Great property managers typically go above and beyond to assist you to manage your investment property, and you pay them well to do so! However what signs do you need to watch for? As an investment property owner, do you even understand what you should be anticipating from your property manager?
If you simply shrugged your shoulders and actually aren’t confident in knowing what you should be seeing, here’s an introduction to things your property manager ought to be doing for you. And if you’re not getting this from them? It’s time to begin raising concerns.
1. Rent not going up
Among the most crucial tasks of a property manager is to negotiate the rent. A good property manager will make sure that they are familiar with the local property market and where rents are, in order to get the property owner the maximum possible rental income. They will also ensure that as the market moves, rent does not remain stagnate.
On the other hand with a lesser property manager, the weekly rent often remains the same (or achieves small increases of $5pw), and the investors might find that the rent being received on their investment property is quite low in terms of what the current market standard is. Rather than working to make the investment property as rewarding as it can be, bad property managers prefer to leave rent prices untouched (or with a tiny increase) in case the tenant decides to leave.
Why a property manager would not want a property to change tenants is attributed to two motivating factors:
- It’s a lot more work to generate a new tenant than to keep an existing one, as it requires the whole process of paperwork, inspections, viewings, etc.
- During the time an investment property is empty, the owner is not getting an income from that property and is more likely to communicate with the property manager at a much higher level, which a poor property manager definitely does not welcome.
Market conditions may dictate that a rent increase may not always be possible (or a decrease necessary), but your property manager should be actively discussing this with you so that you are aware of current market conditions.
2. Inspections not done well or not at all.
Everybody knows a property manager’s job includes carrying out property inspections, however, they need to be performing them regularly as well as passing on an extensive report to you, once completed. If you aren’t receiving these reports, are they even doing it? What else may they be letting slide? Or if you do receive the inspection report and it’s a little light on for information, question them on it, and find out if they really took the time to check over your property well, a quick walk-through while chatting to the tenant isn’t gonna cut it.
An outstanding property manager will be watching out for repairs or preventative maintenance and be prepared to inform you about what needs to be fixed.
3. Poor Property Maintenance and Repair Management
Property Inspects can identify repairs or maintenance issues that may be needed moving forward, a poor property manager may mean you are unaware of issues until they become big problems.
Your property manager will manage all maintenance requests and repair requirements versus a poor one who will probably ignore things – and you may be none the wiser.
A quality property manager will help tenants organise tradespeople when something breaks or ceases working in a rental property. Your property managers should have a large network of qualified tradespeople who they know, trust and do business with regularly. These tradespeople are usually available for quick repairs and at a reasonable cost.
But, a poor property manager will organise tradespeople that are expensive or aren’t available for quick repairs, because they haven’t taken the time to cultivate these important relationships with tradespeople that will benefit both tenants and investment property owners in the future.
Quick Tip: Fees
Agencies that tend to have lower fees tend to manage more properties just to be able to make ends meet, so take that into consideration as well. Generally speaking, a good property manager will effectively provide high-end service to 80 – 100 properties.
4. Communication
Every owner likes varying degrees of communication, some more than others. A good property manager will set out the level of expectations from the very beginning. So that you will know what level of communication you can expect. They need to make you feel comfortable with the line of communication you’ve set – no one likes to be left wondering what’s going on. This is an essential part of their job, they need to not only communicate with you – the owner – but also with your tenants, how they treat you is a great indicator of how they will conduct themselves with others. If you aren’t delighted with how often (or not) you’re talking with your property manager, it’s time to wave them goodbye.
5. No follow through
This is a significant indication of unprofessionalism – and in many cases, a too-busy property manager or even worse, sheer laziness.
Some examples of a lack of follow-through from your property manager would include repair work not being completed on time and/or in an orderly fashion, tenant complaints not being attended to, and a serious lack of regular property inspections.
You should absolutely expect them to follow through on promises they’ve made and timelines they’ve set.
If you need to ‘people manage’ your property manager and are continuously seeking them out, we’re sorry to inform you that they aren’t doing their job correctly. They should be touching base often. The whole point of having a property manager is to let them stress about the little things so you don’t have to, that’s why you’re paying them. They need to be open with you about what’s happening and not disappear for long periods of time without touching base.
If your property manager doesn’t follow through regularly, then you need to consider finding someone who does.
A last thought
Professional and expertly skilled property managers will go a long way toward making the ownership of an investment property and the rental process pain-free. Great property managers will handle the risks of a rental property and understand that they have a responsibility to the property owner to keep the investment property and its tenants in line.
Our priority at Hicks Property Management is to constantly be looking for better ways to manage risk and drive investment returns for investment property owners. Speak to a member of our Property Management team today to discuss how we can assist you with managing your investment property.
Hicks Real Estate Team
Hicks Real Estate is a Brisbane based, full-service real estate agency supporting buyers and sell as well as renters and property investors. With almost 20 years experience in the local market, we are the real estate experts you can rely upon.
