What does a property manager do?
Owning real estate in Australia can be made simpler by placing your rental property in the hands of a registered property manager. In this guide, we explore the role of property managers, their responsibilities and how to choose a manager.
What Can You Expect from a Property Manager?
For Landlords: Their main responsibilities are to market your rental, choose tenants, and, as the name implies, manage your property.
Depending on your needs and agreement, you can assign a manager to handle one or more of these tasks:
- Negotiate and collect rent
- Prepare a tenancy agreement
- Lodge and collect bond payments
- Conduct regular inspections
- Arrange repairs and maintenance
- Provide relevant notices and financial statements
- Pay council rates and taxes from the rent
- Issue termination notices to difficult tenants
Experienced managers understand the local market well and how potential changes could impact your investment.
For Tenants: Since their commission is paid by the landlord, their services are free for tenants.
Property managers will:
- Provide a selection of rental homes
- Prepare tenancy agreements
- Collect payments
- Address maintenance requests, damages, noise complaints, etc.
- Act on these promptly
- Respect your peace and privacy
How to Choose a Property Manager
Gone are the days of simple rent collection. Look for a property manager with extensive industry experience and deep knowledge of your investment area. They should provide a detailed record of their services and fees. The Real Estate Institute of Australia suggests asking questions such as:
- What are your processes for choosing tenants?
- Can you explain your charges?
- How will you maximize my return and optimize capital growth?
- How would you market the property, and why?
If their answers satisfy you, you might have found the right manager. But like any relationship, don’t rush into it.
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Owning real estate in Australia can be made simpler by placing your rental property in the hands of a registered property manager, employed by a licensed real estate agency. This can alleviate the day-to-day worries of managing rental properties.
