Iffy about getting rid of property mgt co

[Jenni G.]

Spouse and I own a townhome rental about a mile from where we live. We utilize a property mgt co. There are things the company does that drive me batty. When I get the monthly statement as I am opening it I think "what are they going to take money from me for this month?" The regular management fees are not horrible 8%. But they spent around $100 to fix a leaky sink sprayer. Had I known I would have upgraded kitchen faucet, $75 to change out a light switch...really?.

We opted for the townhome as the price was right. I thought it would be easier to manage IF we did it ourselves, but then hired a co to do the management.

Finding tenants and qualifying them scares me however, I feel I can market it better than they do. (They are in love with the word quaint...shiver, and lovely in their ads)
Do I suck up, get rid of that 8% expense and try to manage it myself? Really hate the thought of midnight calls which I don't think ever happen, but really want to be in the loop of what is going on in my property and if something happens want the opportunity to upgrade for a little more than repair.

We are hoping to move into the townhome when kids graduate and make our primary home our rental.

Thank you for any info/advice you can provide me.

[Jenni G.]

We bit the bullet, gave written notice to property management co. Current lease ends with my contract with prop mgt. I have asked for all documentation(lease, app, lease enforcement documents, correspondence regarding property, security dep etc). Prop mgt so far has only giving me 1st page of rental agreement, and move in inspection with promise of security. I really expected the full lease(I have my own new lease, but wanted to keep terms with renter(who is staying ...YAY)the same. Are my expectations of all documents unrealistic?

Thanks in advance

Jenni