What Does A Property Manager Actually Do?

If you own rental properties, then you will already know how challenging dealing with the day-to-day operations can become. Buying the property is just the start; renting it out and managing the rental process is a time-consuming, often confusing ordeal.

If you know other people who own rental properties, they have likely already suggested that you look into hiring a property manager. The natural question that arises is: what do property managers actually do?

In most scenarios, property manager workflows and responsibilities include:

• Locating quality tenants to fill vacant rental properties
• Creating positive relationships with tenants for long-term rentals
• Organizing the collection of rental payments due from tenants
• Assisting landlords with managing property administration
• Providing support in resolving disputes with tenants
• Arranging property maintenance check-ups and managing repairs

Property management, in essence, takes care of these essential day-to-day tasks. Each task that your property managers handle on your behalf is a task you would need to deal with alone. These tasks are imperative to the safe running and smooth operation of your portfolio.

Our services, then, resolve typical day-to-day issues that many property owners struggle to deal with alone. Not only does this free up your spare time, but it ensures there is a professional there to assist tenants. When they need reassurance or specific support, your property manager can provide that.

Is Hiring A Property Manager A Common Choice For Landlords?

Hiring a property manager is not uncommon; the industry is already worth $81.5 billion, per REsimpli. That figure alone should show you that outsourcing property management is a common choice. The industry is estimated to employ around 910,000 people, making property management a major employment sector.

Using property managers’ experience and day-to-day knowledge of these key areas, you can shorten your own workload whilst utilizing their expertise to benefit your property portfolio.

The Essential Daily Tasks Of A Property Management Company

Given that over 119 million Americans rent property, rental properties remain in high demand. With close to twenty-four and a half million landlords, though, making sure your real estate properties stand out is essential. With a property manager, that becomes easier.

How so? What does a property management firm like our team here at Utopia provide as services?

Marketing Your Rental Properties

Part of our day-to-day operations as your property manager includes building interest among potential tenants. To do this, we turn our advertising efforts toward bringing in as much attention as possible. We have property management positions specifically built around improving marketing. This helps to:

• Create interest in your rental properties with people across the state where you own property.
• Catch the eye of potential renters looking to move to your state from other parts of America.
• Developing listings across various platforms to build interest from near and far.
• Inform potential tenants about the features of the property and what they can expect moving in.
• Key details about the property, such as its size and the cost of rent per month.
• High-quality imagery  and, if required, video to show the property’s features.
• Arranging viewings and property showings to seal the deal with the best tenants.

Property owners need to ensure the highest level of visibility; otherwise, their property runs the risk of not gaining the level of interest it needs. With so many potential competitors, marketing is a key task of any property management company.

Finding The Best Tenants & Screening Tenants

With interest organically growing thanks to the above property marketing, the next step for a property manager is to find the best tenants. This means:

• Carrying out personal reviews of every tenant application to select the best tenants for your rental.
• Thorough background checks, including reviews of a tenant’s previous rental history.
• Reviews of personal details, such as financial and credit ratings & criminal background reviews.
• Reference checking with previous landlords and other associates, including employers.
• Risk management analysis to make sure any potential tenants pass our high standards.

Such detailed analysis plays a key role in making sure that your property manager only selects the right kind of tenant. With millions of eviction filings placed every year, it is our job at Utopia to find suitable tenants who pose the least risk possible of early evictions being a requirement.

Collecting Rent & Managing Finances

With tenants in place, the primary responsibility of any property manager becomes making sure that rent is paid on time every time. Recent data showed that around 14% of tenants incurred a late payment penalty from their landlord. As your property manager, we do everything possible to minimize those late payments, as well as:

• Using online payment systems to ensure that depositing rent is as easy as possible.
• Encouraging on-time payments to keep cash flow consistent for landlords.
• Arranging financial statements and financial reports monthly and yearly.
• Assisting landlords with managing their finances to get the best ROI.
• Advice and insight on how to improve property value moving forward.
• Accounting assistance to make year-end tax returns less confusing.

It is in the job title: a property manager is here to manage the success of your investment property portfolio. Whether you have one property or several properties, though, managing your finances is a challenge. We can offer the advice you need to make this complicated but essential task easier in the future.

Dealing With Tenant Evictions

While rental vacancies are often an expected part of property ownership, it is a primary objective for your property manager to keep a building occupied. When a tenant violates a lease, though, it is typically the manager’s responsibility to evict the tenant and find a suitable replacement.

As your property manager, we play a key role in moderating tenants and, if necessary, arranging their eviction. While we pride ourselves on high tenant retention rates and low vacancies, in the event that a tenant has to be evicted, we can help make sure the process is as painless as possible.

