Problem Property manager

[Matthew Fitzgerald]

We have a 21 unit property that we closed on in October 2017. We are long distance property owners. I interviewed ten different property managers. We picked the current one we have today. Of course they had a very articulate individual on the sales end who was able to sell me on their business model. After being with this company for four months I’m feeling like they aren’t doing a good job. There are multiple issues I have with them from the way they send out monthly statements, turn around time on emails can be 1-2 days later, and turn around time on work and filling vacancies are not as they advertised. I’m trying to see if my inexperience is causing me to lack confidence or do they suck as bad as my gut is telling me. I did send an email to the manager informing them of my dissatisfaction and they followed up and had taken care of a few issues that were lingering. Ultimately we still haven’t filled the vacancies and are still having issues with a sec 8 accounting ( which they claim is not their fault and I have spoken with others verifying that the sec 8 is difficult to work with and very unorganized) At what point do I cut my losses and move on to a new PM. Thanks for your input.

[John Warren]

@Matthew Fitzgerald do you own and operate properties locally already? I started out managing 13 doors locally in Berwyn and Lyons near where I live. I ended up purchasing a 20 unit out of state with a partner in South Bend, Indiana, and we tried to self manage for a few months. Self managing was a terrible idea, but it was exactly the educational experience we needed in order to appreciate our property manager. 

The reason we didn't start with our property management company from the get go was that they were slow to respond to questions, and seemed like they would be a bit expensive on the repairs. After literally wasting 20 hours per week trying to manage C class tenants, we were thrilled to hand over the property to them. They still take a day to respond to emails, they still cost a bit more than I would like for repairs, but I am happy to spend about 1/2 hour per month thinking about the property. 

The big questions would be are you making money according to your business plan with them at the helm? At the end of the day, this is an investment. Hopefully you are paying them only 5-7% of the gross to take all of the headaches away. If you are hitting your returns, move on to the next property. If not, speak to the main property manager who handles your properties about what is going wrong. We have a monthly phone call with ours.