You’re looking to select a new Property Manager for your Investment Property but don’t know where to start?
There is so much choice in the marketplace and knowing what questions to ask and how to choose will give you the confidence that you’re making the right decision? We have designed some questions to ask your prospective Property Manager to help you make the right choice:
- What are your vacancy rates? – your Property Manager should know what the percentage is and also how it compares to the rest of the market.
- What percentage of your tenants are in arrears and by how much? You want to be looking for a very low figure or even zero is best as this means that they have a good arrears control procedure.
- How much rent can I get and how do you research that? You should be provided with a Current Market Analysis which will show you comparable properties in the area to help you arrive at a rental amount.
- How do you find tenants? They will be willing to share with you their leasing process including their recommended marketing plan and how this has worked for others.
- What’s your application process? What is their step by step process to validating information and what checks do they do?
- What’s your tenant sign up procedure? How do they secure the new tenant and timeframes for signing the lease and making the bond payments?
- What insurance do I need? Pointing you in the right direction for the right advice on insurance to protect you such as landlord insurance (including rent loss), public liability, contents and building insurance?
- What do I need to do to get my property ready to rent out? The process including presentation, repairs, compliance, and cleaning?
- Can I charge my tenants for water and how do you handle this process? There is a lot of legislation and compliance that needs to be adhered to with regards to water, so seek the advice
- What is property compliance and what do I need to do about it? This can include things like Smoke Alarms, Blind Cords, Safety Switches and Building Safety (stairs, balconies, windows railings etc)
- How long have you been a property manager and what training have you done? Longevity in property management and training has a big impact.
- Do you have your own investment property? Understanding of the basic fundamentals of owning an Investment Property including profit/loss and returns does make a difference, personal experience in owning investment property does go a long way.
- What kind of Property Management system do you use in your office? Task-based (meaning different staff for different roles e.g maintenance, leasing etc) or Portfolio based (meaning one staff member for a group of properties that carries out all tasks) property management.
- How do you handle conflict resolution?
- Do you do regular training on new legislation, where/how do you do this?
- What skills does a property manager need?
- What do I need to do to my property to increase potential rent?
- Does your agency do sales and property management? Selecting an agency that only focuses on Property Management has big benefits.
- How long has the Property Manager been with your company? High turnover is not a good sign
- What geographic area does your company cover? A big area makes it hard to focus.
- Does your company advertise the address, why/why not, pros and cons?
- Does your agency give out keys for vacant properties? This should be a definite no for the security of your property.
- How often do you do viewings for rental properties? Do they do after hours also?
- How often do you do routine inspections? The more regular the better up to a maximum of 4 per year.
- Will you go to court for me if required? How will they represent you and what is their process and fees around this?
- Do you conduct mediation with the RTA? What is mediation, when will this be required are all things they should know?
- What is your arrears policy? When and how often are tenants contacted to reduce arrears?
- How often are you able to review rent?
- Do you pay invoices, rates, water, insurance etc. for me?
- How many properties does your manager look after? Looking for a lower amount is better, the higher the size of the portfolio the higher the risk to you.
- How often do you disperse rent?
- Do you recommend 6 or 12-month leases to start a new tenant? Longer leases can be better for your security, this can also reduce wear and tear and also costs to you.
- What is your pet policy? Do they have a pet agreement?
- What is your maintenance procedure? What is the turnaround and who are their tradespeople?
If you would like further information and assistance please contact us on 1800 373 262 or complete the form below and we will come back to you: