Change can be tricky, especially when it involves your real estate investments.
However, if your Greenville property management company is making mistakes or hard to reach or not giving you the services and the value that you expected, it’s perfectly acceptable to start looking elsewhere. You need a responsive and professional team to handle the leasing, management, and maintenance of your investments.
These are some of the signs that it may be time to find a better property management team.
There’s Trouble with Communication
All things good and bad typically start with communication or lack of communication. You need a Greenville property management company that is responsive and accessible. If your manager isn’t available to you, it probably means your tenants are having trouble getting in touch, too. Residents need to reach your property manager if there’s an emergency or a problem, and you need to reach your property manager when you have questions or concerns.
One missed call is bound to happen once in a while. But, if those phone calls aren’t getting answered and messages aren’t being returned, you need to find a management company that takes communication seriously. It’s hard to trust people who refuse to talk to you.
Problem Tenants and Late Rent
Tenant screening should be rigorous, consistent, and thorough. If you’re finding that tenants are routinely late with rent, needing to be evicted, or violating the terms of the lease, your property managers are not doing a great job with tenant screening. They’re also not doing much to develop and sustain positive and respectful relationships with your renters.
When you have good tenants in place but they are always leaving after just one year, you are faced with additional turnover and vacancy costs. That could mean your property manager isn’t responsive or focused on tenant retention. Don’t be afraid to switch management companies if you seem to be losing tenants or losing money in security deposit disputes and other claims and lawsuits.
Greenville Rental Property Accounting Needs to be Accurate and Transparent
Your property managers must be counted on to provide you with accurate, detailed, and transparent property management accounting. You should be receiving statements every month that reflect all of the income and expenses associated with your investment, and you should have the ability to view those statements whenever you need them.
Access to good technology is important. You should have an online portal, where you can see everything that touches your account. If you’re noticing hidden fees or your rent payments never seem to arrive on time, you need to hold your property management team accountable for those issues. If you cannot get satisfactory answers from them, take your property management business elsewhere.
Lack of Local Rental Market Knowledge
Any property manager can place a tenant and collect rent.
However, it takes an expert to help you navigate the laws, requirements, and market conditions that go into managing an investment home. You need to rely on your Greenville property manager for advice about pricing, marketing, selecting tenants, renewing leases, making updates, and identifying additional investment opportunities.
If you’re not getting a lot of expertise and resources, you should find a property manager who is passionate about the industry and willing to help your investments perform better.
We take the work we do for our clients and residents very seriously. If you’re thinking about changing your Greenville property management company, let us help. Contact our team at Letts Property Management.
