Finding maintenance people

Investor · Chicago area · Member since 2013 · 46 posts · 34 votes

Hi All,

Am getting ready to own some 40 rental units in Chicago, in a couple of south side locations. I'll be self-managing, and have both the time and pretty solid experience. There's just one problem (ok, probably more than one) which is finding a maintenance guy or appropriate small group. Back in Atlanta when I was younger and single, that was usually me. In an emergency it still might be, but that's not exactly a path to success. Plus, my wife understandably hates the idea, especially during Covid.

So question to you multifamily owners, especially those who self-manage: How did you find your maintenance solution?

If you're in Chicago, I'd love to know specific references to people or firms. And even if you're not in the area, what approach have you taken?

Thanks,
Allen

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Andrew Schutsky

Investor · Glen Mills, PA · Member since 2019 · 185 posts · 208 votes

100% referrals have always been the best source of maintenance/contractor work for us. I've found networking with brokers, PMs, and flippers to be lucrative in this area as well. Sometimes fellow investors will keep their handymen somewhat quiet to keep them to themselves - as you get to know them better they'll let you in on their "secret". :)

Of course having 75+ units in the same area will afford you to hire full time which make things much more efficient!

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Jingru Sui
Real Estate Agent · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2014 · 683 posts · 317 votes
5y
The company that i use to work for hired a really really good handyman who can fix a lot of stuff, kinda like jack of all trades. we hired him full time so he's on salary. (was doing short term rental and managing over 40 units in downtown ATL so there's a lot of wear and tear from so many turn overs) We don't get a of late night calls mostly can be fixed during work hour. end up saving us a lot of money on hiring different contractors.
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Jonathan KlemmBusiness Member
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Contractor · Chicago, IL · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 2k+ votes
5y
@Allen B. - For me when I got back to Chicago after traveling for work for a decade it was about expanding my network as quickly as possible. It is a little tougher now during COVID because I was at different meetup groups weekly and obviously bigger pockets is a wonderful resource.
If you PM me I can provide some good referrals of some handymen and outfits that might be able to help.
Just curious, did you just recently purchase a 40 unit portfolio? If so that's awesome and would love to hear more about it.
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John Warren
Real Estate Broker · 3412 S. Harlem Avenue Riverside, IL 60546 · Member since 2015 · 6k+ posts · 5k+ votes
5y
@Allen B. its all networking in my experience. The best maintenance guys don't go to Thumbtack or Home advisor. They work for a handful of good land lords so it is all word of mouth. I have a few good options for you and you should connect with @Ronan M. who has managed a lot of units on the south side for a while as well.
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Evan Polaski
Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2020 · 4k+ posts · 3k+ votes
5y
@Allen B., my first guy (although never at the scale of 40 units) was the uncle of a co-worker. He was the jack of all trades type, and at the time did good work at a very good price. He was reliable. That changed a couple years ago, and no longer use him.
At that point it became just calling and seeing who was available. I guess I "network" by calling several to get bids and hire out the work. After a few times of that, you start to get a stable of people you can call for most issues. And like most businesses, the more work you give them, the better their prices get and the more accommodating they become to your schedule.
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Andrew Schutsky
Investor · Glen Mills, PA · Member since 2019 · 185 posts · 208 votes
5y
100% referrals have always been the best source of maintenance/contractor work for us. I've found networking with brokers, PMs, and flippers to be lucrative in this area as well. Sometimes fellow investors will keep their handymen somewhat quiet to keep them to themselves - as you get to know them better they'll let you in on their "secret". :)
Of course having 75+ units in the same area will afford you to hire full time which make things much more efficient!
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Allen B.
OP
Investor · Chicago area · Member since 2013 · 46 posts · 34 votes
5y
Hi again, and thanks for your inputs! I had figured that this would ultimately be a networking issue, and also that not everyone will be ready to share their secrets :-) @John Warren, already had a good chat with you yesterday, and thanks again! @Jonathan Klemm, going to PM you about a couple of things. Short answer, though, I've got two buildings under contract totaling 40 units. Looking forward to closing. @Jingru Sui, @Andrew Schutsky definitely working toward the point where I can hire someone full-time. Although even then, until you're big enough to have two full-timers, there's always need for a backup.
Appreciate once again all of the help I've gotten to make this happen!
Cheers,
Allen
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Drew SygitBusiness Member
Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
5y
We’ve also learned that contractors usually fall into one of the following categories:
Type 1 (High Quality, High Price)
- They can do new construction, additions, full remodeling, but maintenance work is too small for them.
- Typically pay for advertising, have sales staff, separate bid preparers, inhouse designers, full office support.
- Equates to a lot of overhead, leading to markups of 50%+.
- Bids: Usually have a dedicated salesman that does their bids, so able to supply quality bids.
Comment: Usually have the highest prices & quality, and so these are the contractors you’d hire to work on your own home. Too expensive to work on rental properties.
Type 2 (High Quality, Average Price)
- They rarely do new construction (except for garages), focus on additions & remodeling, no maintenance work.
- Often online advertising, may have one-person sales/bid staff, outsources design, office support typically consists of secretary and bookkeeper.
- Equates to a decent amount of overhead, leading to markups of 35%+.
- Bids: May take a while to get a bid from them because they don’t have dedicated sales staff. Often depends on how busy they are.
Comment: Contractors to work on your own home, flips, high-end rental properties. Usually too expensive to work on average rental properties.
Type 3 (Average Quality, Average Price)
- May build an occasional garage or addition, typically focused on remodeling and maintenance work.
- No advertising, the contractor is the sales/bid staff, no design services, office support is typically wife/girlfriend/mother.
- Low overhead leads to markups of only 25%+.
- Bids: Difficult to get a professional-looking bid from them because they would rather be making money working, instead of spending their time doing bids for free.
Comment: Contractors that are perfect for medium/low-end flips & rental properties. Because they don’t advertise, difficult to find.
Type 4 (Low Quality, Low Price)
- Not able to do any new construction or additions, rarely licensed, focused on low-end remodeling & maintenance work.
- Just one or two-person operation with no support staff.
- Very low overhead, markups seem low, but they often end up higher due to issues they didn’t price.
- Bids: Almost impossible to get a reliable written bid from them because they don’t have the knowledge to prepare proper pricing. So, they usually only give verbal pricing – that often changes once they start.
Comment: Contractors to avoid as they are unreliable in every way possible, including showing up. 2-day jobs turn into 2-week jobs, or worse. Forget trying to get them to return and fix poor work. They always want to be paid in cash as soon as they are done. We cannot hire these types as owners & tenants will not be happy with timing or quality of work.
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