Meeting with out of state property manager

[John Moore]

Hey guys, I’m meeting with a potential out of state property manager today. What are seine questions that you think I should ask him?

[Laura Kayes]

Hi @John Moore

In regards to fees:

1) What are your monthly management fees?

2) Do you collect management fees when a unit is vacant?

3) Are there miscellaneous fees that I should expect to incur?

4) What is the escrow reserve amount?

5) What is your re-leasing fee?

6) What do you charge for lease renewals?

7) Do you up-charge for repairs?

8) Are there any start-up fees?

9) What is your repair allowance?

10) Are there cancellation fees if I am unhappy with service?

11) Who keeps the late fees? 

For Leasing:

1) What is your procedure for qualifying tenants?

2) What is your average days on market?

3) What leasing agreement do you utilize?

4) What strategies do you use to fill vacant units quickly?

5) How do you set your rental rates?

6) Who can show the properties? (Do they utilize self-showing, lockboxes, supra keys ect.)

7) Do you have any tenant guarantee for tenants you place in the property?

8) How do you handle evictions? What is your eviction rate?

9) Are tenants required to maintain renters insurance?

10) How long are your leasing agreements?

In regards to maintaining your property:

1) Do you have an in-house maintenance team?

2) Do you have a relationship with vendors in this area?

3) How many properties do you currently manage?

4) Will you visit the property regularly? (Try & find a company that does quarterly inspections)

5) What is your procedure if a tenant is violating their lease agreement? (trashing the property, not changing air filters, overlooking repairs, unauthorized pets)

6) What is your process for handling service requests?

7) How often will you provide me updates about my property?

Other questions:

1) Do you have one property manager I will communicate with? If not, how do you handle communication with owners? 

2) Are you a licensed property manager?

3) What types of properties do you manage/how many properties/ what areas?

4) How do you send reports? Is there an online interface for tenants/owners?

5) How often am I updated on the property accounting?

6) How is rent collected?

7) How long is the management agreement for?

8) Do you have references?

9) Do I have to sell my property with you if I list it for sale?

10) Can you provide copies of your contracts?

Good luck! :)