Perhaps you were intrigued by the title. Or you’re new to the industry and motivated to grow your career or business as a property manager. Whatever the case may be, you should consider offering the following landlord services to maximize future growth opportunities and customer retention for your property management business.
1. Marketing
Arguably one of the most important services you can offer to a property owner is marketing. Knowing how to create and execute targeted campaigns not only gives you a leg up on the competition but it can attract quality tenants (which could decrease costs you may incur for maintenance). Some basic marketing skills you’ll want to master are:
- Copywriting - creating intriguing listings that jump out to potential tenants is a must when there are thousands of other properties out there for their choosing. Is your property close to the freeway? In the best school zone? Or have a bonus room perfect for a man cave or a home office? Make sure your copy conveys this!
- Creating Marketing and Listing Collateral - With so much competition, the ability to create eye-catching materials with professional photographs and quality floorplans is imperative to attract the right tenants. Then make sure your ad feeds to all the major listing platforms and includes your company's logo, contact information, photos, floorplan and list the unit’s best features (this is where copywriting comes in). Make sure to include enough information to leave the potential renter wanting more. Then use that same content to create flyers and pamphlets so you can hand them to prospective tenants during showings and open houses.
- Sales - Once you’ve got a potential renter in the door, it’s time to sell them on the property. Having basic real estate sales techniques can be particularly helpful. Here are a few things to keep in mind when showing a property:
- Make sure the space is clean and tidy, and turn all the lights on and open the blinds.
- Check the temperature in the unit and turn on either the AC or the heat if necessary.
- Declutter and take down any personal photos of the current renter’s family so potential tenants can picture themselves living there.
- Bring renters in through the most appealing entrance and leave the unit’s best features for the end of the tour so it’s the last thing they’ll remember.
- Have flyers with all pertinent information ready for potential tenants to take with them.
- Networking - Part of marketing a property is knowing the right people to contact. This is where networking comes in. Attend business after-hours events, real estate meetups, Chamber of Commerce meetings, and even connect with people through LinkedIn. Being well connected is a great way to find quality tenants who might not have known about your property otherwise. Additionally, expanding your network is a great way to grow your business through word of mouth.
2. Tenant Screening
By far, one of the most important services that you can provide your customers is tenant screenings - which ensures you are placing the highest quality tenants in their properties. You’ll find that most highly-rated property management companies offer in-depth background checks, including:- Credit reports
- Rental history
- Eviction history
- Proof of income
- Employment history
- Background checks
No matter which option you choose, consistency is important. Make sure every prospective tenant goes through the same rigorous screening to create an organized approach and better customer service for your property owners.
3. Managing Rent
One of the biggest headaches of owning a rental property is dealing with finances. Between collecting the security deposit and complying with local regulations, to charging the monthly payments on time, the process can be stressful and tedious. So, it’s no surprise that alleviating that stress for property owners makes the list as a ‘should have’ service.
Offering the management of rent is a great first step, but for property owners to trust you with their hard-earned money, you’ll need to have a process in place to show them you’re reliable.
If you don’t have access to other property or real estate databases, platforms like Zillow and Trulia can be beneficial when setting the rent amount. They allow you to compare other properties in the same area in order to create a fair, attractive price.
Speaking of helpful technology...
Consider partnering with a bank or use a platform like
Propertyware,
Appfolio, or
Buildium, that offers services to pay online or through an app. It creates a convenient way to remind the tenant about rent due dates and offers the ability to make online payments, eliminating the burden that comes with managing paper checks.
Remember, one of the biggest advantages of offering rent management for property owners is that they can look to you for knowledge in that area. So, staying up to date on laws pertaining to agreements, late fees, and even evictions only increases your chance of becoming an owner’s next property manager.
4. Maintenance
A big pain point for property owners is the maintenance that comes with it. No one is happy to get a call at 2 A.M. learning that the heat in their rental is out or a pipe burst. This is why handing the responsibility over to a property manager is an attractive option for those managing their own properties.
Slow response rates on maintenance repairs are one of the highest causes of tenant turnover. Offering maintenance as a service is great but following through in a timely manner with quality work is most important. Consider guaranteeing your property owners a specific response time and frequent on-site maintenance checks to give them peace of mind.
5. Tenant Move-Outs and Evictions
The process of moving out of an apartment for a property owner involves an inspection, determining the security deposit reimbursement, and preparations to list it for rent like cleaning and repairs. Evicting a tenant is all that, plus a stack of paperwork, possible court dates, and lost income for the property owner. Offering to deal with move-outs and evictions is a great service because it can be all-encompassing. Whether it’s a simple move-out and clean situation or a complicated eviction, you’ll have the property owner covered.
With that being said, in the case of an eviction, the lost income will not be covered, and if you’re getting paid from a percentage of rent. that means both you and your client are losing valuable income. Each situation is different, but in the event that your tenant will not pay or move out, you could see months of lost income on top of court visits and fees.
That’s why many property managers offer their landlords rent default insurance, like
Steady. If a renter stops paying rent, breaks the lease or gets evicted, Steady covers the rent until a new tenant takes over. Property owners can choose the amount of coverage from 1.5 to 6 months of loss of rent for one to one thousand properties. Having this additional service not only protects you and your owner, but it extends your offering of services and turns you into a one-stop-shop for the management of any property. Get ready to see a drastic improvement in your customer satisfaction and retention rate!