The Top 5 Mistakes Property Management Companies Make
Choosing an inexperienced
PM company will cost you.
Thousands of people become property managers every year.
Unfortunately several of them don't have the knowledge or experience to help but commit certain mistakes that can cost their clients valuable time, energy and money.
A variety of issues can occur, ones that create financial losses, dampen relationships, and lead to lost opportunity. These are added to the normal issues that tend to arise with tenants, such as property damage, failure to pay rent, abuse of utilities, etc.
And if your PM isn't aware of or tracking these mistakes and errors, they’ll keep making them every year.
In this post we're going to discuss the top 5 mistakes PM companies tend to make.
1. Bad marketing
Regardless of how nice the property is, you still need to market it properly if you want it to get noticed. There are dozens of listings vying for attention, so you are strongly advised to educate yourself on the principles of a successful property listing. Make sure to come up with a catchy title that highlights your property’s advantages, think of a property description, provide accurate property details, and remember to add some quality pictures.
2. Neglecting credit reports and background checks
People are not always as they seem in an initial meeting. Even the most easy-going and friendly applicants will not necessarily make the best tenants. A good PM will take the time and effort to perform a thorough tenant screening, making sure the prospective tenant is a financially liable person, who will pay rent on time and keep the property clean. A bad PM will accept tenants that they have a good feeling about even though they have bad credit.
3. Neglecting maintenance issues
As a landlord, PMs have a legal and ethical responsibility to provide tenants with comfortable and secure living conditions. When PMs fail to deliver this responsibility, their relationships with their clients and tenants diminish quickly.
4. Starting the eviction process too late
A property manager holds the right to initiate a tenants’ eviction if they fail to come up with do’s and don’ts mentioned in their rental agreement. While it might be too impulsive to ask them to leave over one small issue, it is also advisable to document every violation and give the tenant a written or electronic copy of it. It’s ok to start the eviction process if tenant consistently fails to pay rent on time, makes too much noise, causes damage to a property, or doesn't comply with any other rules in the lease.
5. Violating tenants’ rights to privacy
If it is rented out, it is not entirely yours. Keep this in mind and respect your tenants’ right to privacy. As a landlord, you need to know that in nearly all cases you need to send your tenants a prior notice before entering the property. The regulations differ from state to state, but at an average, it needs to be done at least 24-48 hours prior a scheduled visit. What’s more, some states allow visits only during the ordinary business hours. These rules, however, do not apply to the cases of emergency such as a fire or a flood.
We can help you make this decision.
At Owl Key Property Management, our experienced team handles every aspect of your rental business for a low monthly fee.
In addition, our professional marketing strategies will help us rent your home in an average of fewer than 30 days.
A thorough applicant screening process allows us to boast a less than 1% eviction rate. So, if you are looking for a reliable local PM group give us a call today to learn more.