Good bye Property Management...

While I've been self managing my properties for a number of years now, I've finally decided to get them done 'professionally'. Time will tell whether that turns out to be the most suitable word or not, but I'm hoping it will give me back a bit of time that I would rather spend elsewhere.

Managing the places has never really been that difficult, even though I suppose I've had the usual full range of tenant problems. Resolving the issues hasn't really ever been a big issue though......

Take this last week........ work was particularly busy when the phone rang at 9.30am and I thought "Hmmm......I hope this isn't another problem."

"Hello Alan, this is your tenant at xxxxxxx, last night all these sparks started flying from the water heater, smoke came from the powerboard and we had to call the fire brigade out."

Silly me........and here I was thinking the phonecall might have been a 'problem'!

Anyway, I phoned an electrician I regularly use and he said he'd be in the area at about 11.30am for another job anyway. Access was arranged and he had everything fixed in 15 minutes. Turned out to be a loose wire on the water heater and he didn't even bother charging me. Bigger shock I know.

I rang tenant back at 12.15pm and told him everthing was fixed and the water heater was back on. He couldn't believe how quickly we responded and thanked us very much.

Anyway, someone else can do that now........harvesting 'time' is hard enough as it is..........

 

No more freebie tradesmen now I bet. The REA preferred tradie wont be doing it for free - his relationship is with the manager not the owner and the manager doesn't mind the charge. They have different priorities.

 

Hi Alan
Good efficient and communicative PM's are few and far between, in my experience. Use my list of questions to assist when you're interviewing and leave yourself some serious time to dedicate to the task.
Your tenant will miss the rapid attention, however, as what you organised in one day usually takes place over several days with an average PM
Good luck!!

 

Very true Jacque and Simon.

I'll give it a go for a period and see if what it 'costs' me is greater than the 'benefits' received.

Cheers.

 

Just remember to cross out the 90 days required notice on the MA and replace it with 30, so that if it all goes pear shaped you've got to put up with crappy service for 60 days less

 

Actually the Agent I'm thinking of using has initially proposed 30 days on their Contract Proposal anyway.

Good point though Jacque.

 

Hope it all goes well Alan.

I currently am using 4 different managers and as soon as I get the time I want to sack 3 of them.

The 1st seriously has to go ASAP, the 2nd probably about the time the current lease runs out and the 3rd when I sell my current business so I can have a go.

The first and second will have to be replaced as the properties are too far away to self manage.

Rick

 

Alan,

how did you go about finding tenants when you were managing the properties yourself ? Did you advertise yourself or just use an agent and pay them a leasing fee ?

 

Hi Doc.

I suppose this depends on the area and demand. In my area, the longest vacancy I've ever had in 10 years was about 3 weeks.

Source of tenants has been interesting. While I've usually included Internet and paper advertising, by far and away the biggest responses I've had have been from a professional looking sign at the front of the property.

I've used a real estate agent and paid them a 'finders fee' in one instance, and that worked fine too.

Actually I was going to slide the propery management of one of the IP's over to a PM shortly as the tenants were leaving anyway. A few nights ago they ring me up and now want to stay.......with an 8% rent increase!

 

Don't forget that, for a fee, you can always advertise your rental on Domain and they can end up looking pretty professional.
Depending on property placement, signs can be most successful, as Alan has mentioned, and also two line newspaper ads in the "right" papers.

Timely post for me as I'm considering sacking one of my current PM's- but taking the time to get around to doing it and making alternative arrangements is holding me back. Still recovering from my last 12 days of idleness laying around on a tropical island