Women Invest in Real Estate WIIRE 009: Don't Make These 5 Property Management Mistakes with Amelia & Grace
Hi everyone, welcome back to the WIIRE podcast! In this week’s episode of the Women Invest In Real Estate podcast we’re going to talk about the five property management mistakes that you should not make. We’ve each learned some of these the hard way and want to help you avoid them at all costs too!
First and foremost, a reminder…Do as we SAY, not as we DO!
5 Property Management Mistakes
1. Not using a property management software!
Yes, they cost money but hear us out. This investment will not only save you time and energy but will streamline your processes, tenfold. We love TenantCloud and highly recommend checking it out. There are a few key things a property management software should do for your business:
- Allow you to collect deposits, rental payments, fees, etc.
- Submit maintenance requests
- Sign rental agreements/leases
- Communicate with clients
- Bookkeeping (you’ll thank us come tax season!)
2. Not setting (and sticking to) regular business hours
What that means is don't train your tenants to think that you will reply instantly on Saturday and Sunday, or even instantly at all. We are huge proponents of setting business hours so our tenants know when they can reach us and what our rough turnaround for requests is, aside from emergency situations of course.
What does this look like? If you are on your computer at 7:30pm on a Sunday evening and you see a question come in (not an emergency), let it sit until Monday. Then on Monday, respond by letting them know you just received their request from the weekend and add the rest of the response to their request.
Unless you want property management to be an around-the-clock business, set your business hours, and stick to them. (There will be situations that are clearly emergencies or more urgent and this does not apply to those.)
3. Failing to properly onboard a tenant
Onboarding tenants is definitely more work on the front end of a move-in, but it is so beneficial in the long run. Setting ground rules and training your tenants on expectations from the start is going to help save you a lot of headaches down the road. After they sign the lease, provide them with a simple welcome packet. This could include:
- Instructions on submitting maintenance requests
- How to setup utilities (bonus points for adding websites or phone numbers)
- Expectations for property/community
You should also include a move-in checklist where the tenant goes through the property in the first few days, notes anything that is broken/needs repairing/is damaged then turns it in so they are not held responsible for those upon move-out.
4. Not having an Estoppel Agreement in place for inherited tenants.
An estoppel agreement is a fancy way to describe a document that reiterates the terms of a lease for an inherited tenant. It includes anything that might be a verbal agreement between the tenant and the current landlord. With estoppel agreements, we also ask for all outstanding maintenance requests to ensure there are fewer surprises upon purchase of the property.
Key components of an estoppel agreement are:
- How much their deposit was
- What they pay in rent and any fees each month
- Who is responsible for the utilities
- Who lives at the residence
- Any verbal agreements in place between landlord and tenant
- Lease length
5. Last but certainly not least is doing quarterly, biannual, or annual walkthroughs of your units.
This is so important because it gives you a chance to get into your units and make sure they are being properly cared for but also allows you to look at general maintenance that needs done to keep the property in top shape and not degrade over time (looking at faucets for water leaks, checking for mold, pests, etc.). It will allow you to stay aware of any issues that may arise or what to expect when a tenant moves out and how much work you could expect to have to turn that unit over.
Avoiding these 5 things is simply about being a proactive landlord, rather than a reactive landlord. We too are guilty of (likely) all of these, and like everything in business, there is always room for improvement.
See you next week!
Resources:
- Check out TenantCloud