Property Management: Tips for choosing a PM

• Best property managers are good with people, like people, are people and are wary of mankind, good people management is an asset

• PM sets the relationship tone with Tenants and are firm and fair when dealing with them, expectations are set and adhered to

• Marketing-are they where the good tenants are? Newspaper is questionable for city tenants, one of the best ways in a smaller centre

• Good judge of people to screen out ‘Bad Tenants’

• Good at finding the respectful long-term tenants that build equity

• What’s their reputation

• Focused on keeping your property rent ready(good curb appeal, clean, not run down, attentive to preventative maintenance)

• Creating and maintaining positive experience with tenant prospects

• Tenant referral program and incentives to get the best tenants to get you more good tenants “birds of a feather flock together”…most of the time

• Do they have a website? Do they carry listings on that website? How attractive are those listings as opposed to other listings websites? (ours has Virtual Tours when and where possible)

• Obviously licensed, RECA has insurance that protect landlords from PM bad behavior.

• Use good lawn and window signs, just a phone number on a sign is not as effective as number and website

• Newspapers are losing ground to on line publications that target smaller and smaller audiences, does your PM understand the niche your property is most attracted to and target market them?

• Enough staff to handle things?

• Vacancy levels vary with types of property

• Prospect lists-return a service call to tenant waiting list as places become available

• Find someone who doesn’t mess around with bad tenants

• Understand the Tenant is your asset, the property is the banks asset

• Does the PM help tenants who fall on hard times? Connect with community aid groups or aid groups that can and do provide emergency funds and get rent collected?

• Keep good tenant records, property records