You Need a Property Manager

You Don’t Live Close to Your Rental Property

The more miles between you and your investment property, the harder it is to manage. If your primary residence is in Florida and your rental property is in Illinois, it will be harder for you to make the regular visits required for inspections, to find tenants, to handle tenant complaints, to quickly respond to emergencies, to take care of maintenance issues, and even to make sure rent is collected on time.

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The further you live the higher your travel time and expenses will be. The larger the distance the more temptation there is to not keep a close eye on things, and that can be a recipe for disaster. You should plan making monthly scheduled visits and there is always the potential for a middle of the night emergency call that requires your immediate attention. In situations such as these, hiring MLC Properties and Management can make sense and actually save you money.

You Don’t Want the Stress and Hassle of Dealing with Tenants

This is a tough one. We all like to think of ourselves as level-headed and even-keeled, but at the end of the day it takes a special kind of person to deal with the ups and downs of property management. Behind the seemingly simple task of collecting rent every month lie a number of unpredictable problems can push people to their limits. Ask yourself how you would react in the unfortunate event that tenants:

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• Get in fights with other tenants or neighbors

• Have domestic disputes

• Conduct illegal business in the dwelling

• Carry on all night parties and revelry

• Try to sneak extra people or animals into the home

• Decide to sue you

• Trash the property

• Incite the wrath of the Owners’ Association because of repeated deed restriction violations

• Refuse to pay rent because they are a “professional tenant” and know how to work the legal system for the maximum amount of free housing at the owners expense

Managing rental properties can become quickly overwhelming, even for experienced investors. There is always something going on that requires attention and it takes very little time for things to get out of hand. Property managers are skilled in handling landlord-tenant conflict. They have an understanding of landlord-tenant law, and can serve as the middle-man, or buffer, for problems. In addition, if the tenant knows they are dealing with a third party, they may act more professional as well. Hiring MLC Properties and Management can provide an opportunity to regain control and restore stability to both your properties and possibly life in general. 

Your Rental Property Portfolio Has Grown

As the number of units you own increases, so do your responsibilities and management challenges, and it becomes easier for things to fall through the cracks. The more tenants you have, the more maintenance issues, complaints, and vacancies you will have to deal with. In addition, if your units are spread across multiple properties, you will spend even more time managing the cash flow of each individual property, as well as physically commuting from property to property to handle issues.

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Investors with large portfolios stand to reap significant benefit by leveraging the efficiencies MLC Properties and Management can provide. Size can also constrain investors’ ability to consider purchasing new properties if they’re already maxed out managing their current holdings. The more rental properties you own and the more units they contain, the more you’re likely to benefit from our management services.

You Have a High Vacancy Rate or Problems With Your Cash Flow

How quickly are you able to get your unit rented? Advertising, fielding calls, and showing the unit can take a considerable amount of time, but are critical tasks as vacancies will quickly eat into your profit margins. If you question whether you have the skills or the time to make this happen, OR if you have historically had an unacceptably high vacancy rate, you may want to consider hiring MLC Properties and Management.

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The staff at MLC Properties and Management are skilled at finding and screening tenants quickly and will have a network of reliable, cost effective repairmen to handle emergencies. Most professional property managers will also understand landlord-tenant law, thereby reducing the risk of a lawsuit.

You Don’t Have the Time to Manage Your Property

Your time is limited. Even if you enjoy hands-on management, you may not have much time to devote to your business, especially if landlording isn’t your day job. If you have a full-time job while you are investing in property and simply cannot give your property the attention it needs, the success of your investment could depend on hiring a good property manager. And if you prefer to spend your time growing your business, including searching for new properties, arranging financing for renovations, or changing your business structure, then MLC Properties and Management may be an attractive option.

Time is money and managing a property takes time. If you feel like the daily obligations of property management are taking away time that could be better spent making more money at your other job, or looking for other investments, hiring an outside manager may be the right move for you.

