How Do You Find a Good Property Manager in Ft Wayne
Your mentor told you that you need a property manager for your investment property. How do you find a good property manager in Ft Wayne?
Erin Eberlin, Landlords & Property Investments Expert, answers the question with six tips.
How do you find a good property manager in Ft Wayne?
- Ask for referrals to property managers. Talk to real estate agents and other property owners in your area. Find out what they liked and where there were problems.
- Do an online search for property management companies. Websites like T-Rex Globaland AllPropertyManagement allow you to plug in the size of your property and your location and they will generate a list of property management companies in your area.
- Check out the actual properties they manage. Do they look like something you would be proud to have them manage? Talk to the tenants. Are they happy? Have their complaints been addressed?
- Interview several property managers/management companies so you can find the one you are most comfortable entrusting your property.
- Check Their License and Certification. You should check with your state’s Real Estate Commissionto see if their brokerage license is active. Has the company or manager been certified by a trade organization such as the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM), National Apartment Association (NAA), National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM) and the Community Associations Institute (CAI). These organizations offer certification after completion of a rigorous training program.
- Examine the management agreement. The management agreement should clearly define the responsibilities of the property managerand that of the property owner.
What does a property manager do?
The recent article in Inman cites five main things special to a property manager:
- Finds the right tenant. The cost of choosing the wrong tenant is steep — in terms of time, money and, in some cases, legal difficulties. Finding and placing a qualified tenant demands both diligence and knowledge. A qualified tenant is a tenant who passes a background and credit verification check as well as receiving a good reference from current and past landlords and employers. Finding a qualified tenant also involves setting a rental price, and advertising.
- A property manager creates a good lease. After successfully qualifying the tenant’s application, it’ll be the property manager’s responsibility to draw up a lease that is both fully compliant with the law and 100 percent enforceable.
- A property manager fixes things that break. If something breaks, leaks, bursts or wears out — it’ll be the property manager’s responsibility to determine the cause of the problem and get it fixed.
- He/she collects rent and handles evictions. In the event the tenant stops paying rent, the property manager will attempt to collect it by sending written correspondence and making phone calls. If the collection efforts fail, the property manager will determine that it’s time to evict. The property manager will have to send a legal notice instructing the tenants to pay or vacate the premises. After that, it’ll be time to file a lawsuit in court.
- He/she keeps track of income and expenses. Finally, there’s the task of accounting. Tracking the income and expenses for a rental property isn’t just a good financial habit — it’s the law.
What does a property manager cost?
The average property manager charges somewhere between 50% and 100% of the first month’s rent as a finder’s fee and then 8 to 10% of the monthly rent. A renewal of an existing tenant would not generate a finder’s fee.
Above all, a great property manager enables you to stay on the right side of the law.
How do you find a good property manager in Ft Wayne? That’s how!
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