You are a landlord or commercial real-estate investor who owns property and wishes to delegate their management.
Property management companies can help you as they deal with potentials and tenants, marketing your property, collecting rent, handling maintenance and repair issues, address tenant concerns and can evict tenants. Let us see what to look for when you want to get real estate management services for your commercial property.
Get real estate managers with a good word of mouth
If you are part of an investor’s association or a property owner’s association, you will find members who are using or have used property managers. Get their feedback and hire the agency which sounds best to you.
Regular updates
The best property managers have software and tools that can provide reports that will aid you in understanding what is going on with your property – be it money flowing out for maintenance and repairs or money coming in. They should be able to provide you with these on a frequency that you are comfortable with.
They should also get your approval before proceeding with major expenses related to the property
Services provided
Look for real-estate managers who can manage, sell, lease, renew lease, do inspections and maintenance and even market your property to the appropriate retail operators.
You want managers who don’t manage too many properties or your property will get lost in the shuffle.
Screening tenants
Make sure your real-estate managers screen tenants and do background checks before bringing them forward. This can save a lot of hassle later on as an uncooperative or bad tenant can make for an unpleasant experience. Check if your property manager offers eviction warranty.
Fee Structure
Usually property managers charge a flat rate on the rent. Check if they will still charge you when the property is empty. Also enquire about other costs such as maintenance charges,
Insurance
You can face lawsuits from tenants who have been evicted or have been injured on the property. Potential tenants can also sue for tenant discrimination. Some other lawsuits could be for invasion of privacy, hiring unlicensed contractors etc.
Check if your property manager has liability insurance and errors and omissions insurance that can protect against these.
Reports
Reports with details about income and expenses, accounts receivable and accounts payable can really help you when it is tax season. So, check if your property manager can furnish this information with the details you require in a user friendly format.
Hiring a property manager is a good idea if you own a lot of properties or you live far from the property. So, delegate and get real estate management services from a trustworthy company. It will save you time and hassle.
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