Hire a property management company on first rental property?

[Mel Kline]

Hi community!

We are in the process of closing on a three unit rental that is roughly 45 minutes from our home.

Our realtor/good friend owns a property management company along with having numerous properties himself. He charges 6% for his property management company.

A few numbers on our (soon to be) property.

Rents for $1750

Mortgage and Escrow: $550

Utilities: $450(high end)

Property Management: $105

Estimated Profit: $645

Utilities Note: the gas and electric are not separate so its included in the rent.

Would it be smart to hire the property management company right away or wait until we have five or more properties?

We plan to close on this one next week and right away apply for another one. Numbers seen to be right and we should be able to qualify for another.

We have done a flip before and also a live n flip, but this is our first rental property.

Thanks for all your input!