and told them to go somewhere else. I reminded them that they didn’t cooperate with other agents and I am not going to cooperate with your them. I informed top management that if you don’t cooperate in the business then don’t send your agents to solicit me because we will not cooperate with you. These same agents would attempt to contact my clients direct and the clients would refer them back to me as their representative. This gave me great control in the business, but we earned it by taking care of our clients and their investments.

That particular company has since changed their ways and I believe it is due to my scolding and similar scolding by others in the business. Pragmatic thinking replacing greed.

This representation of investors was greatly needed because the typical agent represents the seller. The reason is because they pay the commission. However, good pragmatic thinking replaced greed. Agents realized that cooperating with each other would not only increase sales but would be a benefit to the client. “A HALF A LOAF IS BETTER THAN NONE.”

This way the Buyer’s Representative would share in ½ of the commission. Or better yet a buyer could pay the agent a fee when he/she performed. Deducting ½ of a commission from the price to compensate for the commission that they would normally receive.

This became a large business for me because I would monitor my client’s investments after their purchase. I would meet with the property manager once a week and due a review of the investments he was managing. My partner and I spent so much time doing this that we decided that we should form our own management company and get paid for our time that we were spending. This we did and that is how I got into the management business.

People should be represented in a real estate transaction. There are commercial firms that contract with chain stores, restaurants, and others to find sites and represent them in a commercial lease.

Mom and Pop businesses are usually not represented in commercial lease negotiations and they pay for this inexperience. Residential tenants probably should be represented also, but available rentals would dry up because the owners or property managers would shun anyone representing them.

New or veteran investors need representation. I know veterans will think “I can negotiate for myself.” The problem with this is sellers and seller agents can read through actions, comments, and facial expressions how to negotiate with you. With an agent you can be hide your true motives even from the agent representing you. Never tell the agent everything or he/she may accidentally tip your hand. Hold your cards close to your chest and USE PROFESSIONAL REPRESENTATION.”

Small Defects, Big Problems for Buyers

Ilyce R. Glink
Inman News
July 20, 2006

One of the biggest mistakes home sellers make is listing a home with obvious, although small, problems.

Any house — even a brand-new house — needs fixing from time to time. It’s just that buyers don’t want to be reminded of this obvious truth when it comes time to plunk down their cash. Most buyers would rather believe that their home is going to be fine, and for the money they’re paying, they’d prefer to have a problem-free house.

As a seller, your top priority is to overcome any real or imagined obstacles buyers have. Fixing stuff that’s broken and selling a home that looks like it’s been impeccably maintained over the years is a good start.

Grab a pen and pad of paper and start by touring your home looking for things that need to be done. Perhaps your walls or trim need touching up with a fresh coat of paint. Or maybe you have a crack in a floor tile. Or, your wall clock needs a fresh set of batteries in order to display the correct time.

Check the bathrooms: cleaning or regrouting bathroom tile and fixtures will help make that room seem fresh and clean. Cracked window panes and ripped shades should be replaced before any agent or buyer walks through the door.

Not fixing broken items — especially those that can be easily fixed — sends a not-so-subtle message to the buyer that you don’t care enough to get these things done. Also, when the home inspector comes through (which he or she inevitably will), you know these items will come up in the “need to do before I’ll buy your house” list. What should you fix? Anything that a prospective home buyer will think should be in working order on the day of sale, including:

All appliances, including air-conditioners, furnace, boiler and hot water heater. They don’t have to be new, but everything should be in working order. Clean out lint from the dryer. Make sure the ice maker is working properly. Install new air filters in your heating and air-conditioning systems. Clean out the air-conditioning compressors. Make sure your humidifier is working properly.

All faucets. If it leaks or doesn’t turn on correctly, repair or replace it.

All windows. If any window panes are cracked or don’t open properly, fix or replace. And make sure to repair all screen doors and windows. If the windows are painted shut, fix them so that they open properly

All doors. No creaking, no doors that open only partially, no cabinet doors that don’t open at all. .

Any exterior problems. Replace missing roof shingles, repair your gutter if it has come apart, and regrade landscaping away from the house if you’ve been finding puddles or wet walls in your basement. Clean out your gutters and downspouts.

Cracked or chipped paint. A fresh coat of white or off-white paint can help make your home seem bigger.

Peeling wallpaper. Get some wallpaper glue and make sure to get the air bubbles out when you press it to the wall.

Change the light bulbs. Make sure all light bulbs are working and swap out the burned-out bulbs. Houses are often too dark when buyers come through in the late afternoon or evening for a showing. Make sure every light you have has the brightest wattage possible, and that you turn on every light before a showing — even during the day.

Carpet. If your wall-to-wall carpet has been pulled up in places, make sure it is tacked down firmly. And while you’re at it, you might want to have your carpets cleaned and floors waxed before you sell.

Kitchen cabinets. Doors should open smoothly; hinges and knobs or pulls should be tightened.

As you’re walking around the house, remember that a prospective buyer will be opening up every drawer and door. How well these items work communicates a lot about how you’ve taken care of the property.

Making a good impression here will go a long way toward getting your home sold quickly — and for more money.

If you can’t manage to get your home in selling shape yourself, check the Web for local handyman- or handywoman-type businesses to help you out. Typically, you can hire these folks for an hourly or flat fee to take care of your “to do” list.

While you may spend a couple of hundred dollars having someone install a new light fixture, fixing creaky doors or changing light bulbs, the results should make the expenditure worthwhile.

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