How do property managers manage 30+ properties by themselves?

Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes

Hey BP! I am a current leasing agent located in Durham,NC. I am thinking of starting my own property management company. I would be the only person managing until I build up a great team. My question is: How do property managers deal with managing properties by themselves? For example: when a tenant calls in a maintenance issue, would I be the one to go fix the problem? Or would I have the owner decide? I understand getting a system set up and I would be interested in Buildium software. I understand collecting rental payments and screening tenants. Knowing fair housing laws in my state and advertising. I am just curious since I would be starting out as a portfolio structure company (one woman show) how would I handle maintenance requests? Thank you !

1 Reply

171 views

Most Popular Reply

Steve SantacrocePro Member

Rochester, NY · Member since 2013 · 101 posts · 48 votes

My wife @Rebecca Lebowitz manages over 140 properties by herself. The secret is your power team. You need a good lawyer, a good accountant, a good maintenance crew, and the most important, a good piece of software!

Maintenance requests should be funneled through your software and then given to your crew. You drive over and make sure the work is done to your satisfaction.

7 Reply

See this reply in the discussion

33 Replies

Jump to latestLatest

Sort by

Steve SantacrocePro Member
Rochester, NY · Member since 2013 · 101 posts · 48 votes
9y
My wife @Rebecca Lebowitz manages over 140 properties by herself. The secret is your power team. You need a good lawyer, a good accountant, a good maintenance crew, and the most important, a good piece of software!
Maintenance requests should be funneled through your software and then given to your crew. You drive over and make sure the work is done to your satisfaction.
7 Reply
Todd Dexheimer
Rental Property Investor · St. Paul, MN · Member since 2016 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
9y
The answer is exactly as Steve said. You're not managing it yourself. You may be the only one in your company but you need to subcontract out items such as maintenance, evictions, bookkeeping, leasing, etc. you may be able to handle the bookkeeping and the leasing right away but after you get enough units you want to hand that off to other people. Once you build your team and systems 40 units or even 140 units shouldn't be a problem to manage.
3 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Steve Santacroce Todd Dexheimer thank you gentlemen! This makes a lot of sense. I appreciate you both taking the time to answer my question. I'll have to do some research and build up a team I can count on. Then figure out how to subcontract.
1 Reply
Robert GilstrapPro Member
Residential Real Estate Broker · Cartersville, GA · Member since 2015 · 575 posts · 581 votes
9y
Have good forms/documents up front, good software, extremely good processes and procedures in place and like the others said a good team that you can quickly delegate to. To stay competitive you must leverage technology as well.
[email protected]770-480-7301
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Robert Gilstrap sounds like I have some work to do. Thank you for your input!
0 Reply
Kevin Powell
Minneapolis, MN · Member since 2014 · 48 posts · 28 votes
9y
@Alexis Scott I use Buildium today for my 11 units and find that it adds a lot of efficiency. I can collect rent online, screen my own tenants(without paper and checks), Send communications easily, and I can access everything from my phone. Brandon' Turner's The Book on Managing Rental Properties: A Proven System for Finding, Screening, and Managing Tenants with Fewer Headaches and Maximum Profits might be a great read for you too. I took his processes and his forms and have integrated them into my processes.
0 Reply
Kevin Powell
Minneapolis, MN · Member since 2014 · 48 posts · 28 votes
9y
@Steve Santacroce I am assuming you outsource maintenance to handymen. How did you find a partner? I have 11 units today and as I scale up I would love to outsource the maintenance requests to a trusted partner. Any tips or tricks you would mind sharing?
0 Reply
Kevin Powell
Minneapolis, MN · Member since 2014 · 48 posts · 28 votes
9y
@Robert Gilstrap what other technology are you using today? I work full time as an IT manager so I am obviously interested in Technology and the efficiency it creates.
I have a property management software(Buildium) that think has helped improve systems already. I leverage cloud technology for document storage. I haven't integrated electronic signatures yet but at a certain number of units meeting in person to sign leases won't make sense.
What other Tech has helped your business?
0 Reply
Robert GilstrapPro Member
Residential Real Estate Broker · Cartersville, GA · Member since 2015 · 575 posts · 581 votes
9y
@Kevin PowellElectronic signatures is a huge time saver, we're about to eliminate door keys and go to electronic locks. Doing self assist showings instead of personally showing property, having automatically escalating/renewing leases so you eliminate much of the work at renewal time, utilizing apps or something automatic for tenants to report maintenance, eliminating any form of payment that isn't electronic, etc. I could go on but as bad as it may sound you have to eliminate as much of the human interaction as possible (there's an obvious balancing act there) because humans cost so much money.
[email protected]770-480-7301
3 Reply
Steve SantacrocePro Member
Rochester, NY · Member since 2013 · 101 posts · 48 votes
9y
