Starting a Property Management Company

[Nate Estelle]

Greetings all!

I recently got into the real estate world after beginning to listen to Bigger Podcasts during the Spring of 2016. I immediately started buying books and pouring through them to gain knowledge, but I know I needed experience. Thankfully, in May I landed a Property Manager position for a small property management company in the Marion / Gas City, IN area. There are two of us in the role at our small office, and our boss is the owner of the 292 properties we manage. We often get phone calls from property owners who want to rent out their investments but do not have the management tools, time or resources do so alone, but we turn these clients away because we only manage our boss' property.

Therefore, I have considered starting my own Property Management company on the side to manage a few of these properties we get calls about. (My boss knows I am an aspiring investor and that I, too, will own and manage my owner property while I work here, and he has no argument against that. Of course, there is no question that my first obligation would be to my current position and to my boss' assets.)

What should I know about starting a property management company? What are important factors to consider? Thank you in advance!

[Chris Parrish]

@Nate Estelle, great idea! I hope it works out well for you. Well the obviously things you need to know is all of the legalities. I am not familiar with your laws in Indiana, but here in Oregon there is an actual property managers license that is required to charge others to manage their properties. It sounds like if your co-worker/boss only manages his own properties, then he may not even have a license. So making sure you have the correct licensing is very important. Also, be aware of the hardships that come with being a property manager. It can be difficult sometimes to navigate some home owners and their expectations. I would suggest being a little picky with who's properties you manage.

Best of luck to you!

Chris Parrish