Should You Hire a Rent Management Company
Whether you own just one property, a couple, or have several properties that you rent out across various locations, you know that the responsibilities of being a landlord never end. Not only are you responsible for keeping up with the maintenance on the property, but you’ve got the added job of keeping in touch with tenants, making sure rents are collected on time, facilitating with tenants with rent is late (and in the unfortunate rare event of eviction, dealing with the courts, local police, etc), as well as taking the time to show prospective properties, choose new tenants, collect deposits, placing ads in local papers, and so on. It can be a full time job, depending on how many properties you own. Being a landlord can be quite lucrative, but if you’re a good landlord who does right by your tenants (which we hope you are), you know that often the amount of work involved can make it quite stressful and time consuming.
Many landlords choose to use rent management companies for this reason. Rent management companies can handle all the various business aspects of being a landlord for you, so you don’t have to. Below, we’ve listed some of the reasons that landlords of all types like to employ a rent management company, and why one might be the right choice for you.
Rent, Deposits, and other Fees
As a landlord, it can be hard to keep up with collecting rent every month, as well as keeping track of deposits, both incoming and outgoing. Keeping a ledger with accurate accounts, depositing checks, writing checks…not to mention actually contacting your tenants to collect in the event that they’re late on payments or have forgotten. Sometimes tenants want to make partial payments, and ask for an extension. Even for the most laid back of landlords, this can be hard to keep up with.
A rental management company will handle all of this for you and more. They’ll deal with collecting rent, direct deposits and checks, and you’ll be Guaranteed Rent. If you’re the type of landlord who likes to work with your tenants in times of hardship, you can convey this to the rent management company who will act on your behalf. You’re still very much in charge; they’re just handling the day to day financial aspects for you.
Maintenance and More
As a landlord, it is absolutely your responsibility to keep your homes liveable, comfortable, safe and sanitary at all times. In the event that something breaks, you must fix it (this includes things like appliances, windows, lights and smaller issues to larger ones like HVAC, hot water heaters and plumbing issues. You’re also on the line for damages done through weather events, pest control, and structural damage.
A rent management company will handle these issues for you, acting as a liaison between you, the tenant and the repair company. They’ll hire the most cost-effective repair people to fix any issues and make payments on your behalf so you don’t have to worry about day to day maintenance.
Acquiring New Tenants
Rent management companies do all the advertising, showing of homes, processing of applications and handling of deposits that come with acquiring new tenants. This is hugely time consuming for landlords so you’ll be very grateful that the rent management company is taking care of it for you.
Rent management companies also handle the reverse – any tenants that move out, or must be evicted, will be handled by the company. They’ll deal with any repairs or cleaning costs associated and deal with the former tenant when it comes to whether or not they get their deposit back.
Being the “Bad Guy”
Many landlords love their tenants and hate having to be “the bad guy” when it comes to collecting late rent, complaining about cleanliness/damage, or in rare cases, having to evict or ask a tenant to leave. It is a huge source of stress for any landlord. Luckily, the rent management company is happy to do all of these unsavory tasks for you, so you don’t have to deal with the stress. Rent management companies are usually more in the know about things like renter’s rights as well as your obligations as a landlord, too. They’ll always act in your best interests while adhering to the law and being fair and legal every step of the way.
These are just a few reasons that a rent management company is a great idea, especially if you own more than one rental property. They’ll happily juggle the responsibilities of managing each of your properties, collecting rents, dealing with maintenance, acquiring new tenants and acting as your spokesperson when it comes to dealing with your tenants. You can sit back and enjoy the perks of being a landlord without it having to be a full time job.