Property Managers

Don't Be A Do-It-Yourself Landlord

Property Managers are the members of your team that save you from fixing toilets and collecting rents so you can spend your valuable time buying more property.

I have a non-negotiable rule with all my properties that unless the property can "cash flow" with one, then I won't buy it! Period!

It is not worth it to me to have to deal with the day to day issues that can come up when the only number your tenants have for problems is yours.

And I certainly don't want to be stuck following up with tenants who haven't paid their rent on time - I just want to collect the check.

So how do you find a good property manager? The same way you find most people on your team - usually by a referral from another team member in the target market you're investing in.

But if you can't get a good referral, then an excellent site to visit to find one is:

www.irem.org

Once there, try to find a manager with the following designations:

1. CPM - Certified Property Manager

2. ARM - Acredited Residential Manager

These individuals and/or companies have gone through extensive training to allow them to use these credentials, and proves they are serious about their profession. In addition, they have ethical obligations to uphold in order to use the designations, which gives property owners a sense of comfort.Most management companies generally charge 10% of the gross collected rents (which can vary by area), and can perform a range of services from basic tenant placement to repair and maintenance services, as well as monthly tracking statements.

One thing I never let my management company handle, however, is pay the mortgage on any of my properties. I always set up an auto payment plan from the appropriate checking account to make sure all of my mortgages are paid on time every month. That way, if for any reason they had failed to do so, I don't ruin my credit or risk losing a property.

As you can see, having an Excellent PM is crucial to the success of your real estate portfolio and your ability to spend time on the profitable matters in your business.