Real Estate Investor · Loma Linda, CA · Member since 2016 · 36 posts · 20 votes
Hi fellow investors,
My properties are having a lot of repair charges and i am suspecting my PM is not ethical. For those investors in Milwaukee, what is the percentage of repair/maintenance cost in respect to gross rents collected? For example, if gross rent is 1800$, what actual percentage of the gross rent goes to property repairs?
I am in the process of looking for a new PM as the one i have is incompetent. They put a new tenant in my property and evicted them after 3 months and they did not tell me of the eviction. The only way i learned of the eviction was through the monthly statement with eviction costs totaling 425$! When i asked they said it was a mistake and they forgot about it....
It all depends on what area of the city you are operating in. If you're in a lower income neighborhood with old housing stock, there's a good chance your repair costs may run fairly high.
With that being said, if they failed to tell you about an eviction, I would certainly be done with them. And this happened on a tenant who they just placed seems like another red flag to me. I'd cut ties.
Investor · Warrens, WI · Member since 2016 · 18 posts · 6 votes
9y
Tony,
I'm considering a multifamily purchase in Milwaukee and will be interested in the responses you get. Are you willing to share the name of the PM you are using and how long you have held that property and been working with them?? What kind of properties do you hold in Milwaukee? We have 7 SFH in other states and are just considering moving into the multi family niche ....
It all depends on what area of the city you are operating in. If you're in a lower income neighborhood with old housing stock, there's a good chance your repair costs may run fairly high.
With that being said, if they failed to tell you about an eviction, I would certainly be done with them. And this happened on a tenant who they just placed seems like another red flag to me. I'd cut ties.
Real Estate Investor · Loma Linda, CA · Member since 2016 · 36 posts · 20 votes
9y
@Amy Roberts I will send you a private message on the PM i am using. I am in the process of buying a 10 unit apartment and i used them as realtors and i don't want to mess up the deal. Once this closes i am done with them. I also own a 5 unit, a duplex and one SFH.
@Darren Budahn, thanks for the responses and i can't wait to over with them.
I own a few properties in the Milwaukee area that are 1920s-1950s era properties. I looked back at last year and averaged 4% on true repair type items - not capex, turnover or improvements. When I purchase a property, all deferred maintenance is completed and I get the units in pretty decent shape so my number could be a bit lower than average. What neighborhoods are your properties in?
Real Estate Investor · Loma Linda, CA · Member since 2016 · 36 posts · 20 votes
9y
@Rob Myers, that is a great number. Do you manage the properties yourself or do you use a property manager? My repair cost comes to about 30-40% and it's really killing my returns. My properties are in 53218 and 53204 area. crime map is green
Rental Property Investor · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2013 · 6k+ posts · 4k+ votes
9y
I generally put away around 15% of the monthly rent each month for repairs, minimum $175 until I hit about $3,000 then I slow down adding to the reserves until I get to $5,000. Pretty much if I had a huge issue, $5,000 covers most things. There will always be repairs, but I try to mitigate that by keeping up on property maintenance and doing some type of upgrades/improvements on an annual basis.
Queen Creek, AZ · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
9y
Our property manager has had very low maintenance charges over the last year or two. We know there is a new roof on the horizon but we expect that. Beyond that they have had a few called for clogged drains and other minor issues.
Investor · Palatine, IL · Member since 2015 · 69 posts · 31 votes
9y
We manage in Milwaukee and we do not use any repair authorization threshold, below which we could incur charges to our clients. We get everything approved. Yes, it takes more communication on our end, but we like that. Most repair coordination falls within our base management fee, so there is no up-charge.
Real Estate Entrepreneur · Mid West, East Coast · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes
9y
Hey @Tony Blessings sorry to hear your going through this my friend. You have tons of great landlords here who should be able to provide you with good PM leads. Unfortunately my PM and I are scaling out business together and we only work with our buyers. You should definitely leave this post with great recommendations. Best of luck to you my friend.!!