The Hardest Business in Real Estate—Be Sure to Appreciate These Folks!

I want to open up your eyes to one of the toughest businesses in real estate and what goes on behind the scenes. Hopefully, you can then reach out to those individuals and give them the recognition that they deserve.

That business is property management. I have owned a property management company for a while now, and I can tell you this: It is not an easy job.

Personally, I have hated my life for the first three or four years of being in the business. Now, things are different and things are better. But all I can say is it is a very tough industry to be in.

Why Property Management Is the Hardest Gig in Real Estate

Look, I understand all of you folks out there. I get that you do not like property management companies and that they’re like the devil. I like to joke around and say “the devil in the skies,” right?

But look, there’s a lot of shady property management companies out there. You have to look out for the shady ones, because they nickel and dime you to death. They make up non-existent expenses, they charge you a fortune, and blah blah blah. I get it.

In any kind of business, there’s always going to be shady operators out there, so you need to do your due diligence on who you’re looking to work with. The same goes from property management to a turnkey company to a real estate agent or contractor.

You name it, and there’s a lot of shady people in the industry. So it’s important that you do your part and not work with shady individuals.

It’s important to note that today’s blog is not about giving you any actionable or valuable content. I just want to open your eyes to what goes on behind the scenes at a property management company.

Why Property Management Companies Deserve Our Appreciation

I have some amazing people in that department that really work hard for all of our investors and tenants. And it’s a very thankless job.

A lot of the investors constantly complain about things needing to be fixed and things costing too much to be fixed. The tenants, on the other hand, are complaining about things not getting fixed fast enough.

They’ve also got the maintenance personnel that is complaining about not getting paid enough and being overworked. So here we are, as people in the office, that are stuck in the middle between all of these individuals. We take the full brunt of everything that is going on.

So reach out to your property managers today, and give them the recognition they deserve—as long as they’re a legitimate company. Tell them thank you for the service they provide and work that they do.

Guys, honestly. Legitimate property management companies do not make a lot of money for the work that they do. I can tell you it’s probably not worth the effort! Because think about it, you only make 10 percent from the monthly collected rent.

I can tell you right now, there’s a lot of work that is associated with that 10 percent. From leasing to turns, rent collections, distributions, three-day notices, evictions, tenant complaints, and scheduling maintenance. I mean honestly, it’s not worth the 10 percent.

Where I think things start to change is when you start to hit the economies of scale. When you start getting 300 to 1,000 properties under management. Then, the 10 percent really adds up.

That is somewhere where we’re at now. Where after three to four years of hating my life and losing money, we’ve kind of reached that turning point—the economies of scale point—and things are starting to look much better.

That is pretty much it. Please reach out to your property management companies and tell them thank you for their work. It’s important, because sometimes a few good words can really go a long way in building that relationship and leaving an impression on someone.

Do you use a property management company? Have you told them how much you appreciate their service?

Comment below.

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.