How often should PM be reasonably expected to inspect property?

[Matt Holmer]

I have one SFR where I am currently doing the management. Every couple months I make an appointment to pick up the rent in personal and do a very quick visual inspection on the property. I also drive by a couple times a month to make sure everything looks good on the outside as well.

Work has really picked up so for property number 2 I am going to try a PM.  What is a reasonable expectation on the number of times they view the property in a year?  According to one of the leases I have read, the tenant is responsible for changing the furnace filters and smoke detector batteries so nobody will be in for that.  

According to one PM agreement I read, they do a move in, move out and one yearly inspection.  Is this the norm? I'd hate to see what kind of damage a bad tenant could do if left unchecked for a year!

Is it unreasonable to expect the PM to visit each property at least a couple times a year?

Thank you for the input.

[Austin Youmans]

I think it is pretty typical that PMs will do an interior inpection once a year. Of course you can always ask them if they would do more but really if they screen the tenant well than I wouldn't worry about it. You also don't want to bother good tenants by trying to do an interior inspection every month, people like their privacy.