Get Seen. Get Sold.
Get Seen. Get Sold.
Article By Dylan Hasson
When it comes to managing rental investments, landlords need to consider their options of managing their properties themselves, or using a professional Property Manager. Many landlords quickly dismiss the idea of using a Property Manager, with the sole reasoning that it’s “cheaper” to self-manage. Although in some instances this may be the case, it is not always the case however, and by having a professional Property Manager can often save landlords more money in the long run.
I’ve compiled a few points for landlords to consider when making a decision for their property management.
1) Professional Level Marketing.
The very first thing which I often notice in privately listed rentals vs professionally listed rentals is the quality of photographs and quality of the listing overall. While this may not seem like a big issue, having your listing look as eye-catching as possible will help attract quality tenants who may have otherwise scrolled past your listing without second thought.
Putting together a good listing also involves using good wording that describes your property and surrounding amenities well.
There are of course exceptions, and often I do come across listings from management companies where the quality of the photos and copy is sub-par. So if you are a landlord considering using a property manager, take the time to have a look at property manager or their company’s other listings to ensure they would represent you as a landlord and your property to a high standard.
2) Doing Background Checks For Potential Tenants.
You’re about to allow a “stranger” to live in your property and hope that they will take care of it as if it were their own. The right tenant can make your property investment feel like a dream and the wrong tenant can make it feel like a nightmare.
A rental property is a huge financial investment and risk, so not ensuring you are putting the right tenant in your property, especially without recommended insurances, could result in huge financial damage.
Talking from experience of our own family properties, one of the best tenants we’ve ever had was a migrant from Angola and one of the worst tenants we’ve ever had was a respectable looking person who proudly boasted about being a devout Christian and churchgoer – so doing the correct checks on applicants can save you A LOT of problems and headaches down the line. This is an area where good Property Managers are well worth their fees and set themselves apart from “cheap” companies, as they will do in-depth checks on applicants and discuss them with you as the landlord.
3) Legally - What Are Your Rights & What Are Your Tenants Rights?
It’s YOUR property & you can have access to it whenever you want, right? Nope, that’s not how it works. Your tenant is paying for the use of your property and they have a right to their privacy. Although access to the property cannot be unreasonably denied, correct and timely notice must be given to a tenant.
As someone who works in the industry, I would certainly urge private landlords to become very familiar with the laws and rules of their local council or country and what rights they have as a landlord as well as what rights their tenants have. The laws we adhere to here in Auckland differ slightly to the laws I need to adhere to as a landlord in South Africa.
The inspiration for this article came from just this last week after I learned of a private landlord who went onto his property grounds to carry out routine lawn maintenance. He was seen on camera looking through a window into the house and was subsequently fined for doing to. On social media groups, I often see landlords seeking advice along the lines of “My tenant is not paying rent, how can I evict them?” and getting responses along the lines of “Remove the front doors and windows” and “have an electrician cut the power to the property”, etc – a large percentage of VERY bad advice which if done, could land the landlord in hot water and result in substantial loss of income.
4) Does Your Property Legally Comply To Be Rented Out In The First Place?
Sadly, many people have fallen seriously ill in rental properties over the years due to the properties not being up to safe livable standards. As a result, laws come into effect to help raise the standards of rental properties by ensuring they meet safe and livable conditions which help protect and prevent tenants from falling ill.
Here in New Zealand, all private rentals must comply with the healthy homes standards by 1 July 2025 – Failure to do so, landlords may be liable for exemplary damages of up to $7200. (Read Here from Tenancy.govt.nz)
“My home is brand new so it must be healthy homes compliant.” Not necessarily – Although the chance is good that your home is healthy homes compliant, just because it’s new does not guarantee that it meets healthy homes compliancy and new properties have been found not to be compliant, usually due to an inadequate heat pump. Landlords need to have their homes assessed to ensure they meet healthy homes compliancy.
Professional Property Managers undergo continuous training to ensure that they stay up to date with various compliances and are knowledgeable on the requirements of property rentals.
5) Are You Prepared To Handle Problems & Emergencies?
As a landlord you’d likely be the first to hear about a problem or an emergency, whether it’s during the day while you’re at work or late at night long after you’ve gone to bed. Or, if you’re unlucky, you might be the last to be told about a problem and only find out after substantial damage has been done to your property (which could have been prevented).
Incidents happen and as Murphy’s law would have it, they will probably happen at the worst possible times. A good Property Manager will be on hand to assist where they can from receiving requests to handle problems to arranging for maintenance to be done on your behalf with minimal disturbance and inconvenience to you.
My Thoughts…
Personally, I’ve been involved with property one way or another over many years and have met many very successful property investors as well as many who have tried investing in property and found it to be a nightmare. Successful property investment is not a completely hands-off approach, especially if self-managed. Although it’s certainly possible to self-manage a property and be very successful at it, a landlord needs to realistically evaluate their individual circumstances – Do they have the time and are they willing to handle the responsibilities such as routine inspections, maintenance, etc.? Possibly with a full-employment and other commitments? Or does it make sense to have a Property Manager handle the majority of responsibilities with their management fees just being included as a cost of the investment?
I hope this article has been informative and provided you with some value. Remember, good property professionals are there to help you with your property needs, even if there’s no business in it, so don’t hesitate to reach out to your trusted property advisor for help. And if you don’t already have one, feel free to reach out to me.
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