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WHAT QUALITIES SHOULD YOU LOOK FOR IN A HIGH PERFORMING PROPERTY MANAGER?

Finding the right property manager is important for your investment’s success but what qualities should you look for? Here are the key qualities that we believe define a high performing property manager.

  • Have excellent communication skills
  • Are highly efficient and organised
  • Are trained and educated with a focus on continual education
  • Have in-depth knowledge about the local rental market
  • Are experienced or part of a highly experienced property management team
  • Have an investor mindset with a focus on helping their landlords maximise their investment success
  • Have strong references from both landlords and renters
  • Have a strong ability to negotiate
  • They offer a wide range of services and can take care of most of your management needs on your behalf
  • Are committed to ongoing professional development to ensure they stay up to date with changing tenancy laws and they keep you informed when changes impact you.

EVALUATING YOUR CURRENT PROPERTY MANAGER'S PERFORMANCE

Given the significant role your property manager plays, ensuring you partner with a high performing one is important. But how can you assess your current property manager to determine if they are the best one for you and your investment?

  • Is your current property manager fulfilling their responsibilities? For example, are they collecting rent on time, conducting regular inspections and providing you with reports, managing maintenance issues and conducting rental reviews?
  • Do you have consistent unaddressed issues with your tenants? This could indicate your property manager is not performing as expected
  • Is your property manager addressing any maintenance issues as per your instructions? Do they make proactive maintenance suggestions? Ensuring your property is well maintained and compliant with health and safety regulations is critically important both from a legal perspective but also can help save you money in the long run
  • Do you often receive late rent payments? Cash flow is important as it impacts your loan repayment. Consistent late rent payments may indicate that your property manager is not enforcing the rental arrears procedures
  • Is your property sitting vacant for months on end, with no prospects of finding a tenant? A seasoned PM will understanding what the local days on market are, whether the asking rent is in line with the market and ways to refresh the way the property looks both digitally and in person. 
  • Does your property manager inspect your property regularly and provide you with reports? Do they keep you informed on your tenants, their intentions to stay/move and updates on repairs and maintenance?
  • What is your relationship like - does your current Property Manager understand how you like to be communicated and how often? Good Property Managers understand this to make sure they are building the best working relationship with their clients
  • Is their fee structure transparent or are you hit with hidden fees?
  • Do they provide you with the necessary documentation for your tax reporting purposes?• Do they or their team have depth of property management experience in your local area?
  • Do they proactively keep you informed of legislative changes and how they impact you?
  • Do they offer a full range of services including rent payment management, maintenance, marketing, tenant screening, rental appraisals and inspections? If not, you might be missing out on better quality tenants and higher rent

WHAT QUESTIONS SHOULD YOU ASK A PROPERTY MANAGER TO FIND THE RIGHT ONE

Now you know the qualities to look for, here are a series of questions to ask your shortlisted property managers to help you find the right one to join your investment team.

  • Who will be my primary point of contact and how long have they been with the company / Industry?
  • Other than your letting fee and management fee, what other fees should I be aware of?
  • What is your policy on rental arrears?
  • How many similar properties do you manage?
  • Are all your tradespeople licenced?
  • What training does your company hold?
  • How often do you inspect properties and what reports do you send?
  • What online tools do you use, can I get real time reporting?
  • How do you screen tenants?
  • What’s your average days on market?
  • What’s your vacancy rate?
  • What’s your list price to lease price ratio?
  • What is your team structure?
  • Can you show me your customer experience system and ratings?
  • Can you share any Google reviews or testimonials from landlords and tenants