​Thinking of Managing Your Own Rental? Think Again

I’ve seen plenty of gung-ho investors who think they can do it all - scout out and purchase an awesome cashflowing property, fix it up, market it to tenants, and manage and maintain it long-term. It doesn't take very long for these folks to figure out that trying to do everything solo is a TON of work, and it will quickly eat up hours of your day.

One of the biggest issues that people run into is just how difficult it can be to manage a property after purchase. And this is exactly why property management groups exist - to save investors the time, stress, and immense headache that comes with management. So if you’ve been thinking about forgoing professional property management so you can save a few bucks by doing everything yourself, think again!

Here’s why teaming with a great property management group makes more sense than DIYing it:

Property management takes A LOT of time. People seriously underestimate just how much time is required to manage a rental property. That’s because there’s a lot to do! There’s marketing the property, tenant screening and selection, dealing with tenant complaints, lease signing and other paperwork, rent collection, and maintenance of the property itself. On its own, it might not seem too bad, but if you’re working full-time or you own several properties, the hours spent will quickly add up and leave little time for more important stuff - like investing!

You’ll be on call 24/7365. When you’re running the show, you’re the one people are going to call when there’s an issue. It doesn’t matter if it’s 1 a.m. or Christmas day, if a pipe bursts or a toilet is clogged, you’ll be the one dealing with it. And you can’t put it off, either. Making tenants wait for a problem to be fixed until it works better for your schedule is unacceptable, and it’ll hurt your reputation as a landlord and make people not want to rent from you. Being on-call like this and having to deal with problems immediately can be extremely taxing on an individual. With a management group, however, there’s an entire staff working to ensure tenant issues are resolved quickly and efficiently - even on Christmas.

You don’t have the connections a professional management group has. Professional property management companies have a network of contractors and vendors that they use for their properties. Any time something needs to be repaired at the property, they can call on another pro to get the job done quickly and accurately. They may even be able to get it done cheaper, since they have an established relationship and the contractor knows they can count on the management group for repeat business.

It can be hard to be a tough landlord - even when you need to be. You can’t always be Mr. Nice Guy (or Girl) when dealing with your tenants. What happens when the rent is late so you call to collect, and you get a sob story about how they’ve been sick or their dog died? Do you have it in you to be firm and demand payment anyway? Or are you going to let it slide this month? If you decide to be nice and let it slide, you’re on a slippery slope, because more often than not, this sort of thing will become a pattern. When you’re dealing with renters, you have to remember that they’re not your friends. They’re your tenants. And while it’s never okay to be a jerk to them, you can’t always be Mr. Nice Guy or Girl, or else you’re going to get steamrolled. Sometimes, it’s best to just a professional management company handle this sort of thing for you.

Managing a rental property is hard work, and understandably, not everyone is up to the task. Even though you’ll spend a bit of money to outsource this job to a professional management group, what you save in time will more than make up for the expense.