Top 5 questions for hiring a Property Management company

Property Management

Hiring the right Property Management Company is like find a traveling partner for a long and unpredictable journey.  The right Property Management company can determine the success or failure of your Rental Income properties.  Here are our Top 5 Questions you should ask before hiring a Property Management company:

Local References : You should Yelp and other reference about the company you are choosing and how they have performed for other clients in the past.

Licensed Activity: Property Management requires a license in most States of the Union  and there are Federal laws that prevent discrimination based on Sex, Race, National Origin, Sexual Orientation, Family Status, Martial Status and Disability.  You can visit  HUD’s Fair Housing Website for information on what constitutes discrimination and untrained Property Management staff can get you into serious trouble with the law.
Tenant Screening Services: Make sure the Property Management company you retain offers extensive background checks include Dept of Motor Vehicles,  Criminal and Employment checks.   One year with a bad tenant, could easily wipe out your rental income of many years.   So, it’s critical that your Property Manager is able to screen for excellent tenants with awesome backgrounds.

Eviction Services: Finally, another critical service that a property management company should offer is Evictions in case you tenants are not making timely payments.   For a complete list of Property Management Services we offers, visit Homestretch Properties site.

Management Fee: The Property Management fee range from 8-10% of the rental income.   Since this fee directly impacts your bottom line you need make sure you negotiate hard on these fees.  There are wide range of fees based on the amount of work the Property Manager is responsible for in your agreement.   The more tasks that are assigned to the property manager, the more fees they will charge. Also, don’t be romanced by the cheaper rates cause as the old saying goes, you get what you pay for.