All Forum Posts by: Matt Groetelaars

 That it is! I'm part of a start up hoping to change the way property management currently functions. 

@Cynthia I would highly recommend checking around to see if there are any meetup groups in your area or the area you're looking to invest. These groups can be great for first time investors, or just anyone looking to share knowledge. You'll likely get to chat with some experienced investors who can point you in the right direction!

@Cynthia Rinne 

First off, congrats! This is an exciting time for you!

Unfortunately, we hear about your problem all too often. This is especially the case for absentee owners who oftentimes lead already hectic work lives. 

As @Bob H. notes, it is doable to manage the place yourself. With good tenants you might be lucky to not even have to worry about the place. Again though, things can often come up and PMs are great simply because they do take care of a lot of work and worry to give you, the owner, peace of mind.

Do you have any more details on the area you are looking at buying in? Also, if you can find a place that already has a long-term tenant, that might help. This would give you a little more comfort to manage remotely. Let me know if I can help!

 Hi Jeremy,

Hope you enjoyed the Memorial Day Weekend! Yes- we are building our own proprietary software. The real benefit of this is that it lets us adapt our product for our needs and customize as needed. It also allows us to truly create and "own" the user experience.

 Ashly, 

You're right, there's definitely a lot to think about here. In my personal opinion, if you are going to evict the tenant anyways I say go for the upgrade while you're at it. If you are planning on updating the units, might as well do this one first to test your assumptions. Plus, since you're dealing with all the logistical hassles of the eviction/tenant problems, might as well give yourself the upside of a better tenant and better rent. These young professionals tend to network a lot among themselves as well, so updating the unit right away may create some buzz for the future. All the best!

 Hey Andrew, if you want any insights on marketing to students and/or any other questions you might have, I'm happy to help. We have a fair deal of experience in marketing and leasing to students which I can pass along!

Hi guys!

My name is Matt and I'm with a startup based in the Bay Area called OneRent.

We started out over a year ago with the goal of providing Santa Clara University Students more transparency as they searched for off campus housing. We were able to build a platform that allowed SCU students to search for, apply, qualify, sign, and pay the deposit for an off campus house. We handled 150 leases in 3 days- a process that used to take over a month to complete. This represented over 90% of those living off campus at SCU using our product, not a bad user adoption rate for 6 months of work.

Inevitably, in working with students and landlords, we also had to deal with another variety of person: the Property Manager. This was where we saw, in full force, just how unreliable people can be. We also saw the level of frustration this created for tenants and landlords alike.

So, as of a few months ago, we pivoted to begin doing full property management for the full market. We set out to build a transparent portal that would allow owners to see a "birds eye" view of their property at any given point in time. It would also allow tenants to quickly upload a picture and brief description whenever anything goes wrong.

I'm looking forward to getting more involved in this community and learning and meeting as many of you as I can!