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If you own any sort of property, be it residential or business related, you will need someone to manage it. The question you are probably asking is how professional management can help you?

So, what is property management? It’s the managing, or handling, of real estate property by someone other than the owner. Most often, it is handled by a management firm, that might handle more than one client’s real estate properties. Other styles include hiring someone to live on site and take care of tenants’ requests, as a building superintendent or other building manager – but this style of management has fallen out of favor in recent years.

It goes without saying that quality is a big issue with this service. A good management firm will act as a go-between for the real estate owner and the tenants, handling any questions and complaints that the tenants might have so that the owner is not forced to deal directly with them. This kind of service can include doing many different things, from collecting rent to hiring groundskeepers and repair people. They can keep an eye on repairs that need to be done, and suggest improvements on the property to the real estate owner.

In most states, those offering this service must be certified and licensed, most commonly as real estate brokers. This is especially true if the property managers (or someone in the the management team) is helping to negotiate leases, or collect rent on behalf of the property’s owner. In other states (such as Connecticut), there may be no licenses required for these tasks. Most property managers are still required to register with the state they work in.

Property managers can also be essential in keeping an eye on your property – making sure that no one is vandalizing your real estate, and taking care of problem tenants as well. The actions that manger may have to take can include eviction, as well as involving the authorities, tasks that a real estate investor may not want to have to do. They can also be used as arbitrators between tenants, when disputes arise that are not severe enough to involve the police or other authorities.

When done well, property management is the answer to a lot of issues that real estate investors might face. The management team can do the hands on work while the investors reap the profits.

Having to manage a number of properties will include many administrative tasks, including the maintenance of the property, looking after the building repairs and making sure the expenses are being paid. An owner who has tenants may want the service of a rental property management company to help assist. These companies will be able to provide a service that can include marketing the rental units, making sure they get the tenants and negotiating the leases and agreements. The management company of the rented out houses usually handles the collection of the rent and the complaints of the tenants. They also may be involved evicting tenants.

There are two types of property management companies, residential and commercial. What a commercial property manager does is look after the business of commercial properties that include things like the retail space, office buildings, or a storage facility. The residential property manager will cover the housing of rented properties, for example apartment buildings or family homes. Some countries will need the property manager to have a licensing especially when it comes to handling negotiating the lease agreements, the marketing of the property and the rent money.

When looking at seeking out a property management company they should look at their reputation and experience involved when hiring a company. The owner should have interviews with the potential candidates. They also need to ask for references and the company’s fee arrangements. A fee could be a percentage of the rent revenue, a typical flat fee can be better worth it in some cases. Making sure that the person is qualified will save any problems later when you realize that they are not.

In conclusion, looking at property management can save you a lot of time and stress if you have many properties to look after. They will deal with any rent that you may have the tenants and any other dealings with the rental property. The management company can be beneficial especially if you don’t live close to your properties, they will be able to oversee all the handling. Having a property management company behind you, can really save you a lot of time and effort when there are many properties involved and you know things will get done.

Stating the obvious is seldom an over-statement. It’s the thing right in front of us. We all know it’s there, we’re just not seeing it. Or worse, we see it and ignore its existence.

The most expensive space at any multifamily property is empty space. Pick a name; vacancy, un-occupied units, empty’s. By any name it is space available for lease that is not leased. An apartment is a perishable commodity. When a cruise ship leaves port for the week vacancy is set in stone for the entire cruise. In multifamily, we have a stationary asset but still multiple “cabins”. Every day of vacancy is a day of lost revenue that cannot be recouped.

Efficiency in leasing requires preparedness. To the best of your ability, all available units should be made ready, particularly assuming you have various floor plans, bedroom counts and square footage. This selection adds to marketability and choice for potential customers. Potential tenants want to see the specific unit they may rent (if at all possible) versus a like unit in another building.

Complacency is not an option. A proactive perspective is imperative. Well trained personnel are the front line defense to address vacancy and should be compensated accordingly. As the old saying goes its difficult to believe that military contracts should always go to the lowest bidder. Competency is key. We don’t want “Joe College” who graduated with a 2.5 GPA building missile systems given the opportunity to hire better qualified achievers. The same is true for leasing staff. Hire the right people with the right skill set to get the job done, not the least expensive person to hold a seat down. Train consistently. Compensate accordingly.

There are only so many hours in a day, operations are a constant, existing customers require attention. How do we focus on vacancy in the midst of the normal organized chaos of multifamily management? First, if this is the business you are in, then you already know eliminating vacancy is the fastest method for improving cash flow. That said, aside from maintaining current customers (by starting the renewal process for current tenants 45 to 60 days before lease expiration to minimize future vacancy) all eyes should be focused on that precious commodity spoiling at the end of the day- vacancy. After safety and servicing current customers there is no better use of management’s time.

Property Management includes a myriad of responsibilities. Fixating on performing every item perfectly for a small business and perhaps even more so for a big business can be overwhelming. More importantly, trying to perform all items without error or misstep is impossible. Instead, great property management is best accomplished by picking a few items and performing those items as nearly perfectly as possible while seeking productive innovation. With that in mind, the key is choosing the three items that you would like to define your company.

My short list of items to perform superbly are:

1. Great customer service and customer management.
2. Outstanding accounting and financial management.
3. Off the chart marketing and leasing.

These are broad areas that will tie the business together creating a tremendously effective organization.

Great customer service and customer management will assure high quality resident records, courteous treatment of prospects and residents, effective resident management from application to moveout and from billing to eviction if necessary.

Outstanding accounting and financial management assures accurate recording of every transaction, correct categorization of each item, effective accurate preparation of statements, strong cost management and cash controls, and the ability to provide high quality investor financial communication.

Off the chart marketing and leasing causes the manager to innovatively drive traffic to the property, to continually improve the selling to closed lease process, and to assure great follow up and communication with prospects and the market. In the end, meeting this objective will result in plenty of prospect, steady and strong leasing, and minimizing turnover.

The three items together (because of their mutually supporting requirements) will expand quality performance to effective work order management, strong capital planning processes, great capital renovation and improvement plans, satisfied customers who offer great referral traffic, and a very satisfied investor who can count on the business to provide profitability, minimzed cost, high quality services and facilities, and strong improving asset value.

As an owner or manager, you may choose different items to focus your management attention. However, if chosen correctly, the items will support one another and provide a clear vision to your investors, your employees, your contractors, and your residents. In effect, the shared common vision will lead the business to a total product that is greater than the sum of its parts. As described in the book, Good to Great, you will achieve the hedgehog effect that leads to steadily improving performance for profitability, customer satisfaction, asset protection, and cost management.