How To Assess A Property Manager

Hiring a property manager is a big decision. Giving complete access and control of your property to a complete stranger isn’t something that you can do without thinking of it. Hiring a property manager to look after your rental property and manage all matters related to it can make your life easier. However, if you get stuck with the wrong property manager, the situation can take unfortunate turns for you.

If it’s your first time hiring a property manager, you might not know how to tell if you’re hiring the right one. To help you make the right choice, we’ve listed down several metrics based on which you can assess your property manager and rest assured that your property is in the right hands.

1. Knowledge

The first and most important metric is how knowledgeable a property manager is. A good property manager will have ample knowledge about the renting trends around the areas, what amenities properties similar to yours are offering, and the demographics of the potential tenant pool. If a property manager has no clue about these aspects, you can’t trust them to get you the best rates or the best tenants.

2. Marketing Strategy

The key to filling up your vacant property is to put your property out there for the public. Before you can hire a property manager, you should know what marketing strategy they follow and how they ensure that the potential tenants know about the availability of your property. It is one of the most critical factors that you should consider when assessing a property manager.

3. Past Record

A reliable property manager will be able to produce past records upon your request to convince you that they’ve been in the field for some time and that you can trust them. Someone who can’t share details of any of their previous clients is never a good option, no matter how cheap their quote is. You just can’t trust someone with your property, who you know nothing about. Enquiring about past records is an important metric to help you assess a property manager.

4. Analysis

The best property managers know how to go about numbers. They use the right tools to analyze the data and current trends and base their decisions and move based on them. It would help if you always looked closely at how a property manager works. Do they follow their instincts, or they make smart and calculated moves? It forms one of the metrics that you should use to assess a property manager. You don’t want to work with someone who follows their instinct of what might be. You need someone who knows what they’re doing and why they’re doing it.

5. Communication

It is only natural for you to follow-up with your property manager if you aren’t receiving payments or property-related updates regularly. Good communication skills are the key to become a good property manager. If a property manager doesn’t respond to your queries or requests on time and has you waiting most of the time, they’re a no-go. A good property manager is the one who is great at communication and can respond promptly!

Summary

While you can’t be sure how well a property manager will perform, you can surely use the metrics listed above to assess a property manager. It will help you get an idea beforehand of how good of an option they are!