Three key skills of a good Property Manager

Hi all,

I wanted to throw it out there to the community to see what you all think are the top three skills/requirements of a good property manager.

Cheers,

 

1. The Property Manager is actually one of the directors of the business
2. The Property Manager is not interested in using Property Management as a stepping stone into the "glorious" sales agent role.
3. The Property Manager's aim is to be lazy - The aim is to pick the best low maintenance tenant so that they don't need to do anything (and work damn hard at achieving that).

 

Couldn't narrow to 3 so gave you 4:

Communication - Getting back to people when you say you would in a timely manner. Keeping people updated on their situation.

Troubleshooting - Knowing how to resolve issues, whether they be with basic maintenance items or with personality differences, negotiating issues etc. This also involves remaining calm and resilient in situations that warrant it - taking a no BS attitude so to speak.

Attention to detail - Knowing what features will increase/decrease rent the home can achieve, understanding the timing of market / duration of lease to put investor in best possible position. Little nuances to best improve the experience for the owner, both financially and emotionally.

Legislation - very important to know this back to front so that you can play the game on your terms, read the tenants possible play ahead of times. I've had to educate other property managers here on basic things like arrears time frames, inspection notice periods, house selling notice periods etc. If they don't know the basics they won't know the advanced stuff.

 

+1 for @D.T. here. Effective communication, knowledge of legislation, good systems in place and problem-solving are key for a top PM. Having skin in the game (as in profit share/ownership of the company) can also be crucial especially with a newer business winning clients early in the development of the rental roll.

 

I can only think of one thing..

Work for the landlord not the tenant

 

Added to the above - someone that doesn't procrastinate. Sometimes things suck and you don't want to deliver bad news, or put your foot down in a sticky situation - but it's better to just rip off the band aid and do it.

 

Accountability is one of the biggest failings in property management. PMs are notorious for not admitting when they've made a mistake, when they don't know something or when they have reached their limitations and then taking steps to rectify it, improve it or make sure it doesn't happen again. This problem is systemic in the industry and occurs frequently at both a personal and agency level.

One of the main differences between other professional industries and the lack of professionalism most people experience in real estate/PM is that most other industries admit failings and constantly look for ways to improve, rather than thinking and pretending they know it all.

A PM who truly understands accountability will be one of the best you have because this attribute essentially filters down to all the other important attributes listed above.

 

Amen!!

 

I don't know about only choosing 3.
I have an extensive interview process and the agent is measured against 15 or so different criteria and a decision made. Focussing on just 3 traits would leave you with a pm that is lacking in important skills.

 

I use two PMs. Both are equally useless.

One PM , I have asked on at least 3 occasions to start emailing the monthly statements and it still hasn't been done.

The other, is so far up herself that each time I visit her office I need to bring a crow bar to extract her head for 5 minutes just so I can speak to her.

So two things that a PM should have are the ability to perform a simple task and the ability to listen to the customer without going on about how great worker she is. I'm still working on the 3rd skill.

 

That’s it in a nutshell
And that sometimes means stopping landlords from making self sabotaging descisions because they have no idea how legislation works against them every time they open their mouth to speak.

 

+1000

 

Wait... you've had to ask three times for them to start EMAILING? Is their name Mr/Mrs Brachiosaurus? I have one client who likes fax and another who likes post *grumble*, but the rest love email- SOOOOOOOOO easy.

The 'stuck up' thing is common- a lot of PM's take their job too seriously and are so stuck to their idea of the rules that they lose touch with common sense.
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Dave and Andrew pretty much nailed it in my opinion from the PM's side of things, but I'll chuck in my 2c anyway.

1. Communication/Attitude- This would be two things but I had to squish the list into three. It's the number one complaint I hear from property owners. I often find their PM's have been doing a perfectly good job, they just don't get back to their clients or explain what they've done etc. We need to have a sense of how a client likes to communicate, some want blow by blow and others don't ever want to hear from us.
Moving away from Landlord relations, Communication and attitude is also hugely important for dealing with tenants, who can make our life a lot harder than it needs to be if we put them offside. Other points are in helping secure tenants, making our trades love us/you, etc. etc.

2. Accountability- This ties into everything. We need to know how to make the right decision and how to fix the wrong decision- this means getting onto it quickly (eat the frog), being transparent with the involved parties (Landlord!) and potentially even compensating the aggrieved parties. It's a shame this is so high on the list but the most important aspect of a PM's role is risk management- which means avoiding and putting out fires.

3. Expertise- There is a HUGE amount of information we need to access and remember! Critical thinking is so important to the role, because it's not possible to know everything off the top of your head. There are too many grey areas and too many situations. PM's of 30 years or more are still learning every day. The job is poorly paid, poorly respected and poorly trained which makes it even harder to get someone with the right skills. In addition, 99% of PM's don't have a good understanding of all aspects of an investment and they can't act in your best interest if they don't understand start to finish. PM's who own or have a share in the business often also have a broader range of knowledge.

 

1. Effective communication skills, both verbal and written.

2. Knows the legislation and have efficient systems that supports the legislation.

3. Has a business brain.

 

Communication, time management, industry knowledge

 

Do your job!
When you stuff up - own it both in terms of telling the truth, giving an apology and if applicable wearing any costs rather than telling the landlord to suck up the financial cost of your mistakes.

 

Hi. I have been in property management for about 3 months and I have found communication to be the key. After each inspection, I will call the landlord and have a general chat with them and then send a report off in the afternoon. I have found that most landlords are very suprised and appreciative of this phone call.

I do agree with the rest of your post and I am learning each day.

 

I got another one to add.
Don't send your assistant out alone to do the open home.
How are they suppose to learn to vet tenants better without any guidance?

My brother's place was listed on the weekend, they sent the assistant out. I walked in and out and even stood within 3m of them - they didn't even bother to greet me or take my name down.

Part of the role of the PM is to screen the tenant - one of the best methods of screening is to talk to the person IN PERSON.

Anyway, I called up the agency and expressed my concerns, the main property manager (director) will now be showing tenants through.

 

- Reply to emails - same day if possible otherwise next day at the latest.

- Represent the interests of the owner (within reason obviously).

- Take responsibility for your mistakes/oversights and offer to wear relevant costs.

- Don't provide fraudulent documents

 

Hi Lisa I'd be interested to know those criteria!