Investor · Elmira, NY · Member since 2015 · 17 posts · 0 votes
Has anyone used a virtual assistant for book keeping and clerical tasks? If you have what kind of results did you have and where would you suggest the best place to start a search for one?
Rental Property Investor · State College, PA · Member since 2013 · 287 posts · 99 votes
10y
I have also used Upwork (formerly Odesk) and found my VA, who I'm totally happy with. I found an investor friendly VA who manages some large multis (100+units). My VA is not one person but a group of people. They are my 'front office' with a local telephone number (via Skype), access to all of my contractor's information, and access to my calendar. My 'office' is open from 10am - 6pm EST. Because of the time differences, someone is managing the phones during the evening hours, so I'm actually covered 24/7 on the phones.
Because my VA has experience with much larger investors, they are helping me craft my business in such a way that I can really scale up with the right systems in place. They gently 'nudge' me by saying "well, when we work for XYZ Inc, they use this system, can we try it for you?"
Today was an awesome example of their help. I've got a vacant unit that I am trying to fill. I knew we were trying to schedule one showing so I gave my VA two dates/times that I can show the unit. That was last night at 9pm EST. Today I woke up, went to class then went to help install a boiler. Tonight at 9pm, I received an email from Diane (one of the VAs) to inform me that I now have two showings scheduled for the first time slot and one for the second time slot.
There is training, but training goes both directions. VAs are people too and must be treated with respect. Just because their hourly rate is not as high as a US counterpart doesn't mean their work is lower quality or that they are incapable. Due to differences in the value of currencies, if my VA were to earn the equivalent amount here in the US, they would be paid ~$38/hr. Based on my experience as a VP of a construction firm, I would argue my VA is actually more capable than people I've hired in the past.
Wilmington, DE · Member since 2015 · 121 posts · 36 votes
10y
Never for book keeping, but I have used VA's for clerical tasks. Results were very good. The only issue I encountered was that some of my directions were not specific enough. Be sure to give a very specific description of what you want done. I also try to verify the VA understands by having them do a small portion of the project before taking on the whole job. I used Up Work, I was very happy with it.
Rental Property Investor · State College, PA · Member since 2013 · 287 posts · 99 votes
10y
I have also used Upwork (formerly Odesk) and found my VA, who I'm totally happy with. I found an investor friendly VA who manages some large multis (100+units). My VA is not one person but a group of people. They are my 'front office' with a local telephone number (via Skype), access to all of my contractor's information, and access to my calendar. My 'office' is open from 10am - 6pm EST. Because of the time differences, someone is managing the phones during the evening hours, so I'm actually covered 24/7 on the phones.
Because my VA has experience with much larger investors, they are helping me craft my business in such a way that I can really scale up with the right systems in place. They gently 'nudge' me by saying "well, when we work for XYZ Inc, they use this system, can we try it for you?"
Today was an awesome example of their help. I've got a vacant unit that I am trying to fill. I knew we were trying to schedule one showing so I gave my VA two dates/times that I can show the unit. That was last night at 9pm EST. Today I woke up, went to class then went to help install a boiler. Tonight at 9pm, I received an email from Diane (one of the VAs) to inform me that I now have two showings scheduled for the first time slot and one for the second time slot.
There is training, but training goes both directions. VAs are people too and must be treated with respect. Just because their hourly rate is not as high as a US counterpart doesn't mean their work is lower quality or that they are incapable. Due to differences in the value of currencies, if my VA were to earn the equivalent amount here in the US, they would be paid ~$38/hr. Based on my experience as a VP of a construction firm, I would argue my VA is actually more capable than people I've hired in the past.
Rental Property Investor · State College, PA · Member since 2013 · 287 posts · 99 votes
10y
Wanted to provide a quick update to my post above. My VAs left the scene at some point after the New Year. After about a month, I realized that I hadn't received an invoice (not a bad thing) so I looked into it, reached out to the VAs and received no response. The best part of the VA experience was that it allowed me to refine my systems on the cheap ($4.40/hr). I am now considering working with a friend of mine who wants location independent work and I need/want the help. The systems are in place but can be further refined.
Residential Real Estate Broker · Chicago Suburbs, IL · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 594 votes
10y
I have/am. It's hit or miss. I recently used a VA company to field calls and do prescreening. That went well. Tried to get them to some other stuff and it didn't work out so well. When explaining in detail what needs to be done takes the same amount of time as doing it yourself, and it's not something that needs to be repeated often, it doesn't make to much sense. Plus, they can't do your filing, check your mail at the post office, or run in person errands obviously.
Property Manager · KS · Member since 2021 · 7 posts · 4 votes
5y
I am currently using a property management specific VA. We use VA's for our 24/7 emergency maintenance line. Tenants can always talk to someone about their maintenance needs. Then, we are using a full time VA who answers our phones and fields calls to the correct staff members. It has been working well for over a year now.
Investor · Member since 2018 · 259 posts · 74 votes
4y
@Renee Casey@Liam Goble Could you both please share where you found VA's with real estate expertise and what terms to search for? An example of something I want done is for someone to go through my hundreds of leases and check that my rent roll is accurate. Thanks