PropertyManager.com

2 More Ideas on How Property Managers Can Prosper in Today’s Economy: Part 2

Posted on 04. Sep, 2009 by Jennifer Newton in Business

This is the second part of my article on best practices for property managers to continue to grow their business, even during our tough economy. In the first article I talked about providing excellent service to both types of your clients – owners and residents. My second two best practices are around building a strong business strategy.

#3 – Be an expert in your local market

Owners look to us to be the experts on all aspects of property management and stay current on the local market, legislation and trends. We are members of local associations like The National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM) and local realtor boards so we can network and learn from our peers. It is worth the investment to actively participate in these local associations so we can better educate our owners.

Another great opportunity to showcase your market expertise is when you provide guidance on when and how much to increase rents. Start with quantifying the exact costs (time and money) to lose a resident:

• Clean and fix up the unit for the next renter
• Market and post vacancies in multiple places
• Driving back and forth to the property – mileage and labor
• Negative cash flow while the unit waits to be rented.

If you can articulate to an owner the value of a nominal (or zero) rent increase compared with the costs of a vacant unit you will know when you should avoid rent increases and why. Explaining this to an owner shows that you understand the market and provides another example of how you’re managing their investments.

#4 Always look ahead two years

As a property manager it is so easy to be focused on the daily tasks because there are so many! I schedule time in my calendar twice a year to think about where I want my business to be in the next two years so I’m ahead of the curve. I look for a few tangible things we can do to get more productive with my current team, find new business opportunities and think of creative ways we can make more money.

A great activity is to look for two or three routine tasks that can be automated each year:

• Move completely to paperless work orders
• Investigate e-banking
• Use digitally signed leases
• Invest in automated calling services to remind tenants about past due rents
• Improve your vacancy posting process

Finally, take the time to build your referral network now because this downturn will be over before you know it. It takes time and effort to develop relationships with your community, realtors, residents and local associations and we all know that positive word of mouth is the very best way to grow your business.

Related Posts
2 Ideas on How Property Managers Can Prosper in Today’s Economy: Part 1
Ways Property Managers Can Survive a Tough Economy
What Property Managers Should Not Cut Back On In a Tough Economy
Who Wants to Earn a Steady Income? 5 Best Practices to Find New Property Management Clients
Financial Management Plan

Tags: business, communication, owners, resident retention