Arranging Maintenance Of Rental Properties

While property maintenance can be a confusing part of the rental process, the property must be kept in suitable condition. Otherwise, you can face all manner of legal issues regarding habitation clauses and fair housing regulations. Generally, the annual cost of property maintenance is around 1% of the cost of the property.

Your property manager plays a key role in dealing with the upkeep and maintenance of the property, including:

• Arranging property inspections to make sure the building is kept in suitable condition.
• Finding the best maintenance professionals (in-house or locally) to enact repairs.
• Preparing property maintenance projects, from minor touch-ups to major rebuilds.
• Restoring property functionality and keeping the building structurally sound.
• Offering recommendations for ways to modernise the property’s condition.
• Liaising with maintenance staff and tenants to ensure the job is done correctly.
• Keeping costs fair and ensuring property maintenance is within budget.

As your property manager, we can help you with arranging maintenance for one or several properties. Our experience in dealing with rental maintenance makes us ideal for this role.

We will oversee the selection of the best property maintenance staff. At the same time, we can contract in-house maintenance staff or find third-party professionals within the local community, who come highly recommended, to do the job.

Tenant Conflict Resolution and Customer Service Expertise

When a problem emerges that you are held responsible for by your tenant, your property manager will be a valued asset. A Utopia manager can step in to provide support in resolving conflicts with tenants. We always strive for mediation and a fair agreement before any potential litigation comes up.

Conflict resolution is a multifaceted process that changes depending on the situation and the parties. We use our 30+ years of experience to make informed decisions that will lead to more positive outcomes for both tenants and landlords.

Every situation is unique, so we use our experience and best judgment to find a responsible resolution.

Arranging Lease Agreements & Protecting Property Owners

Finally, as your property manager, we also take a prominent role in arranging lease agreements. A lease agreement is a binding document that provides both parties with the protections they need. Your lease agreement should include crucial information such as:

• The length of the tenancy: how long until there is a re-negotiation of the conditions?
• Who is responsible for maintaining the property and dealing with wear and tear?
• What kind of adjustments can be made to the property during the tenancy?
• When should rent be paid? Where and how will the rent be paid?
• What late payment penalties or break clause penalties exist?
• Are there any limits on, for example, pets, smoking, or noise?
• The process for dealing with disputes about the tenancy.

Of course, lease agreements are multifaceted documents that come with many challenges. This is a legally binding contract that an attorney should oversee.

As your property manager, we can use our experience to facilitate a suitable lease agreement that matches up with local requirements and state legislation. We can also recommend attorneys to speak to if you would like additional advice on the matter or if you wish to have your tenancy contract reviewed for any potential problems.

Is A Property Manager The Same As A Community Association Manager?

When looking for a responsible manager to take on your portfolio, you may come across two different options: a property manager and a community association manager. What’s the difference?

While there are some common areas of the job description covered by both roles, PMs and CAMs have different roles in your business. What’s the main difference, then?

• CAMs provide support for managing different property types, such as HOAs and condominiums.
• Meanwhile, property managers mostly remain focused on residential or commercial rental properties.
• While CAMs work with a board of directors, property managers mostly work with landlords.
• Both roles, though, oversee the development and success of the best rental conditions.

Depending on the type of property you own, you might require a property manager or a CAM. Contact the team at Utopia today, and we can give you knowledge on what kind of support you require.

Hiring Utopia Makes Managing Your Rental Property Easier

At Utopia, we are always here to help you. What do we bring to the table as your property management partner?

• With 30+ years of property management experience, our expert property managers have improved rental conditions and returns on investment for landlords time and time again.
• We understand the challenges involved in managing rental properties, from finding tenants to retaining them long-term. Our team focuses on tenant retention and long-term satisfaction.
• In-house support from our marketing and property maintenance teams ensures that properties get the support they need when tenants come forward with maintenance requests.
• Specialist advice and insight on everything from facilitating legally sound lease agreements to finding the right legal support should you need additional advice from an attorney.
• Decades of experience in managing residential properties, commercial properties, and multiple properties for the same tenant across many states, including California, Nevada, Oregon & Washington.
• Assistance in creating the best rental conditions for your investment properties so they have the chance to provide the best long-term ROI.

With our experience, we make sure everything your portfolio needs to shine is taken into account. Thanks to years of experience in turning around vacant units, improving rent collection processes, handling lease renewals, creating financial repairs, and allaying tenant concerns, we make the perfect partner for any landlord struggling to do it all on their own.

Call us today for an insight into how we can make real estate management easier than ever.