A.D. Cantelmo Property Management
Our Business is Property Management in Orange County California
What to ask before hiring a new Property Management Company
In our last couple of blogs we have talked about the
problems people have with their Property Management Companies, "Why your Property Management company ignores you" and "Leaving your Property Management Company", but today I want
to talk about what to ask before hiring a new company once you finally decide to
switch. I have to disclose that I have a stake in this topic, since I get many
new clients that have left their old companies in order to find a company that
actually does the job they expect.
Let’s talk about the difference between a small Property
Management company and a large company. I have talked to many people after they
have come to my small Property Management Company and they told me that they
thought that a large company would be a better fit. Their fear was that a small
company would not have the resources that were needed to do the job. In the
end, they found the large company was more interested in becoming larger then
doing a good job.
I am not going to bash any company and large or small, a
company is only as good as the people who run them. Most of the time when you
deal with a large company you will lose the individual service that a small
company can provide. Most large companies will have a staff that will deal with
you and that staff may or may not be involved with your property.
The biggest complaint I get from people who have
left a large company is the communication is very poor. Getting information on
their property seems to take an act of Congress and many times they just give
up. With a small company, you should be able to expect a more personal service.
Finding a new company once you have been burned by your old
company can be a difficult task. Let’s look at some of the things you can do to
help you make a good decision.
1. Call and talk to the owner, or Broker. If you are unable to talk to the person in charge, then it is best to move on.
2. Ask if there will be a dedicated manager for your property, and if that person will be your contact. The last thing you want is to talk to a different person every time you call.
3. Ask if you can talk to some of their clients. Many of my clients are willing to talk to prospective clients. You may say that a company will only give you clients to talk to that will give a good review, but asking the right questions should give you an Idea of what a company does for their clients.
4. Ask if they will be willing to do a month to month contract. You should not have to endure staying with a company that you are not happy with just because you signed a contract.
5. Ask if you will be able to be involved with any new Tenant decisions. This may or may not be something you want to get involved with, but you should have that option.
6. Ask if you can use your own vendors to do any repairs. They should allow you to give them a list of your personal vendors to work on your property. If they decline, then a red flag should go up.
7. Make sure they will provide you with all relevant paperwork that pertains to the property and the Tenant. As I have said in other blogs, you want to make sure that you are not caught with not having that information if you decide to leave
.
8. Next, you want to make sure that your property will be
visited, now that California law requires that smoke and c/o alarms are to be
inspected every 6 months, there is no excuse for properties to be ignored.
9. You should find
out what law firm is used in case an eviction is warranted. You should call
that firm and find out the cost if it comes to that.
These 9 questions will help you make a more informed
decision when it comes to hiring a new Property Management Company.
A.D. Cantelmo Property
Management Specializes in Property Management in Orange County
Ca.