Self-manage or hire a PM?

[Nate R.]

We bought a recently remodeled home (our first investment property) and are about to start getting it ready to rent. We haven't yet handed over the keys to the PM and my mentor is encouraging me to self-manage. 

The problem is the house is a long drive (1.5 to 2 hours depending on traffic) away. 

We'd need to make at least two more trips to get it rented - one to put a sign in the yard and one to hold an open house. Lockbox is on the door so our handyman can take care of a few repairs without us being there.

It seems like it should take very little ongoing effort if we lease to a good tenant, so paying a PM might not be worth it. My wife is scared of what could go wrong so hiring a PM could give her some assurance. 

How do I decide what's right for us? It will dramatically reduce our COC returns but save us a lot of time to use someone else to lease it. Maybe the best option is to use a leasing-only service and do the PM ourselves.

[Kim Meredith Hampton]

Nate,

Everyones schedules, workload, and end goals are different. What works for one person, may not work for another. What is your time worth to you, and do you have a team and system in place for processing applications, running credit, collecting rent, proper forms for serving notices, familiar with the local and state landlord tenant laws, handyman, plumber, electrician, attorney etc.... there are so many pieces to the puzzle in property management. It is very easy to get yourself into trouble in a very litigious society.

I am all for learning something new and becoming proficient, but wait until you have at least a year under your belt and have most of your team ready to go. Some people never want to manage themselves, and some people love it! Give yourself and opportunity to know what the heck is going in before you jump in the deep end