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Proven Strategies

Building an
effective property management team

Find out how to attract and keep top performers by implementing the right tools and tactics.

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Current property management hiring and retention challenges

A tight labor market, increased turnover, and shifting employee expectations have made it harder for property management businesses to attract and retain great talent. This, combined with an abundance of manual, tedious processes, has forced businesses to rethink the future of work.

Success

40% of employees’ time is spent on what they believe is “busy work.”*

challenge

52% of on-site employees cited a lack of opportunity for career growth as one of their greatest sources of dissatisfaction in their role.*

challenges

55% of property management companies want to free up their teams from labor-intensive processes.**

*Source: 2022 AppFolio Hiring and Retention Report **Source: 2023 AppFolio Benchmark Report

Why having a solid hiring and retention strategy matters

It’s important to regularly evaluate your hiring and retention strategy. If you don’t, you could lose talent or your top performers to the competition. Being short-staffed can negatively impact other aspects of your business — from customer service to productivity — and even cause employee dissatisfaction due to burnout.

“Finding the right talent is an ever-present challenge because it’s the most important decision we make — it impacts the customer experience and, of course, the employee experience, depending on who we bring onto the team.”

Angela Garrison
Executive Vice President, GSF Properties, Inc.
Read the Story

How having a highly engaged workforce positively impacts your business

Hire, develop, and engage a strong team

Download this free guide to see how you can help your teams work more effectively and efficiently.

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Want to improve employee retention and engagement? Follow these steps

Property management has one of the highest turnover rates across all industries at 33%, and given the demanding nature of the job, it’s not surprising. Follow these strategies to keep your team engaged and satisfied.

Streamline processes with technology

By putting automation and AI-powered tools to work, businesses can make the employee experience more meaningful and free teams to focus on high-value work and be more productive, rather than spending time on repetitive, manual tasks, like responding to maintenance requests and collecting rent payments.

streamline_processes

Offer comprehensive onboarding and training

Manual and inconsistent onboarding processes cause new team members to take longer to ramp up and have negative downstream effects on business operations. Configurable and guided workflows built into property management software make it easier for new employees to follow and learn since everything is standardized.

onboarding

Invest in your team

Show team members they can build a lasting and fulfilling career at your company by offering opportunities for career development and specialized training, along with scheduling bi-annual reviews with clearly outlined progression paths to help them work towards tangible goals.

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Put your people first

Employees choose to stay in or leave an organization for many reasons, and often it’s not just about salary. Integrating a strong sense of meaning into the daily routines of your team can have positive ripple effects on retention.

people_first

Want to attract ‘A’ players in property management? Try these strategies

Evaluate and ask for feedback

Look honestly at your current hiring strategy to see where it may fall short. Additionally, ask your current employees and new hires for feedback. By asking your employees for honest opinions and ideas, you can more closely align with their needs and wants. You can also use anonymous surveys to gather information in a safe space.

Capture interest with eye-catching job listings

Ensure your job descriptions are crystal clear and concise, including the role’s responsibilities, opportunities to grow, and salary range. Additionally, use both online and offline channels for recruitment, such as employee referrals.

Showcase your company’s culture

Company culture has become a priority for many job seekers in this market. By showing on your website, job listings, and social media platforms that your business values its employees and has a healthy company culture, you will stand out from competitors.

Highlight career growth opportunities

Up-and-coming property management and real estate professionals are looking for something more than a job. They want a career. If you can demonstrate that your team members will get opportunities to grow and develop in a role, you have a greater chance of attracting talent.

Give your team a better way to work

Learn how AppFolio Property Manager can streamline and automate day-to-day tasks and onboarding so your team can operate at the top of their game.

Get Started

“With AppFolio, it’s so easy to train new people, and because of this, we've grown rapidly. We went from two employees to almost 100 now. The system is user-intuitive and helps people effectively do their jobs, which makes our business easier.” 

mike_krause
Mike Krause
Partner, Atrium Management Company
Read the Full Story
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Frequently asked questions

How do you boost employee morale and motivation?

Boosting employee morale and motivation is an important part of running a successful property management company. You could use several strategies to help boost morale and motivation. You could set team goals, provide recognition for good work, and offer incentives for meeting goals. You could also provide regular breaks, automate tedious, manual tasks, offer team-building activities, and offer more flexibility with remote work or even flex time for employees to manage their schedules. Finally, you could provide clear and effective communication between team members and management to ensure everyone is on the same page.

What is team management?

Team management is the process of organizing, leading, and overseeing a group of individuals to work together to achieve a common goal. It involves setting expectations, delegating tasks, providing guidance, and assessing progress to ensure the team functions effectively. Team management also involves motivating and inspiring team members to reach their highest potential.

