All Forum Posts by: Corey Arnemann

Shaun Patterson Katie Andrews That's an interesting way to handle the maintenance. I might implement that into our management procedure. Typically I do the inspection if the tenant cannot explain to me what the problem is before I contact the owner or request contractors. For example, I had a tenant call me stating the dryer (which was brand new) does not work at all. Of course that's as far as troubleshooting goes for tenants. Upon my inspection, it had nothing to do with the dryer at all, but a faulty outlet. Do you hire a handyman to run down and check? Or is it straight to the contractors or owners? Maybe this is beyond the scope of this thread, but it may help determine what differences property managers have for dealing with maintenance and find the best property manager.

Steve Vaughan Shaun Patterson Seems insane... What's interesting to me is most management companies will say anything under $250 we take care of, anything over $250 and we will call you. However, anything under $250 should not be anything urgently important. So why can't the owner be involved and possibly repair the issues themselves. With my property management company, I just default to calling he owner after I have personally assessed the problem and determined the best course of action. Idk, but getting into this line of business has opened my eyes to how wrong property management companies treat their owners. The number 1 complaint I hear, is managers never get back to them about anything. Just boils my blood

Steve Vaughan Shaun Patterson I don't know if it is the same situation in your state as it is in my province here in Canada, but I find most property managers are older people ready to retire and haven't got a clue about what customer services means lol Or, they are realtors using property management to cover monthly expenses and sell real estate as a full time job. Neither is really passionate nor educated enough to be professionals. Typically I find investors are the best landlords.

Hi Katie, Good question, and I see a lot of great answers. But I think I can help a bit more with this. I met my mentor about 7 years ago who had built up to own 48 rental properties. The funny thing was, he didn't live in the city where he bought. Hi skill being a landlord was very high, and dealing with issues was easy for him, even being a 2 days drive away. Was he profitable? Very! Still to this day he will never hire a property management company. One thing I learned from property managers is they will never take care of your house better then you will, and that is the reason he likes to manage properties himself. As well, 48 properties with hundreds of dollars a month in savings is a big deal to your monthly profit. Income - expense = profit. Having said that, I am a property manager myself and manage 100 properties on a daily basis with a professional property management company. Do I think I provide value to landlords? Absolutely I do. I am a property manager 24/7 and have dealt with almost every tenant issue under the sun, therefore I am more skilled at dealing with landlord and tenant issues. So I should be able to provide my owners with more value in the long run and avoid costly mistakes. Lastly, is I also teach DIY landlords every day how to manage rental properties themselves instead of hiring a property manager. I can tell you from experience, if you have a mentor at your side in the beginning, you should not need a property manager to have success and can save hundreds of dollars every month. 1-4 properties should be easily manageable on your own even if you are traveling a lot. 5-10+ properties is when you might need to stick around an it to keep an eye on thing and possibly hire a property manager depending on what you are trying to accomplish in life. Hope that helps and good luck!

Hi Justus, Great question! I think I can help with this. For the last 7 years I have taken well over 100 rental properties, with all different situations and tenants. Upon acquiring a new property to manage, what I have found to be the best way to get to know tenants is to formally introduce yourself in person. Instead of giving the tenants a questionnaire form to fill out and give back to you, why not use the form as a questionnaire during a personal visit to the property? This will give you a much better idea of who the people are. Below are my guidelines on how to approach the situation of acquiring new tenants: Start with a phone call, and schedule a meet and greet. Wear your best clothes, (typically I prefer to wear a suit with no tie) do your hair, and show up looking like a professional. This will set the tone of how the tenants perceive you as a person. Next is to ask the tenants to show you around the house. See how they walk you through. Are they trying to show you how well they are taking care of the property, or are they vaguely skipping over every room hoping you won't look in that storage closet. :) Right down all their maintenance concerns and let them know you will be addressing these in a timely manner. Once this is out of the way, time to talk money. Discuss with the tenants how and when they will pay you, and when you expect payment and how you deal with late rent. Before I go, I typically like to give them a form with all my contact info at this point, and as I walk out the door, I reassure them I will take care of the maintenance issues discussed. When the next month rolls around, you have shown them the can rely on you to take care of business, and 99.9% of the time, they will feel inclined to pay you on time. Hope this helps!

