"I can't afford a property manager"

One of the most common objections that I hear when telling people about what we do is the "I can't afford a property manager"

On average a good property manager who understands the market rents for an area, has a platform to advertise the property and a good system for showing the property will get a property in good condition, in a good area and priced right, rented in less than 3 weeks if you let them do their job. An average owner trying to do it themselves could take 60 to 90 days. Now I am not a math genius but I know that if I have a $1,000 per month rental and it takes me 90 days to get my first rent check, I think that cost me $3,000.00 (3 months vacancy). If my property manager rents my house in 3 weeks and charges me 1/2 of the first month's rent then that cost me $1,250 (3 weeks vacancy at $250 per week + $500)

Screening a tenant can also be a daunting task. If you have never done it before and don't have the resources to get it done it could take a lot of your time. How much is your time worth? A good property management company does this everyday. They have systems in place and can get it done very quickly with accuracy. A tenant screened properly and found to be qualified stands a 90% chance of completing the lease without incident. A tenant not properly screened and qualified will fail 90% of the time. A failed tenancy could cost thousands of dollars in court costs, attorney fees, damage costs, rent ready expenses, etc. A good property manager might charge you 10% of the rent to manage the tenant relationship and the property but it will save you thousands in expenses that come from bad tenants.

What do you know about Florida Statute 83 "Landlord Tenant"? This may be the most valuable part of a good property management company. Because they are a licensed real estate brokerage in the state of Florida they are required to know and act within the laws that are dictated for this industry. If you as an owner do not know those laws you could be opening yourself up for all kinds of civil suits or fines.

So what it really boils down to is that you really can't afford NOT to have a property manager. Think of it this way, If your mortgage payment is close to or more than the rent the market will bear you will be loosing a little money every month but a good property manager can help you lose less money