Did I handle this right? PMs not answering management questions

[Shafi Noss]

Hi everyone,

I was doing some preliminary interviews of multifamily PMs in Tampa and I ran into a snag I'd like to get people's opinion on.

I called the management company and told them I was an out of state investor with a few questions. I asked what their portfolio composition was, and she said a little bit of everything, and maybe 15 or so MF and commercial properties. I asked if she could send a specific number of multifamilies maybe in an email after the call. She said she wasn't comfortable doing that since she didn't know who I was or if I was competition.

That struck me as a little strange. As an investor I want to know the experience level of a management company I work with. But it was my first call, maybe I'm missing something. Is that question outside of industry norms, any thoughts on how to have handled it?

[Josh Brook]

@Shafi Noss, it is a little odd that she wouldn't answer your question. Not sure how a competitor could use the number of units to their advantage.

On the other hand, the number of units under management is not the best way to gauge a company's level of experience. Look at their processes, talk with their tenants. That will tell you a lot more than how big/small they are.