Hi Jonathan, Very good question. I have had experience in both situations where I was the owner and called myself such, and having the actual separation of calling myself a property manager and saying I will speak with the owners if situations arise. When I was a DIY landlord, I was managing 48 rental properties, and was considered the person who called all the shots even though I had real estate partners involved and could have easily separated myself and claimed myself as just the property manager. However, when I conversed with tenants, my title of being a landlord meant little compared to my attitude towards the business and the relationship I built with the tenants. In fact, I almost loved calling myself the landlord and owner as most tenants would invite me in to their homes, and offer a drink or a treat of some sort. They appreciate a good and professional landlord and understand you are there to help. When I moved up to a professional property manager, and now use that as my title, I have not notice any change in respect or the need for separation. The only change is now the tenants do not invite me into their home because I am seen as a professional company, and who wants a company in their home? I know I sure wouldn't. :) Just remember, treat people with dignity and respect, but be hard on the problem. For example, if someone says "I just want a nice quite dog", your response should take into consideration that, this may disrupt the neighbours, the damage would be extra, will the dog wreck the yard? Give the tenant options that benefit you both. Ask for a pet fee, and perform regular inspections. Tell the tenants why you need the fee and why you are performing inspections. They will understand, and work with you instead of argue and go against you. "I have thought about allow pets, however I would need a $25 pet fee every month to cover any additional damage the pet may cause. As well, if there are any issues with noise, I would have to ask that the pet be removed. If this is something you are willing to accept, then I will allow a pet". I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. :) Just get better at being more professional instead of using separations to handle problems. Hope this helps!

Hi Austin, Good question. I'm going to have to side with Jeff B. on this one. I myself in the last 7 years of property management with over 100 rental properties have had 4 tenants owe rent, and damage the property and disappear. When I found them, all that work to find them, only to discover they have no money and no job was even more of a waste. A good habit to get into as a DIY landlord is to regularly check on the tenants financial situation, and life situations before they happen to avoid these costly expenses. Use Facebook, and perform property maintenance to get every opportunity to talk with the tenants. I love when a tenant calls and has a maintenance issue even if it's nothing. It's an invitation to come into the property and see how things are going, ask questions about their life, etc... All the while, you are gaining information on them in case the worst happens. Good luck with your court date!

Hi William, Awesome question. I have had this situation a few times myself. Nicholas W. is on the right track on what you should do in this situation. As a property manager for the last 7 years, I have found that there are better ways of dealing with tenants when things go bad then to fight it out in a legal battle on who is suppose to do what and what the contract says. If it were me, I would approach the tenant with 3 different options: 1. She can move in, however she would need to follow through with her agreement to the contract that was signed. 2. She can move in, and move out when needed. However, if you cannot find a tenant to replace her when she moves out, she is responsible for the months that the property is vacant. 3. She does not move in and you find another tenant and shred the agreement. If you cannot find a tenant she is responsible for the vacant months. You are basically giving the tenants the decision on what they want most instead of making the decision yourself which 9 times out of 10 will result in a fight, but in a way that is a win win for everyone. Hopefully this helps, and good luck! :)

Hi @Christopher Montoya,

Wonderful question! @Alex Shaughnessy made a great suggestion. I would however go one step further and look for a mentor to help me make the best decision regarding real estate decisions. Someone who has been in real estate for awhile. You may even want to pay him for his suggestion if the deal goes good. 

Another point to make is it depends on your real estate goals. You will want to determine what it is you are trying to do. Why an apartment? Why a multifamily home? Are you looking for cash flow? Do you want to flip houses? These questions should help guide you to the right decision.

I hope that helps and good luck to picking the best deal!

Hi @Account Closed,

Wonderful question here. I am not exactly sure if there is a tool out there, however, I just wanted to make a suggestion. 

I would call up a few insurance companies and ask for a quote on what they would charge for insurance. I may not be in the right country to answer this as it may be different for you in Terxas, but that is what I would do.

I hope that helps!