So you have started your investment portfolio and you are weighing up whether to employ a property manager or to take control of the management yourself. You are probably thinking, Managing a property, how hard could it really be? If you have great tenants and they look after the property and pay their rent every week, this may be the case, but if things go pear-shaped that’s a whole new ball game.
There are so many reasons you need a professional to manage your property. I like to use the analogy if your car broke down would you try and fix it yourself? Or would you take it to a mechanic? Same goes for property management, renting a property is governed by a legal minefield of legislation that the average landlord just doesn’t have the time to master.
Here are just a few of the reason why hiring a professional property manager will be the best thing you will ever do.
THEY KNOW THE LAW AND LEGISLATION
Professional property managers are across all the latest laws and legislation and will ensure they are kept up to date as new rules come into play. This is absolute key when it comes to property management, too many times an issue arises and if not handled properly, fairly and according to the law, things can turn sour. Ultimately, a property manager’s knowledge provides a major piece of mind for an owner.
MARKET KNOWLEDGE
A property manager will be able to give an independent assessment of the achievable rent for a property. Many first-time investors who aren’t locally based will tend to overestimate the weekly rent they should charge resulting in lost income through a high vacancy period. Before listing, our expert team will do local market research to determine a weekly rental price for your property. The price will based on similar rentals in the area, the market demand and the property features. Our property managers will revisit the weekly price every few months to ensure they are maximising your return.
TENANT SELECTION
At iThink Property we have a stringent tenant selection process. All applicant’s are triple checked to ensure they will be a good fit for the property. We assure all of our landlord’s that we conduct a diligent and thorough screening of tenants is ultra important, every landlord has had a nightmare tenant. Rental reference, employment reference checks, confirmation of income, National tenancy default database checks like TICA are all standard across the board. We have also added social media as another check in the screening process.
PAPERWORK
A property manager will ensure all the correct paperwork signed with all parties rights and responsibilities clearly outlined. It is easy to miss parts or sections, giving tenants an easy-out clause to a binding agreement.
MARKETING
A property manager has access to the best websites to promote and advertise your property, this is where 95% of enquiry for rentals comes from. They also have other potential tenants at hand, who may have missed out on a similar property. Gone are the days of simply putting up a sign at the property. It is also time when answering this question, to touch on the importance of how you present your property for rent to ensure the properties online presence showcases it in its best light. Professional quality photos are a must, deleting any unflattering photos of the property or rooms, spending time on a good headline and copy to highlight the best selling points is often overlooked, but in my view are essential elements in completing the presentation of the property and making it stand out from the crowd online.
THE HARD STUFF
The two D’s…Disputes and Debt Collection.
Negotiating some of the disputes that arise daily in property management can be extremely stressful especially for someone new to the industry. Property managers have dealt with majority of these issues before, so they know how to handle it.
It is one thing to follow up with a tenant when they are in arrears, but it is another to recover the funds if they leave the property owing to debt. If worse come to worse, we can represent the landlord at QCAT. We also have connections with a debt collection agencies. At the end of the day we ensure we will do everything in your power to ensure the landlord isn’t out of pocket is key.
Although there are many more reason why hiring a professional property manager is well worth the investment, these top things pretty much sell the service.
If you would like to discuss our property management services, please call 07 3202 3040, we would love to represent you and your property.
KYLIE WALKER – DIRECTOR – BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT & MARKETING