When is the right time to choose a property manager for a Perth investment property?

Perth property investors and landlords will be well aware of the benefits associated with property ownership.

Yet, they must take steps to maximise their potential opportunities for return. This includes taking care they are not overstretching themselves or trying to manage all their properties without having the relevant time or expertise.

They will certainly want to be financially fit as an investor and may need to bring in a professional property manager. Many people in their situation may have thought about engaging a property manager before but failed to do anything.

Other property investors and landlords may already be engaging a property management company but may be considering whether the manager they have appointed is adequately preserving their property’s capital value while maximising return on investment.

In either scenario, inaction may be costing them or having adverse consequences.

So when is the right time to take action and choose or switch to the right property management company for you, your circumstances, and your properties?

Read on to discover when.

 

Is now the right time to choose a property manager?

Here are some of the key situations which would signal to Perth property investors and landlords they may want to act.

1. When you have an investment property that is held in a Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF)

It is possible to use a self-managed super fund to buy property, but it requires a lot of effort and time if it is to be done properly. Above all, it’s crucial to conform to the rules. For example, they cannot rent the property to a relative or allow any person or entity related to the investor to live in it. It must be maintained in such a way to generate retirement benefits for the fund and be clearly treated as an investment property.

As they’ve got to focus on maximising their returns, they should certainly consider bringing in a professional property manager. The manager will be dedicated to the task and have the necessary experience and expertise to allow the investor to carry on with their everyday activities and not worry if they’re making the best use of their SMSF.

2. When you’re not getting good value from your existing property manager

If they currently have a property manager, are they getting good value for money? Clearly, the manager will need to charge for their services, but the investor will need to ensure that they get first-class service in return.

Key questions you’ll want to be asking include:

• Is the manager screening those tenants properly, evaluating their references and conducting adequate credit checks?
• Are they making sure that the property is well maintained
• Are they simply reactively trouble-shooting issues or taking a proactive approach?
• Are they qualifying their maintenance contractors/suppliers for value?
• How are they facilitating your compliance as a landlord and mitigating risk, is the leasing campaign focused backed by a marketing strategy and strict vetting process?
• Do they carry out regular safety checks to ensure that the investor is not exposed in the event of an incident?

If they are charging a monthly fee but not performing the work, it’s time to look elsewhere.

3. When you’re receiving poor communication from your existing property manager

Is the property manager making an effort to keep you as property investor or landlord abreast of any developments and giving advice when needed?

If you are you having to turn your time and attention to following up matters because you’ve been left wondering on the status of a lease renewal or property update, lack of communication from your property manager may be a key issue.

If a tenant is complaining of an issue, but you are blissfully unaware of any growing problem since you don’t hear from the property manager, there is breakdown in communication.  Any risk of losing a good tenant can potentially result in adversely affecting cashflow.

4. When properties are sitting on the market for too long

Clearly, there’s no point in having an investment property if there’s no money coming in. The investor or landlord must know that their property manager is being proactive when it comes to marketing and who will secure new tenants in advance of the current ones moving out.

If a property is sitting on the market for too long, the investor may be in danger of making a loss at the end of the year. It may be time to engage a new property manager who will make it a priority to fill any vacancy.

5. When an existing property manager isn’t managing tenant resolutions appropriately

It’s never a good idea to have an upset tenant, and if a property manager is not properly dealing with any disputes, the investor could be facing issues ahead.

A disgruntled tenant may decide that they want to move out ahead of time, leading to occupancy issues. Or, they may withhold rent if they feel that they are not being treated fairly.

In this situation, the investor needs to find a property manager who will always be reasonable and firm and immediately follow up with any issues.

6. If you are too time-poor to manage your own property

If someone is particularly busy and simply cannot afford the time to manage their property, they may be getting suboptimal returns. Or, they may fail to follow up to fix an existing maintenance issue, which could annoy a tenant and cause them to withhold their rent.

Problems could quickly snowball if they are trying to do everything themselves, so they should engage a professional property manager as soon as possible instead.

Keeping up to date with legislative and regulatory requirements is tremendously time consuming.

Unnecessary risk is introduced to property investment when an investor privately manages the property as they not be up to date with required and ever-evolving landlord compliance. Ensuring adequate insurance, when some landlord insurers wont insure private landlords, as well as keeping up with legislative and regulatory requirements could leave holes in tenancy agreements and expose landlords to a loss.

As an investment portfolio grows, it can become increasingly difficult to keep on top of everything. Remember, an investor must always comply with the relevant laws and carefully manage income and expenditure. They may struggle to perform all the relevant checks when taking on a new tenant while managing viewings and other time-consuming issues.

If all this is becoming too much of a burden, they may start to make mistakes or fail to maximise opportunities. When they bring in a property manager as soon as possible, the new team will quickly provide relief.

7. When you want your property investment to be managed as an asset and don’t want to form personal relationships with tenants

If they are the kind of person who likes to get on with everyone, they may start to develop a good rapport with their tenants. This is okay to a degree, but they may need to focus on their primary motivator. After all, they bought this property as an investment asset and don’t want to become too involved in its day-to-day management. This is a good reason for them to bring in a professional manager today to distance themselves and focus on other things.

For a professional property management firm, managing the property investment asset as well as engaging the tenants in a friendly manner is part of doing business and delivering customer service excellence.

 

6 Benefits you enjoy when switching to Perth’s leading property manager HERE Property

When a Perth property investor or landlord chooses Perth’s best property manager HERE, they can look forward to the following seven benefits:

1) You access the highest quality tenants.

Your tenants will have a verifiable and reliable screening process, so tenants are likely to pay on time.

2) You will have reduced legal risk.

We know how to resolve issues as they arise, dealing with tricky circumstances, necessary inspections and contract disputes.

3) Maximise your property’s occupancy.

A good property manager will ensure that vacancies are as short as possible through adequate preparation, pricing and marketing.

4) Optimise the returns on your investment.

Cash flow will benefit when rents are collected on time, and a good property manager will always be fair but very firm when dealing with late payments.

5) Maintenance and repair is handled.

A happy tenant is likely to stay around, but they’ll expect a top-quality maintenance service. A good property manager ensures that they have a list of licensed, insured and reliable contractors who will perform timely maintenance when needed.

6) Say goodbye to any strain or inconvenience.

When a specialist is at the helm, they’ll deal with unexpected emergencies late at night. The investor won’t need to worry about finding contractors when needed while going back and forth with a stressed tenant in the meantime. Further, the property manager will generate a lot more free time, and the investor won’t feel as if they have to be close to their properties in case there is an issue. They won’t have to worry about regular inspections either, so they can be free to live and work wherever they want to instead.

 

When is the right time to switch property managers?

If some of the problems mentioned above seem all-too-familiar, it is time to switch property managers. For many, the time to switch is now.

The sooner that action is taken, the sooner some of those issues can be dealt with, and the investor can get back to living a less stressful life. The process is not that difficult, does not have to be a hassle, and it is certainly possible to switch between property managers during the middle of a lease.

A new manager will ensure that there is no disruption to the rental income, and tenants will not be inconvenienced in any way. They won’t have to sign a new lease agreement but will only need to change the bank account details so they can pay rent to the new entity instead.

Remember, if you’re not happy with your current property manager, it’s highly likely your tenants are not happy either. They’ll be happy when you switch to a property manager with excellent customer service.

 

Get in touch with us today

If you feel that now is the time for you to change your property manager, get in touch with us to discuss your unique goals and circumstances.

We are dedicated to the cause and will ensure that you get the best return for your property investment through first-class and professional management.