Published on November 2nd, 2012
By Aimee Miller
Property managers have a number of major responsibilities, but the ultimate goal is to maintain a property that generates profits for the property owners. Of course, this means making cost-effective choices, reducing vacancies, and functioning in a manner that is generally efficient. There are some specific mistakes that all property managers should avoid:
- Hiring Contractors That Don’t Have The Skills, Or Trying To Do Complicated DIY Tasks
When someone that is unskilled tries to complete a maintenance task, that can ultimately end up costing more money. You may think that by hiring a general laborer, or simply by following instructions you take off the Internet to do it yourself, that you’ll save money. It may appear that way on paper before the maintenance starts, but wait until other items are broken and have to repurchased in the process. Or worst of all, you have to hire someone else to come in and clean up the mess made by you or your general laborer. - Putting Off Serious Maintenance
Even maintenance items that aren’t hazardous to residents should be dealt with as soon as possible. Over time, the condition of something can continue to decline, and the repair may become much more significant and costly. - Failing To Research The Typical Costs Associated With Hiring Contractors
You want to find consistent contractors that you can use for your property’s maintenance. However, you do always want to pay a reasonable price, so make sure that you do your research. - Failing To Keep Appropriate Records
Without properly tracking for tax purposes, you or the property owner could end up misfiling or paying the wrong amount. You could ultimately end up with a penalty to pay.
Melanie
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Good list. I can personally vouch for number 3 as I frequently encounter tenants calling to report issues that were made worse by delayed repair. Not only do the issues become costlier, but they impact tenant quality of life and jeopardize your reputation.
Aimee Miller
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Yes – prompt (and good!) repair is so important. Another important way to streamline and improve the maintenance process is to let your residents submit maintenance requests online.