Whilst many investors spend time researching the property market to find the top investment areas, they ignore the role that a professional property manager can play in preserving their property's capital value and maximising its income.
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Choosing a property manager can be a daunting task and many people fall into the trap basing their decision on fees.
Asking the right questions can help you to find the right property manager.
Here Katie Dunkley, Senior Property Manager at PRDnationwide Port Stephens, gives an insight into what to ask before appointing a property manager.
What range of services do you offer?
Make sure that you find a property management company that can offer a variety of real estate services to provide you with a complete property experience.
PRDnationwide Port Stephens are specialists in permanent rental management and leasing, real estate marketing, sales and commercial/industrial property services.
In the Property Management sector of our office we have a designated leasing consultant to conduct and oversee open house inspections and the initial tenancy application process, a business development manager to appraise any prospective rental properties, senior property managers who manage a portfolio of rental properties and skilled associate property managers who work closely alongside our senior property managers .
How do you determine rent amount?
A property manager should be able to complete a comparable market analysis to determine the highest possible rent achievable.
They should also have the experience required to factor in the unique aspects of your property as well as possess a strong market knowledge to understand and guide you on how changing market conditions can affect rental yields.
How many NCAT/tribunal attendances have you had in recent years?
This is a great question to ask as it gives an insight into the property managers track record of how skilled they are at handling tenancy disputes and client resolution.
Unfortunately, sometimes we have to attend tribunal and we set out to protect your rights. NCAT hearing and attendances can be a costly exercise for the landlord with application fees plus charges for appearing on the landlord's behalf.
The importance of negotiation, reconciliation, practicality and knowledge of tenancy laws go a long way in minimising landlords costs and protecting their assets.
How do you select prospective tenants?
Property managers have an obiligation to provide landlords with as much knowledge and information on prospective tenants when putting forward an application.
Property managers gain authority to obtain private information such as employment details and history, proof of income, past rental history, personal referees, details on any past breeches and also 100 points of identification are required to support the application.
A TICA check is also essential as this is a national database that provides details of tenants who have left old debts, owe money for damages etc. We have conversations with employers and previous property managers to assess if that applicant is "the" one before putting them forward.
How often do you conduct inspections and what process follows?
Current legislation dictates occurrence, but tenants and landlords can expect up to 4 inspections annually.
These inspections serve to detail the current condition of the property, how the tenant is taking care of your asset, what maintenance items need attending to and to check and maintain the overall standard of the property.
Landlords are welcome to attend these inspections with their property manager however a comprehensive report is also provided with detailed photos, maintenance issues, and suggestions to improve/update, if needed. Repairs and maintenance are then acted upon and followed up.
