When Do I Hire a Property Manager?

If you’re a landlord, you’ve probably had months where the endless tasks, unexpected hiccups, and looming budget questions seem overwhelming. During these moments, you’d like nothing better than to hand the details over to an expert. But, if you only own a few properties, you may be wondering when to pull the trigger and hire a property manager rather than just doing it yourself. There are several factors to consider before partnering with an expert to take the burden off your shoulders.

Standing Out in the Market

Professionalism is key when attracting and keeping quality tenants. But, the effort and expertise required for advertising, screening tenants, and maintaining a business relationship with renters can be daunting.

Advertising: There are many different websites available to list rental properties. A property manager knows which ones attract the clients best suited for your property. They can also showcase it with professional pictures and descriptions.

Screening Tenants: A good tenant makes life easier for everyone. A screening process that includes credit, background, and employment checks helps pinpoint a quality tenant for your property. Great tenants are desirable to maintain your long-term investment in your property.

Business Relationships: The tenant-landlord relationship is a business one. However, it can be easy for landlords with just a couple of properties to let things slide into a more personal one. While this may turn into a quality friendship, it’s just as likely to prove detrimental when business issues arise. These issues could include rental rates, due dates, property care, and lease agreements. A professional company allows managers to approach each interaction without bias or judgment.

Understanding the Law

The laws surrounding tenant rights and property owner rights continue to fluctuate. Consequently, it can be easy for DIY managers to miss a crucial detail between federal, state, and city laws. If the idea of understanding the Fair Housing Act, Oregon specific landlord-tenant laws like the recent lifting of the eviction freeze, or building codes within the city of Portland seems overwhelming, working with a property management firm may pay for itself just with this service and expertise.

Fair Housing Program: The fair housing program carrier specific requirements. It also carries the potential for financial assistance in the form of grants, low-interest loans, or tax credits. Understanding the benefits and complexities of working within this program often requires an expert’s guidance. 

Evictions and Tenant Rights: The focus on protecting tenants from predatory rental practices has increased the number of laws currently in place. In turn, this has increased the complexity of navigating a system to evict a tenant. That’s why it’s crucial for landlords to know the laws and the steps required to protect themselves.

Reduce the Stress Load

Landlords don’t often find themselves with a lot of free time. Instead, they’re juggling daily requests from tenants, planning and responding to needed property upkeep, and monitoring the ever-changing laws. Additionally, most landlords are also working their “regular” job! It’s a lot to handle. If you’re feeling overwhelmed with all of the details, a property management company can help reduce the stress.

Tenant Requests: Having one number to call for all tenant questions and requests is a bonus for tenants and landlords. When you hire a property manager, you won’t have to track down different vendors to address different issues. That’s because they’ll have existing relationships with select trusted partners. In addition, a larger company can invest in building the online infrastructure to automate rental payments, maintenance requests, document signing and storage, and even transferring money into the landlord’s account.

Property Maintenance: Staying on top of building and landscape maintenance can be the difference in planned expenses within the budget and emergency repairs that can break the bank. An established schedule for maintenance, repairs, and replacement builds confidence with the tenant and landlord that safety and functionality are priorities.

Peace of Mind: Knowing that someone trustworthy is keeping track of the details brings peace of mind and some well-deserved free time. When you hire a property manager, you can rest easy knowing that they’re taking care of things. Use that extra time to rest, relax, and look for your next investment opportunity.

Partner With the Experts

Rent Portland Homes by Darla Andrew is one of the fastest growing and highest reviewed property management companies in the Portland metro area. We are passionate about finding the right tenant for each property with our exclusive marketing system and providing full- service support to our landlords and tenants. Partnering with experts can help you shoulder the burden of wading through the details, lessen your stress levels, and increase the value of your properties. Call or text Darla Andrew today at 503.515.3170 to learn more about how we provide the support you need to confidently enjoy the rental process.