{"id":60695,"date":"2014-08-18T11:19:08","date_gmt":"2014-08-18T17:19:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/renewsblog\/?p=60695"},"modified":"2021-03-16T10:22:30","modified_gmt":"2021-03-16T16:22:30","slug":"2014-08-18-4-simple-tips-find-right-short-term-property-manager","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/2014-08-18-4-simple-tips-find-right-short-term-property-manager","title":{"rendered":"4 Simple Tips to Find the Right Short Term Property Manager"},"content":{"rendered":"

Running a short-term rental program for your vacation home or condo can be challenging on your own.<\/p>\n

Hiring a property manager can have many benefits, but the first step is finding the right person to hire. Take a look at these 4 simple tips to help you find the right person for the job.<\/p>\n

1) Choose a Property Manager You Can Trust<\/h2>\n

This may seem like common sense, but remember that if, like most vacation home owners, you don\u2019t live near your property, trustworthiness is even more important. There are 3 main ways you can look for the best property manager around:<\/p>\n

1. Look around the community<\/strong>. Identify homes in the area that are well kept and contact the owners to find out which property manager they use.<\/p>\n

2. Talk to the HOA Board Members<\/strong>. Contact board members and ask them who they\u2019ve had good experiences with.<\/p>\n

3. Talk to a 24-hour guard<\/strong>. If your property has a guard, then they\u2019re the ones to ask. They often have a better idea of what goes on day-to-day than anyone. They\u2019ll likely have recommendations on property managers, and these recommendations should be taken seriously.<\/p>\n

Related:<\/strong> The Best Property Management Company in the World<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

2) Don\u2019t Hire the First Property Manager You Talk To<\/h2>\n

Ideally you\u2019ll talk to at least 3 property managers before you settle on one. Include these questions among those you ask them:<\/p>\n

a)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Who is ultimately in charge? <\/strong>The ideal answer form the business owner is that they are always the one to take responsibility for the property. Even if their employees make a mistake, the owner should take full responsibility. That said, they should have a plan in place that includes check and balances and ensures your home is kept in great shape at all times.<\/p>\n

b)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What\u2019s your cleaning and repair plan?<\/strong> Your home must be clean every time a guest arrives, and this should be one of the most important priorities for the property manager you hire. Ask for a detailed plan that describes their cleaning protocol and what they do to ensure it\u2019s followed before every guest arrives. Speak to them about how repairs are handled. For example, for our Orlando properties we take care of any repairs under $100 and bill the owner, while anything over $100 gets the owners approval before we move forward. Remember that a vacation home is a business and expenditures should be in line with revenue.<\/p>\n

c)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Who would you recommend we hire?<\/strong> Of course they\u2019ll say they\u2019re the best property manager for the job, but they should also be willing to give you the names of 2 or 3 other companies they would recommend. Pay close attention to the answer: if every company you interview recommends XYZ Property Management, then you\u2019ll know they\u2019re someone worth contacting. As a property manager myself, I don\u2019t hesitate to recommend other companies. I\u2019m confident enough in my staff and the services we offer that I know even if potential customers check out other companies, they\u2019ll come back to us when it\u2019s time to sign on the dotted line.<\/p>\n

3) Make Sure You Have Checks and Balances in Place<\/h2>\n

You\u2019ll find that most property managers will suggest paying your monthly bills.<\/p>\n

This makes it easier for them because they won\u2019t have to worry about the utilities being cut off in the middle of the night due to non-payment. However, it isn\u2019t to your benefit: they\u2019ll expect $1,500 – $2,500 in escrow to handle these expenses. If you decide to move on to another property management company, you\u2019re not necessarily going to get all that money back. As a result, it makes more sense to pay your own bills and refuse putting money in escrow.<\/p>\n

Paying your own bills also gives you an added level of checks and balances. Every month you can check your utility bills to be sure that spikes in use coincide with nights you were paid for guests. If there are spikes when the property manager says no one was in the property, then this may mean they\u2019ve rented the unit without paying you. They only need to do this a single time for it to make an impact on your profit \/ loss statement for the year.<\/p>\n

4) Commit to a Short-Term Agreement at First<\/h2>\n

Start off with a 3-month agreement.<\/p>\n

Related:<\/strong> 5 Easy Landlord Tips You Probably Aren\u2019t Following (Including the One I Failed At Last Month)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

If it works out well, then you can resign for another 3 \u2013 6 months. Short-term agreements keep your property manager on their toes and ensure you get the best service possible.<\/p>\n

Would you add anything to this list?<\/i><\/p>\n

Be sure to leave your comments below!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Running a short-term rental program for your vacation home or condo can be challenging on your own. Hiring a property manager can have many benefits, but the first step is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1677,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4241],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60695","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-real-estate-business-management"],"acf":[],"comment_count":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1677"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60695\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}