Hiring a manager for your Columbus rental property is always a good decision. The question is, should you hire an on-site agent or is an off-site manager good enough?
According to a standard rule of thumb, if you own up to a dozen single-family units, you may not need to hire an on-site person. However, if you own a large asset with 70 to 80 units, such as a multifamily unit, you would probably need an on-site agent.
If you already own a multifamily unit, or you're planning to buy one, here is how you can decide whether to get an on-site property handler.
Advantages of hiring an on-site property manager
Multifamily properties contain multiple units within a single building that are mainly used for residential purposes. Hiring an on-site rental manager for such an asset can help you in many ways. The manager can assist in showing units and walking the tenants through the building; managing the trash and caring for the common areas of the property are also important tasks.
Availability
An on-site property manager can respond to the complaints or requests of tenants immediately. Quick response is a great form of service that reassures your tenants that their problems will be promptly heard and solved.
Loyalty
On-site property managers also have a sense of loyalty and responsibility towards the property. Since they are emotionally invested in the place, they do their best to keep it on point and make all apartment-related processes hassle-free. This plays a crucial role in improving tenant retention significantly.
Disadvantages of hiring an on-site property manager
Extra cost/added expense
Hiring an on-site manager comes with additional responsibilities and excess costs. One, they have to be paid more, as compared to off-site property managers.
In addition, you will also need to accommodate them in your rental space, either by building a separate unit for the person and his/her family or by offering a unit in the apartment building, effectively foregoing the rent on one of your rental units. As an owner, you need to calculate these potential expenses versus the savings, before making the final decision.
Keeping them busy is a task
On-site managers are, in a way, your full-time employees. Consequently, you need to ensure that they have enough work to cover all their working hours. Many times, since on-site managers live and work in the same space, it can become difficult to keep track of their activities. There is no way to know if they are being productive with their managerial duties. Besides, constant monitoring can become exhausting for the owner over a period of time.
Their safety is your responsibility
Since an on-site handler works and stays on your premises, the investment property owner is responsible for their safety. You need to ensure that he/she lives in a safe environment, has adequate safety resources and plans in case of an emergency.
On the whole, having an on-site manager can be feasible if you own a lot of real estate, but it can be more trouble than it is worth for the sake of a few properties.
Today, with technology at your disposal, the need of having a person on the site all the time has considerably diminished. Communication can be conducted through emails and phone calls, and off-site property managers can provide you the same service if not better.
In fact, you can consider getting in touch with a trusted and experienced property management firm such as Solutions for Real Estate (S4RE), Columbus, Ohio, that can take care of all your investment property-related concerns and responsibly provide solutions without making you spend additional expenses hiring on-site managers. Connect with us to discuss your rental investment queries.
