There are currently 206,328 property management businesses located in the United States, but how can you tell which ones are the best property management companies and which ones are the worst?
This article will explain the signs of a bad property management company. But first, what are do those good guys do for you?
A good property management company will supply you with a certified property manager, for starters, and they will provide you with regular maintenance and repairs, making owning your property more time efficient. An experienced management firm will also be able to analyze your buildings power needs and provide simple, low-cost upgrades that can reduce your energy bill by up to 50%.
Now that you know the benefits and how helpful a good company can be, here are the red flags of a bad one:
Unpleasant or Unprofessional: First impression IS everything when it comes to figuring out who to trust in handling your property. If you couldn’t handle a certain characteristic about the property manager or the other employees at the company, chances are you won’t like them later on. Also ask yourself if this is who you want potential tenants to be meeting.
Limited Hours: Most property management companies will state that their managers are on call 24/7 every day of the year. If they don’t, look elsewhere. You’re going to want a property manager who is willing and able to come to your house on Thanksgiving morning to fix your oven.
Lack of Response: Lets face the facts: In this day and age, its impossible NOT to respond to an email, call, or text. Responding within 48 hours is no longer acceptable — five or more hours if pushing the envelope, too. If your property management company is hard to get ahold of, forget it. You wouldn’t want your tenants in the same situation, either.
Reference Refusal: Before conducting any sort of property management services for you, the company should give you at least three references from previous landlords they’ve had, or even current ones. If you can’t find any references on the property management website and they are refusing to give you some — time to walk away.
You should be interviewing at least three management companies. The more companies you interview, the more you will start to realize what you are looking for in the property manager and what the tell tale signs of a bad company are. Best of luck! More like this.
