This is usually the slowest part of the process because former landlords are not always quick to respond. Part of the process of checking with past landlords is verifying that the phone number provided is actually the landlord's phone. Then we need to verify that the person who claims to be the landlord actually owns the property that the applicant claimed to have rented. Once we've done all this, we talk to the landlord and ask them a series of questions about the applicant. Landlords can be very informative, especially in off-the-record conversations. This is an important window into understanding what sort of applicant we are dealing with.
If you've never hired the services of a property manager before, you'll probably want to learn as much as possible about the process and what exactly property managers' portfolio entails. In the broadest sense, here's what all property managers do (or promise to do):
We All Must Start Somewhere.
Collect rents. Place rents into an escrow account. Disburse funds to pay bills, income to landlords, and fees to the property management company.
Keep a record of all money and receipts and furnish that record on a regular basis to the landlord.
Deal with HOA/COA.
Manage tenant relations including maintenance requests and late fee notices. We also deal with a laundry list of tenant problems: unauthorized guests, unauthorized pets, parking issues, tenant cleanliness, noise violations, neighbor complaints, etc. If necessary, we manage the process of prosecuting actions to evict tenants.
Ensure compliance with state laws, local ordinances, licensing requirements, association rules, Fair Housing laws, insurance requirements, and IRS requirements.
Manage and dispatch handymen as needed.
Inspect the property at the time of move-in at the time of move-out and make random inspections during tenancy.
Money in general does not flow from the landlord to the property manager. Money flows from the tenant to the property manager to the landlord. Fees and commissions are withheld from collected rents.
Our standard agreement is a one year term, but either party can terminate the arrangement with a 30-day-notice.
The next step is to learn a little more about what differentiates us from other property managers.
[Learn more about our property management services now.]
