When you own property, you may love the fact that you own it, but aren’t sure if you should have a property manager.  That’s the question I hope to give you some information on to determine if it’s something that you’d benefit from.  Like with many things in life,  you need to have details and get facts to know if it will be a good fit for you.   For your consideration are some of the things that you need to consider if you may want to hire a property manager.

Time

Time is always something that you’re going to need to consider when entertaining the idea of getting a property manager.  It’s a question that needs to be asked from both sides of the coin.

First: Do you have the time to manage the property itself.  This will include showing it, cleaning it, fixing what needs to be fixed and any other challenges that may come with taking care of the property yourself.

Second and the flip side of the time element is will your time be better spend by having someone else take care of it.  Often times we think we’ll have time for things but in actuality we don’t or things take more time than we originally thought that they would.

If you’re time is going to be better spent elsewhere, then getting and having a property management team may be the best selection for you.

The Law 

Another area that you need to consider is the law.  What is the law concerning your responsibilities for maintaining the business (which is what renting a place is) concerning your rights and the rights of your tenants.  For example, if you decide to sell your complex, how long do you need to give your current tenants notice?

What about if they don’t pay the rent they owe.  What do you need to do to get your monies and how long do you have to wait before you evict them.  Are their any clauses that are in the contract that favor your or favor them?  If so, what if any options do you have when dealing with your tenant. What if they damage a place or are loud?  Can you just evict them, or do you need to wait until the police have been called out?

Also do you need to give them notification about when you’re going to inspect the property?  How about how long you have to fix the property if the plumbing breaks or the roof is leaking?  These are things that you’re going to need to be aware of if you’re going to be renting property.

Rent

You don’t have a rental property just for the fun of it, so have you consider how much the rent you’re going to charge?  If you don’t, do you know how to go about what you should charge?  What would be the fair asking price for your rental property, be it an office building or a residence?  For that matter, what determines what a fair price is?  These are just some of the questions that you need to have answers for if you’re going to take care of the property yourself.

Tenants

Have you decided how you’re going to screen to find the proper tenants for your business complex, home or apartment complex.  Not everyone will qualify if your selective at all.  Consider that there are specific income to rent ratios that have to be determined.  You can’t have 1/2 of ones wages be used for rent, or you’re guaranteed that you’re not going to get or rent.   Which also means that you’re going to need to confirm their employment and wages.

If your renting an apartment complex or mobile home complex and children live there, you’re going to be needing to do background checks.  Are you prepared for what you’ll find out and are you charging the correct amount for those checks.

There’s More

While this concludes this particular blog, if you’re feeling overwhelmed from reading what little is here, consider that a property management company is going to be the best way for you to go.  Not everything or even close to it was covered here.  The point was to give you an idea of what was involved with managing your own property, so that you can decide if it’s something that you can handle.  Everyone is different so some will say it’s simple, while others will know that they need a property management company.