Unfortunately, in all relationships, things change.
Sometimes, they change for the better, which is great. But sometimes, they change for the worse, and that’s when action is required.
The relationship you have with your San Mateo property management company is no different. You might get to the point where your needs are not being met, and you may decide it’s time to look for help elsewhere. Today, we’re looking at some of the things that might make you consider re-evaluating your relationship.
Communication between Property Managers and Owners
If you notice there’s a breakdown in communication, don’t panic right away. Talk to your property manager about it, and remember that people are busy. Property management is labor-intensive, and everyone has a lot of properties to manage. It’s not necessarily that you’re being ignored; it might simply be that things are prioritized based on need.
However, if your property manager doesn’t respond to you within 12 to 24 hours, you might have a problem. Think about the form of communication as well. Email might be better than phone calls, but if you’ve tried to reach your property manager in a number of different ways and you’re still getting no response, you might want to consider working with another company.
Your Property Manager is a Real Estate Agent
There’s a trend lately in real estate agents picking up property management work on the side. With the changing economy, this has happened before, and it never works out well for the agents or the owners. When agents get desperate for work, they think that property management looks easy, so they decide to give it a try. When it’s done correctly and done well, property management does look easy. But, it’s not.
It doesn’t take agents long to discover that their skill set doesn’t match what’s needed in residential management. And, owners will eventually realize that their tenants weren’t screened properly or their maintenance issues haven’t been resolved. Perhaps the lease isn’t being followed or inspections aren’t being conducted. These are all problems that may have you looking for a better, more experienced property management company. If you’re working with an agent instead of a professional property manager, you should consider making a change.
Rental Property Inspections
Finally, look at the frequency of inspections that are occurring at your property. We recommend that someone gets inside your property every six months, at least. This timeframe seems to lead to goodwill with the tenants, and they don’t feel bothered. It also leads to better maintenance of your property. If you find that your property management company isn’t inspecting your home and looking for deferred maintenance or lease violations, you should be concerned. If they haven’t been inside for a year or two, there are lots of little things that can go wrong and cause bigger issues because they were not corrected immediately.
There are a lot of other things we can point out for you if you’re worried about the service you’re receiving from your property managers. Let’s talk about what your concerns are. Contact us at Five Star Property Management, and we’ll tell you more.