You Don’t Have the Experience to Deal with Maintenance and Repairs

If you can’t do it yourself, do you know who to call? Finding reliable handymen and contractors can take a while and in the mean time you may unknowingly hire people that are unethical, uninsured, do poor quality work, over charge etc. For a property investor who is just starting out, hiring the wrong repairman or taking too long to fill a vacancy can quickly eat into your potential income. Maintenance and repairs are a significant component of land lording and if you question your ability to ensure the work is done well and in a timely manner, you might want to consider hiring MLC Properties and Management. Learning as you go can become very expensive.

You’re Not Interested in Hands-on Management

Many landlords look forward to the challenge of finding good tenants and the rewards of maintaining a safe and attractive property on their own. But if you view rental property ownership strictly as an investment and want little or nothing to do with the day-to-day management of your properties, consider hiring MLC Properties and Management to manage your property.

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Are you willing to be on call 24/7/365? Its important to answer this question honestly, because when an emergency happens at your property you can’t ignore it. Your special event, important meeting, vacation, or personal crisis doesn’t relieve you of your obligation to your tenant. These emergencies don’t happen all the time, but when they do you have to be willing to handle them immediately. Can you handle being called at 2 in the morning to fix someone’s overflowing toilet?

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You’re suddenly inundated with management tasks. If your business is growing, at some point you may find that you need a substantial amount of help to manage everything properly. At that point, it might make sense to hire the professionals at MLC Properties and Management.

You’re Not Well Informed on All the Laws Governing Landlording

Are you willing to confront tenants about late payments and if need be evict them from the property?

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Many new owners dislike feeling like the bad guy and try to be understanding by making exceptions. The problem is that this only invites additional abuses and excuses by tenants. Late payments must be dealt with immediately, and while sometimes a friendly reminder is all that’s needed, other times, it can be a very confrontational process ending in eviction. Unlike running a charity, running a successful rental business means enforcing the rules even it means evicting a single mother who lost her job and won’t be able to pay rent anytime soon.

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Ensuring the property is run in accordance with the law is critical in both preventing lawsuits and shielding yourself from liability if you are sued. Familiarity with contracts is also very important as your rental agreement is the only binding agreement between you and the tenant. Ensuring the property is run in accordance with the law is critical in both preventing lawsuits and shielding yourself from liability if you are sued. Familiarity with contracts is also very important as your rental agreement is the only binding agreement between you and the tenant.

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Mistakes such as being accused of discrimination because you did not understand the Fair Housing laws, or of being a slumlord for not getting the heat fixed in time, can lead to the demise of your investment.

You Aren’t Expert in Handling the Accounting and Record Keeping for Your Property

From profit and loss statements to tax deductions, this area needs special attention and becomes an increasingly larger burden for larger portfolios. Some owners (especially those with a background in finance) will do just fine, others may opt to hire an accountant to help with the book keeping. If you feel like this might be a weak point you might want to consider hiring MLC Properties and Management.

You Don’t Want to Become an Employer

If you hire a resident manager or other employees to help with your property, you become an employer. You’ll have to handle payroll and deal with a host of other legal requirements and considerations. But, because the staff and management of MLC Properties and Management  aren’t your employees (we are an independent contractor), and we are responsible as employers for all those requirements.By using MLC Properties and Management you avoid the hassles of being an employer.

Your Property is Part of an Affordable Housing Program

If you participate in an affordable housing program, things can get complicated. Usually, in these programs the landlord receives financial assistance, which may be in the form of a grant, low-interest loan, or tax credits, in return for agreeing to rent at least part of the property to tenants earning below a certain income level. In order to continue receiving the assistance, the landlord must comply with a complicated set of rules. With so much at stake, it’s worth hiring a property management company that has expertise and experience with the particular housing program in question. From profit and loss statements to tax deductions, this area needs special attention and becomes an increasingly larger burden for larger portfolios. Some owners (especially those with a back ground in finance) will do just fine, others may opt to hire an accountant to help with the book keeping. If you feel like this might be a weak point you might want to consider hiring MLC Properties and Management.