Don't get freaked out about the term "rental property management", it sounds threatening but all it really means is:
A game plan to keep your rentals headache free, cash flow animal .
Does that sound a little better than rental property management?
You better believe it does and guess what. Managing rental apartments is simply a matter of having the proper mind set and doing some planning in advance.
I don't care if your talking about one two family property, a six unit property or twenty rental properties, having a game plan for managing your rental units is key!
Before I go any further, you should know that I always manage my own rental units. The most I ever had was I believe 42 units comprised of 2-6 unit buildings. I would never have an outside property management company manage my properties. It costs too much, they do a lousy job in my experience and its easy to get ripped off. I knew a roofer who had a gig set up, where he would give a kick back to the guy in charge of getting bids for a property management company!
Learning whats involved ahead of time for managing rental houses will save you a lot of time and aggravation.
Your rental property management plan has to cover:
Who is going to do the basic maintenance repairs,i.e. clogged sink or toilet, broken facet, doorknob ,window, electrical plug not working, etc. Are you going to do any basic maintenance? If not, you'll want to find handymen that won't break the bank. How do you find these guys?
Will you be able to financially handle more severe problem, such as roof leaking, need to replace a hot water tank, need new furnace, vacancies...
How to screen tenants. After all, they are the source of your profit center.
How to manage your tenants so that their personal/financial problems are not your concern.
When someone moves out or you evict someone, who is going to prep the apartment for the next tenant.
Speaking of evictions, do you know how to do one? How much does it cost? How long does it take?
How to adapt the proper mindset for successfully owning rental property.
You have to have a property management plan that works for you. This is key. You see, some people are white collar, some are blue collar, some are hands on, some can't and don't want to know how to turn a screw driver, every bodies situation is different. Understanding this and having a system to manage your property will keep your rental property a cash flow animal.
Let me rephrase that. Having a property management plan that works for you will keep investing in rental property headache free and running like a well oiled machine.
Having your rental units be a cash flow machine is a primarily a function of buying the rental property at the right price. However, even having bought a multifamily house at the right price, you can end your rental property being a cash flow animal without a good property management plan.
Remember, a good rental property plan will
Help you find good paying tenants who won't do much more harm to your apartment than normal wear and tear.
Allow you to charge top rent because your apartment warrants it.
Make sure things get fixed quickly and cost effectively when needed.
Keep your tenants happy, so you don't have frequent vacancies due to poor property management.
Make owning rental property stress free.
Understanding what a rental management plan should entail and implementing it will make your rental property business enjoyable and successful.
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