7 Reasons Why You Should Hire A Property Manager

Whether you have just bought your first investment property, have been managing your own properties for years, are testing the rental market because you’re not ready to sell… whatever your motive may be, hiring a property manager has probably crossed your mind. Read on for 7 reasons why you should seriously consider doing so:

1. Your time is valuable - In a perfect world, you’ll find the perfect tenant right after you post your ad, they pay you rent on time, nothing breaks down, and the cycle repeats year after year. Ahhh the freedom to enjoy your life while the money rolls in! But we all know that this is not reality. Likely, you work full time, or maybe you live away, have children or pets, hobbies, and other commitments. Add on top of that: marketing, finding a tenant, maintenance, collecting/chasing rent, lease violations, tenant or neighbour complaints, and suddenly you’re all out of time. Even the process of drawing up the lease takes time. And your time is valuable. Property managers will have systems already in place to run your property like the effective money-making investment you dreamed it would be, so you can get back to whatever your day-to-day life looks like.
2. Better tenants & larger pool of prospects – The goal is to find a great tenant and avoid vacancy periods. An experienced property manager will know how to screen out potential bad tenants by asking the right questions and reading between the answers. They will also have extensive programs in place for marketing and promoting your property so it reaches a much larger audience. They may even have a waiting list of potential tenants already lined up. 
3. Property managers know the law – How much do you know about the Residential Tenancies Act? Or how/when the Condominium Property Act comes into play? We all want to avoid legal hassles along the way, and it can be easy for property owners to stray into the unlawful, even unintentionally. With an up-to-date and full understanding of the legislation that governs the rental world, your property manager is a valuable asset, who is there to protect you, and handle, if not prevent, any sticky sort of situations.
4. Available 24/7, 365 – Do you enjoy waking up in the middle of the night to a panicked call about an overflowing toilet or a tenant being locked out? Even if it’s a true emergency like a furnace going in the dead of winter, it’s still likely, you would rather be enjoying your weekend unwinding, rather than on the phone coordinating between your tenant and repair man to get fixed whatever it is that needs fixing. Property managers will have a designated 24/7 emergency on-call system in place so you can sleep peacefully through the night and enjoy that weekend with your friends.
5. Competitive rental rates – Fancy photos are not the only way you are going to attract a new tenant. It is your property manager’s job to be aware of the current market trends and ensure your rental rate is competitive for today’s market. So, on one hand you’re not left sitting with an empty over-priced property on your lap, and on the other hand, you’re not, unbeknownst to you, duped into accepting a low-ball offer.
6. Deals with vendors – Because property managers will have a large inventory of properties to maintain, they end up working with the same, trusted vendors, time and time again. Because of this repeat business, property managers will often receive preferred or loyalty rates which will trickle down in savings to you, the owner.
7. Extra set of eyes – Detailed move-in and move-out inspections with photos, along with interim inspections when a tenancy is in place, are all part of protecting your investment. With your property manager’s trained eye, problems may be identified and repaired before they turn into an expensive remediation project. These inspections will also come in handy should a tenant ever try to dispute any damages that occurred over the duration of the tenancy.