San Diego property management companies offer property owners a number of beneficial services. These services include marketing your properties, screening residents, handling property maintenance and repairs, collecting your rent, responding to residents’ complaints and handling evictions. But even when considering these benefits, you may be thinking about managing your property on your own in order to save money.
Before you make this decision, it’s important to understand when working with a property management company far outweighs the cost of doing it yourself. The following are some of the times when you should strongly consider hiring a property management company.
You can afford the fee of a property management company
Most San Diego property management companies will charge a leasing fee to fill your vacancies along with a flat percentage or rate of the rent you are charging after the lease has been signed, plus expenses for things like repairs. If you have no problem being able to afford these costs, then it should be a no-brainer as the only real reason not to work with a property management company. It will save a lot of time.
You own more than one property
Handling the marketing and management of a single property might be doable on your own, but if you own more than one rental property, you’re going to start running into difficulties. The more properties or units you own, the more work will need to be done. Think about it – owning two properties is going to require twice the amount of work as owning one. So if you own even more than two, you’ll definitely need to work with a property management company.
You don’t live nearby your rental properties
Even if you only own a single rental property, it’s going to be difficult to manage it if you live far away. For example, if your resident calls you up with a problem, the last thing you’ll want to do is drive five hours to check up on it. Management requires a lot of hands-on attention – and if you’re too far away to provide hands-on attention, you’ll want a property management company to take that responsibility from you.
You don’t want to handle all of the day-to-day management tasks
While some rental property owners enjoy the management aspect of the business, many simply view their rental property as an investment and want to deal with their residents as little as possible. A property management company will handle all of the required management tasks for you, from maintaining the property, performing repairs, collecting rent, handling legal matters and more.
You can no longer handle the day-to-day management tasks
Some owners may enjoy interacting with their residents and take pride in keeping their property in good shape. However, if your rental business is growing and you’re investing in more properties, you may no longer be capable of handling all of the necessary management tasks on your own and need the help of a property management company.
You don’t have the time to manage your property
Maybe your rental property is an investment you’ve made on the side and you have a full career you’re focusing on. If this is the case, then there’s no way you have the time to do any of the property management tasks on your own. Working with a property management company will allow you to focus on things that are more important to you, such as your career. Or maybe you simply want to have some time to yourself for your hobbies and don’t want to be busy all day long.
You don’t want to be responsible for any employees
If you decide to manage your rental property (or properties) on your own, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll need to hire a few people to work for you, such as a resident manager. As soon as you become an employer, you’re burdened with a whole new set of responsibilities.
Because San Diego property management companies are independent contractors, you’ll avoid all of the hassles of being an employer. A property management company will also take care of hiring any other independent contractors to work on your property.
You participate in the affordable housing program
By being part of the affordable housing program, you’ll receive some financial assistance in the form of a grant, tax credits or low-interest loans. In return, you’ll need to lease your property to residents below a certain income level. But this isn’t the only stipulation – there are numerous rules you’ll have to follow, which a property management company can help with.
These are a few instances when hiring a property management company is the best option. For help finding San Diego property management companies, check out our 30 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Property Management Company.