Rental Licenses and Property Management

[Ashley LaVigne]

We have our first two investment properties under contract in Lansing, MI. Both properties have inherited tenants and we have identified a PM that we are going to use. One of the requirements of the PM is that the rental licenses have to be in place before they will engage their services. Is this common practice? We are investing from a distance and will be pursuing the rental licenses immediately, but is it general practice to not have a PM engage before the license is transferred to our names? We would rather not have to self manage for the time it takes for the license transfer given our distance from the properties, as that could take two to four months. Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks!  

[Matt Bishop]

@Ashley LaVigne, my Property Manager handles all the permits and registrations and inspections and pays all the associated expenses out of my account. I am not required to be involved in the operation of my properties. Some owners enjoy being more hands-on. I found a great manager who handles everything and I prefer it this way.