Starting a new Miami PM Firm

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Starting a new Miami PM Firm

Andrew Bonner
Property Manager · Miami, FL · Member since 2017 · 32 posts · 5 votes

Hello Everyone,

My name is Andrew and I have been real estate for over 15 years. I have spent most of that time in management and have decided to start my own Property Management company in Miami, FL called Sabal Pam Real Estate (SabalPalmre.com). I am focusing on single family, condos, and small apartments. I have managed over 300 units and millions of square feet of commercial. I am going to focus on Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, South Miami, and Pinecrest. These areas have jumped in rent but new tenants have a high expectation in what they are paying for. I am already working with a few owners but plan to market to more. I want to get a list of absentee owners and explain that I will manage the entire rental cycle for an entire year for the same amount they pay realtor just to rent the unit. I will also only charge based on collected rent so when they aren’t getting paid neither am I, and I am entities to keep the unit rented because I don’t get leasing payment fee. I will charge between 8% and 10% and potentially a small amount for larger remodels. I have a Brokerage License and a CAM License so I have a deep knowledge of condo issues. What do you all think? Does anyone know someone looking for management in my market? Any ideas on how to get a few more clients and best practices to scale responsibly? Thanks for everyone’s help 

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Drew SygitBusiness Member
Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
2mo
Quote from @Andrew Bonner:

Hello Everyone,

My name is Andrew and I have been real estate for over 15 years. I have spent most of that time in management and have decided to start my own Property Management company in Miami, FL called Sabal Pam Real Estate (SabalPalmre.com). I am focusing on single family, condos, and small apartments. I have managed over 300 units and millions of square feet of commercial. I am going to focus on Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, South Miami, and Pinecrest. These areas have jumped in rent but new tenants have a high expectation in what they are paying for. I am already working with a few owners but plan to market to more. I want to get a list of absentee owners and explain that I will manage the entire rental cycle for an entire year for the same amount they pay realtor just to rent the unit. I will also only charge based on collected rent so when they aren’t getting paid neither am I, and I am entities to keep the unit rented because I don’t get leasing payment fee. I will charge between 8% and 10% and potentially a small amount for larger remodels. I have a Brokerage License and a CAM License so I have a deep knowledge of condo issues. What do you all think? Does anyone know someone looking for management in my market? Any ideas on how to get a few more clients and best practices to scale responsibly? Thanks for everyone’s help 


Old sales saying, "you sell price when you have nothing else to sell!"

You should join NARPM and Profit Coach to understand what income per door you'll need to survive. 

[email protected]248-209-6824
Logical Property Management4.9450 Reviews
WebsiteView Page
2Reply
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  • Chris SeveneyBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Investor · VA · Member since 2015 · 21k+ posts · 19k+ votes
    2mo

    I would just start reaching out to people who own 5+ units and ask them if they are happy with their current pm. Question you need to answer is:

    why would someone switch to you besides price ?

    7e investments53 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
    1Reply
  • Drew SygitBusiness Member
    Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
    2mo
    Quote from @Andrew Bonner:

    Hello Everyone,

    My name is Andrew and I have been real estate for over 15 years. I have spent most of that time in management and have decided to start my own Property Management company in Miami, FL called Sabal Pam Real Estate (SabalPalmre.com). I am focusing on single family, condos, and small apartments. I have managed over 300 units and millions of square feet of commercial. I am going to focus on Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, South Miami, and Pinecrest. These areas have jumped in rent but new tenants have a high expectation in what they are paying for. I am already working with a few owners but plan to market to more. I want to get a list of absentee owners and explain that I will manage the entire rental cycle for an entire year for the same amount they pay realtor just to rent the unit. I will also only charge based on collected rent so when they aren’t getting paid neither am I, and I am entities to keep the unit rented because I don’t get leasing payment fee. I will charge between 8% and 10% and potentially a small amount for larger remodels. I have a Brokerage License and a CAM License so I have a deep knowledge of condo issues. What do you all think? Does anyone know someone looking for management in my market? Any ideas on how to get a few more clients and best practices to scale responsibly? Thanks for everyone’s help 


    Old sales saying, "you sell price when you have nothing else to sell!"

    You should join NARPM and Profit Coach to understand what income per door you'll need to survive. 

    [email protected]248-209-6824
    Logical Property Management4.9450 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
    2Reply
  • Jim Johnson
    Real Estate Agent · Memphis · Member since 2026 · 538 posts · 311 votes
    2mo

    It sounds like you're starting with something many new property management companies don't have—significant operational experience and a clearly defined target market.

    What stood out to me:

    • 15+ years of management experience
    • Experience with both residential and commercial assets
    • Broker and CAM licenses
    • A focused geographic area rather than trying to cover all of South Florida
    • A compensation structure that aligns your incentives with the owner's success

    If I were an owner, the "only getting paid when rent is collected" angle would definitely get my attention.

    As far as growth goes, I'd focus heavily on referrals and reputation before trying to scale too quickly. In property management, a handful of enthusiastic owner referrals can be more valuable than a large marketing budget.

    One thing I've noticed is that many absentee owners aren't necessarily looking for the cheapest manager—they're looking for:

    • Communication
    • Transparency
    • Fast leasing
    • Reliable maintenance coordination
    • Confidence that problems are being handled

    If you can consistently deliver those things, client acquisition tends to get easier over time.

    The only caution I'd offer is to be careful about growing faster than your systems. A lot of management companies win clients because of great service and then struggle when unit count grows faster than their processes. The companies that scale well seem to build repeatable systems before they need them, not after.

    0Reply
  • Robert EllisBusiness Member
    Developer · Miami, FL · Member since 2014 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    2mo
    Quote from @Andrew Bonner:

    Hello Everyone,

    My name is Andrew and I have been real estate for over 15 years. I have spent most of that time in management and have decided to start my own Property Management company in Miami, FL called Sabal Pam Real Estate (SabalPalmre.com). I am focusing on single family, condos, and small apartments. I have managed over 300 units and millions of square feet of commercial. I am going to focus on Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, South Miami, and Pinecrest. These areas have jumped in rent but new tenants have a high expectation in what they are paying for. I am already working with a few owners but plan to market to more. I want to get a list of absentee owners and explain that I will manage the entire rental cycle for an entire year for the same amount they pay realtor just to rent the unit. I will also only charge based on collected rent so when they aren’t getting paid neither am I, and I am entities to keep the unit rented because I don’t get leasing payment fee. I will charge between 8% and 10% and potentially a small amount for larger remodels. I have a Brokerage License and a CAM License so I have a deep knowledge of condo issues. What do you all think? Does anyone know someone looking for management in my market? Any ideas on how to get a few more clients and best practices to scale responsibly? Thanks for everyone’s help 


    The part that would make me nervous is asking someone to switch property managers.

    I've changed managers before, and it wasn't because the old one charged too much. It was because I got tired of finding out about problems after they had already become expensive. Better communication was worth a lot more to me than saving a point or two on management fees.

    Your experience managing 300+ units is a much stronger selling point than being the lower-cost option. If an owner believes you'll protect their asset and keep them informed, the fee becomes a much smaller conversation.

    What have owners you've already signed said was missing from their previous property manager? I'd build the business around that before I'd build it around pricing.

    [email protected]786-494-6766
    Section 8 Launch52 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
    0Reply
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