When is it time to Hire a Property Manager

WHEN IS IT TIME TO HIRE A PROPERTY MANAGER

Hey, Mario Gonzalez here with Navy to Navy Homes with some more property management tips. Today’s question is "how do I know if it’s time to hire a property manager." We get this call mainly from landlords who absolutely need a property manager now. And what I mean by that, is they probably put a rent by owner sign; or put an ad on craigslist; they didn't qualify a tenant; they got somebody in there and now…the tenant is in there; there's five other people living in the house; there's three cars on the lawn; five dogs; the home is destroyed; and they're not paying the rent. It's an absolute nightmare. So trust me, that is not the time when you need to hire a property manager. Really, the time you need to hire a property manager is pro-actively, to do it before.

WHAT YOUR PROPERTY MANGER CAN DO FOR YOU

Let’s go over some examples. Before you ever rent your home, or make a decision to rent your home, a property manager is going to do their best to help maximize your return on this home, while minimizing any problems or loss you have. They can see loss, any extraordinary expenses, repairs, that type of thing. They're going to help you start off by marketing that home very quickly, so that you don't have the rent loss and you can get a quality tenant in there. They're going to screen those tenants so you don't have the types of problems like the one mentioned above. You're going to have a quality tenant that's caring for your home and can pay for your home. Another thing they're going to do is, and probably the biggest thing, is they are protecting your investment. Your home is more than likely your largest investment, your largest expense or asset. A property manager is going to care for that the entire time. They're going to put a good quality tenant in there, they're going to minimize your vacancy, they're going to minimize your expenses because the tenant is going to care for it, and they're going to check up on the home to make sure the home is cared for. And ultimately, when you go to sell the home, you have a better product because you won’t have to invest a ton of money into the home to then maximize your sale property.

VENDOR MAINTENANCE

The second thing, property managers are just help. If you have that tyranny of distance and you’re stressed about any of the smaller repairs, a property manager is going to do all of that for you. Another thing, a property manager is going to have quality vendors that's going to be working on your home. It’s not just somebody that you're picking at random or doing an internet search on that have no experience. The property manager, if they're managing hundreds of homes, has experience with quality license and insured vendors, and they've probably vetted those vendors to make sure that they're good on their prices. A lot of vendors that property managers work with will actually reduce their cost because of volume and that gets passed on to you.

FINAL TIPS

The last thing that the property manager is going to do, they're going to make sure that all your finances with regards to that asset are kept tip-top so when it’s time for the IRS at the end of the year, you don't have to go scrambling, and figure something out and possibly make a mistake on this. Your property manager is going to do all of that for you.

To recap, the best time to hire a property manager is proactively -- when you make a decision to rent the home. And property managers can either help you just place a tenant, or they can fully manage the home. If you have more questions on this, how to pick a quality property manager, you can see our blogs on that, we got that. We also have, "what a property manager does to market your home," another one, "what a property manager does for your finance." So, feel free to check our other blogs about that and as always, at any time, if we can answer your questions, give us a call here at Navy to Navy, happy to chat about you and your investment.