Suppose you’ve made the decision to hire property management–congratulations! You’ve taken an important step toward work-life balance as a landlord while accessing the ability to grow your property investment business because of the help we can offer.
However, just deciding to hire a property manager is not quite enough: you have to find a great one who will meet your needs! While you will always be able to trust your instincts on a variety of fronts when it comes to selecting who to do business with, here are some particular areas in which to focus when selecting this important partnership. 
Start with the office: is it tidy, organized, and well-run? You can see whether the team seems to function well and mesh together or are at odds with each other even in a short meeting to learn more about the company. If they all seem well-trained and able to find what they need to do their jobs, that speaks highly to the quality of the company.
You don’t have to visit their office to note whether or not they are professional. What about their marketing materials? Consider whether they have thorough, easy-to-read, polished documents that they can share about their own business and the properties they manage. This kind of attention to detail helps you feel that they’ll put their best foot forward with your own marketing materials if you sign up with them.
Note any distinction between their services and information on their websites and what they tell you on the phone or in person. Discrepancies can mean that they don’t update their website very often, and if the website itself doesn’t look professional and modern, they may be neglecting it somewhat. That isn’t always a dealbreaker, but a modern website that contains accurate information should be a high priority: their site is a major hub for your potential and current renters.
Beyond these elements, you’ll want to talk to another landlord or two who work with this property management company—you may only want to do this for the property management company you are most interested in, at first, since it can be a little time consuming, but a fellow property owner will be able to give you reference information you can’t get elsewhere. If they can 100% vouch for their property management team, you can feel confident moving forward.
Note the Professionalism and Prize It!
The attention to detail and care that a property management company puts into their outward appearance is a good metric you can use to evaluate how they are likely to treat you and your future renters. They earn your respect by taking care of the small details and always being on top of the challenges of managing properties, after all.
Start with the office: is it tidy, organized, and well-run? You can see whether the team seems to function well and mesh together or are at odds with each other even in a short meeting to learn more about the company. If they all seem well-trained and able to find what they need to do their jobs, that speaks highly to the quality of the company.
You don’t have to visit their office to note whether or not they are professional. What about their marketing materials? Consider whether they have thorough, easy-to-read, polished documents that they can share about their own business and the properties they manage. This kind of attention to detail helps you feel that they’ll put their best foot forward with your own marketing materials if you sign up with them.
Note any distinction between their services and information on their websites and what they tell you on the phone or in person. Discrepancies can mean that they don’t update their website very often, and if the website itself doesn’t look professional and modern, they may be neglecting it somewhat. That isn’t always a dealbreaker, but a modern website that contains accurate information should be a high priority: their site is a major hub for your potential and current renters.
What Do References Say?