How do you improve employee retention and motivation?

You can improve employee retention and motivation by focusing on creating a positive work environment/company culture, offering competitive pay and benefits, providing career development opportunities, offering flexible work arrangements, and providing recognition and rewards for good work. Additionally, investing in regular performance reviews and effective communication between employees and management is important. Having a workplace culture that values employee contributions and encourages collaboration can also help to improve retention and motivation.

How do you improve team management?

Improving team management in a property management company requires a holistic approach. Ensure that team members have the necessary resources, including training and tools, to do their jobs effectively. This includes detailed onboarding and automated tools. Foster open communication and collaboration between team members by providing feedback and support. Create an environment that encourages team members to take ownership of their work and feel invested in the success of the team. Finally, recognize individual and team successes to motivate and reward team members.

How do you improve team management skills?

There are a few key ways to improve team management skills. You can set clear goals and expectations for the team by outlining what tasks need to be accomplished and by when. You can also provide regular feedback to team members to ensure they are meeting goals and expectations. You can create a collaborative environment where team members feel comfortable sharing ideas and providing feedback to each other. Lastly, you can create a system to recognize and reward team members for their efforts.

What is workflow automation?

Workflow automation is the process of automating various tasks within a workflow. This includes tasks that are completed manually, such as data entry or document processing, or tasks completed with the help of technology, such as machine learning or artificial intelligence. Automated workflows can help companies save time and money, as well as improve the accuracy of their processes.

How does workflow automation help with CRM?

Workflow automation helps customer relationship management, or CRM, by streamlining communication between team members and clients. It can automate mundane and repetitive tasks, such as sending out emails, creating tasks, and updating records in the CRM. This will allow the property management team to focus on more important tasks and provide better customer service.

What is project management?

Project management is the process of planning, organizing, and controlling the different elements of a project to ensure successful completion. It involves creating a timeline, setting goals, assigning tasks, determining resources, and tracking progress. It also involves managing risks, ensuring that the project is completed on time and within budget, and communicating with stakeholders.

Why is project management important?

Project management is an important part of any business because it helps you plan, organize, and coordinate resources to achieve specific goals. Project management can help you reduce costs, increase efficiency, and ensure projects are completed on time and within budget. It can also help you improve communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills and identify areas for improvement.

What is employee retention?

Employee retention refers to the ability of a company to keep its employees over time. It measures how successful a company is in retaining its employees and can be used to measure the effectiveness of a company’s HR policies, training initiatives, and other strategies used to retain talent. A high employee retention rate can lead to a more productive workplace and improved customer service.

How do you improve employee retention?

Employee retention can be improved by creating a positive work environment and providing fair compensation and benefits. Additionally, employers should invest in employee development and provide meaningful feedback and recognition. By creating a culture of transparency and open communication, businesses can help build trust and engagement between employees and management.

What is employee turnover?

Employee turnover refers to the rate at which employees leave an organization or team. It is usually measured by the number of employees who leave a team or organization in a given period. It is an important metric for any organization, as it can affect the overall performance of the team or organization.

What is the employee turnover rate in property management?

The average employee turnover rate for property management companies is around 33%, which is higher than most other industries, where the national average is only 25%. This rate can vary depending on the region, industry, and company size.

How do you calculate employee turnover?

Employee turnover is an important metric for measuring the effectiveness of a property management company. The calculation is based on the number of employees who leave the company during a given period divided by the average number of employees working during that period. For example, if a property management company had an average of 10 employees during a quarter and 3 employees left during that quarter, the employee turnover rate would be 30% (3 ÷ 10 = 0.3).

How do you reduce employee turnover?

Reducing employee turnover in a property management company requires an understanding of the underlying causes of turnover. Common factors contributing to employee turnover in the property management industry include low wages, a lack of job satisfaction, inadequate training, a lack of career development opportunities, and a lack of recognition. To reduce employee turnover, organizations should focus on understanding the root causes and implementing strategies to address them, such as providing competitive wages, job satisfaction, adequate training and technology tools, career development opportunities, and recognition for employee achievements.

How do you improve employee communication?

Improving employee communication in property management can be achieved by implementing several strategies, including creating a culture of openness and transparency; utilizing communication technologies such as email, text messaging, video conferencing, and teleconferencing; and providing employees ongoing training and development opportunities. Additionally, creating an environment of trust and respect can help to foster effective communication and collaboration between employees.

How do you reduce employee turnover?

The best way to fix employee turnover is to create a positive work environment where employees feel valued, supported, and motivated. Ensure that you offer competitive salaries, benefits, and opportunities for professional development and growth and that employees clearly understand their goals and expectations. Additionally, ensure that employees have access to adequate resources to help them succeed and receive recognition for their accomplishments.

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