Blood and tears. Finding good handymen is the hardest part of the job. We have 2 that we pretty much take up all their time, and 3-5 that we use as needed. We've been in the biz for about 8 years, and we've gone through well over 50 guys easily. We pay the good ones offer market value because they save is time, which honestly is more valuable. And we want them to pretty much stop what they are doing and help us when needed :)
0 Reply
Jay Baker
San Francisco, CA · Member since 2017 · 29 posts · 3 votes
9y
Honestly, it's a lot of hard work. At some point you'll probably need to hire and train a team unless you want to keep doing it forever.
0 Reply
Shawn AckermanPro Member
Real Estate Entrepreneur · Mid West, East Coast · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes
9y
@Alexis Scott Great questions and I can see that your eager to get started. I'd suggest finding someone local to your market and picking their brain. My property manager has over 50 units between myself and my investors so it's possible. My PM and I have scaled our business together starting from one SFR. Always remember to persist and you will WIN!
1 Reply
Emily Rose
San Diego, CA · Member since 2015 · 21 posts · 13 votes
9y
I'd say one key to managing a lot of properties by yourself is to have strong rental criteria when screening tenants, and don't waiver on it. If you screen your tenants effectively then that will lead to a decrease in deferred maintenance, less late night phone calls, and less hunting down rent checks. I work full time for a property management company managing about 100 properties, and there's only two of us! Tenant screening on the front end, plus effective software (we use Buildium) on the backend can go a long way.
Good luck! Durham is a great market to be in right now.
1 Reply
Kim Meredith HamptonBusiness Member
Real Estate Broker · St Petersburg · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
9y
Alexis, does the state of NC allow a leasing agent to operate and run a PM company and receive compensation for real estate services? In Florida, you must have a brokers license.
[email protected]407-448-6679 Podcast Guest on Show The Key to Scoring Discounted Deals in One of America’s Hottest Markets
Compass | St. Pete514 Reviews
Website View Page
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Kevin Powell Hi Kevin ! Thank you for the feedback. I hear great things about Buildium. I'm considering that software while managing properties. Right now the property management company I work for uses AMSI. However they manage 320 units. I have read the book by Brandon Turner it's a great read!
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Steve Santacroce if I may ask, how did you find your handymen?
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Kevin Powell Also if this helps we currently use Bluemoon for sending leases electronically
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Kim Meredith Hampton I will have to look into that. I am not sure if it matters whether I have a brokers license or not to run a property management company on my own. Worse case I could get my license before advertising and running my business. Thoughts on this?
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Emily Rose thank you Emily! Yes Durham is a great market to be in right now. Screening tenants is key! Right now where I work currently full time as a leasing agent we use Core Logic to screen applicants. It works great and is very user friendly!
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Shawn Ackerman Hey there Shawn! Thank you I appreciate the positive energy. I cannot wait to own my own property management company instead of just leasing units out for a property management company I work for now. Their is a property manager that I work with. I've been picking her brain more so for eviction procedures, delinquency, and other tasks I will face in the future. I'm curious as to how your PM got started ?
0 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Jay Baker yes Jay ! That is the goal :)
0 Reply
Shawn AckermanPro Member
Real Estate Entrepreneur · Mid West, East Coast · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes
9y
@Alexis Scott do you need to be licensed in your state? Have you started a company? LLC?
0 Reply
Kim Meredith HamptonBusiness Member
Real Estate Broker · St Petersburg · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
9y
@Alexis Scott just checked for you and Borth Carolina does require that you have a Brokers License. Time to get your real estate license first, serve under a Broker then obtain your Brokers License before you can start and manage for others for compensation.
Please be careful, I know people think it's easy, but it's much much more than just collecting rent and unclogging a toilet. Owning a brokerage takes a lot of time, money and education. Get yourself hired with a reputable knowledgeable Broker that specializes in PM, get your license and learn as much as you can
[email protected]407-448-6679 Podcast Guest on Show The Key to Scoring Discounted Deals in One of America’s Hottest Markets
Compass | St. Pete514 Reviews
Website View Page
0 Reply
Steve SantacrocePro Member
Rochester, NY · Member since 2013 · 101 posts · 48 votes
9y
Originally posted by @Alexis Scott:

Steve Santacroce if I may ask, how did you find your handymen?
Craigslist, other property managers. It's really a crapshoot. Some investors have had luck going to home depot in the morning and poaching the contractors as they show up to buy materials for the jobs that day. In the end, you're going to swing and miss on 19 out of 20. The more you keep up on them, the quicker you can weed them out. And when you find a good contractor, pay them more than you should! In the long run you'll be better off. Good luck!
2 Reply
Alexis Scott
OP
Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 14 votes
9y
Shawn Ackerman I have not yet started my own LLC. Just gaining all the right knowledge first so I don't miss the basics.
0 Reply

Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.