Greetings. I have a single family home that I want to rent. Using a PM to manage the property isnt preferred (because I'll only break even, literally). My plan was to just use a PM to find a tenant (and they'll take the 1st months rent as payment). Im uncertain if I should use the PM for this or search for a tenant myself? I literally wouldnt know where to start.
Real Estate Broker · 3412 S. Harlem Avenue Riverside, IL 60546 · Member since 2015 · 6k+ posts · 5k+ votes
6y
@Derek Andrews if you are going to self manage then you absolutely should place the tenant yourself. I still manage 32 doors out of 58 here in the Berwyn and Cicero area, and I can tell you that the LAST piece I will give up is leasing. If you get a great tenant, it solves 90% of your problems in this business.
Rental Property Investor · Orangevale, CA · Member since 2015 · 36 posts · 19 votes
6y
I took over all PM activities at my rentals last year (after having them managed for 5 years).The reason I never considered doing it myself was because of my job. The communication between PM, Tenant and myself was terrible. I literally bought "The Book on Managing Rental Properties", both my wife and I read it. Adopted the concepts and the rental property forms (available on this site) to our needs, lit up an account on Rentometer (to figure out what to ask for rent) and Cozy (does the screening once you find a prospective tenant and handles rent payments) and we have been doing it ever since with zero problems. I have a much better understanding of my properties maintenance needs and the communication is much better. I list them on Cozy, Zillow and Zumper (because Zumper listings are also listed on Facebook Marketplace) and have almost too many leads to follow up with. I never need to list anywhere else (in my market). You do have to be comfortable working directly with tenants, doing showings and working out maintenance issues but, it's much better than it was.
I also use a google forms web form interface to a spreadsheet to collect preliminary information for 1st level pre-screening and that works great.
Real Estate Consultant · OH · Member since 2018 · 24 posts · 27 votes
6y
I have to say... communication is one of the many downfalls of PM companies. Even with all these revolutionary software systems and technology designed to make communication easy - many fail.
A well-rounded property owner should have minimal issue managing their own assets IF the systems are set up properly. With the Google Suite and relatively cheap (many free) portfolio management softwares, self-management has been a lot more attainable.
I offer all perspective clients PM consultation or referrals all the time. For me, we don't take on every client I get on the phone with. So having a baseline communications of PM processes and the status of the market is crucial for the owners to make educated decisions in this regard. I would much rather an owner make a decision to self-manage, knowing they can call me or my team if they need help -- then for them to attempt to manage themselves and lose thousands in capital.
So to answer your question, if you have "a guy" in the PM field that you can bounce ideas off of, absolutely go for self-management if you think that is what is best. We always make sure the owner can afford PM services. Some like the idea and can't really afford the 8-10% monthly.
If you need any tips, absolutely feel free to connect!
Real Estate Agent · Cleveland OH · Member since 2015 · 213 posts · 275 votes
6y
I am a real estate agent and work in the property management group at our brokerage. I will not even list our rentals on the MLS. It is so critically important to pick the right tenant I will not allow another agent place a tenant to obtain a quick commission.
Rental Property Investor · Ewing, NJ · Member since 2018 · 23 posts · 15 votes
6y
Gary Pilkington can u explain more or share the “google forms web form interface to a spreadsheet to collect preliminary information for 1st level pre-screening “ ... I have 5 units and I manage 3 other units for my sisters triplex ... I feel as though it is very doable and u get a better understanding of the business and people/tenants... I plan to continue to set manage ... The right tenants makes it so much easier.
Rental Property Investor · Orangevale, CA · Member since 2015 · 36 posts · 19 votes
6y
Sure. A google email account includes lots of powerful tools. My listings include our basic criteria for the property. When they inquire about the property, I send an email asking them to fill out the form online with a link (that looks like this
https://forms.gle/1sBzWVdFfJaE... The form is created with google forms, is linked to a google sheets spreadsheet and is shared with google drive (This may sound pretty technical but, it is really easy to set up and use). The data is collected on a sheet that includes the time and date stamp so you know the order of the responses. I like to keep it all online a this stage as, the management and payment collection is all online and I want them to feel comfortable with the process. Once I have a set of potential tenants that seem to match criteria, i reach out to schedule a showing. I have not had to do this during this current situation so, that part will need to be changed. I hope this helps.
Thanks for reaching out Christopher! You mention a point that I agree with. If the property was paid off I probably wouldnt worry about the 10% monthly.
Wow, all of you men and women are a TREMENDOUS help!
Thanks again for offering a wealth of advice! Just waiting for the washer and dryer to get delivered and then I'll be off to the races (hopefully)! If you ever write that book, I'll be first in line!
Investor · Muskegon, MI · Member since 2017 · 20 posts · 11 votes
6y
Speaking as a former owner of a property management company, who sold the company to a larger property management company. The transition from being the manager to being a customer whose portfolio is now managed by someone else has been an interesting journey in learning how to let go and watch things happen. My company was a quarter the size of the company that took over my book of business. So they have different procedures and policies that I had to adjust to. I communicate frequently with their bookkeeper about my payables and balances, they handle all the city inspections and schedule, they handle the day to day maintenance , they handle all the rent collections very well.
it's been a year now, since then the freedom has allowed me to double my personal portfolio, and winter in Florida instead of Michigan. I do assist with filling up my vacancies, which I enjoy doing. I taught my daughter years ago not to self manage anything, pay the fee and move on to freedom faster. Don't spend your time on MWA's (minimum wage activities) spend your time on RPA's, (revenue producing activities). I hope this has been of value to you all.