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Updated over 5 years ago,
Opinions: Pros & Cons of Self Manage vs Property Mgmt Co
Over the past 4 years I have accumulated 7 rental units and have been mostly self managing them. There have been a few headaches recently, and I am considering outsourcing the management to a property management company, or some alternative option that will remove me from day to day management. However, I'm afraid that a property management company may not be as picky as I am in choosing tenants, or in getting maintenance done properly in a timely manner. I'm also concerned that property management fees will consume a large percentage of the cash flow. The typical challenges I've had are successfully screening good applicants, getting maintenance done in a timely manner, and getting the units shown to applicants. I've already outsources showing the units to a property manager for a small fee, but once applications are submitted the rest of the process is up to me. Lately, my usual maintenance team has been taking several weeks to get repairs done. I have one unit that isn't occupied for 2 months now, and have not had a good qualified applicant; everyone applying has extremely poor credit or other negative history. Anyways, my question is, am I better off just learning to improve my property management skill set, or better off outsourcing property management? If I do outsource, how do I choose a good property management company? What are the most competitive rates for property management companies? Is there a 3rd option? Thank you