Well, who would have known after our first Quickstart in June, that property management would be the biggest fly in the investment ointment? I remember Don and Russell both telling us that we would make plenty of mistakes, that we should count on it and that we would learn some of our best lessons from our mistakes. I also vaguelly remember hearing that learning is often costly, but who really listens to that stuff when starting out?
Long story short: we bought three properties within one month of Quickstart and within three months of joining REIN. Our first two were in Grande Prairie. We took possession mid-August, and they have been vacant since. In previous posts I told the story of bad property management. The saga continues, because as yet, we have not found a workable solution.
I know that one company in GP has a reputation for billing owners for maintenance and cleaning that has never happened. I know from talking to many tenants that most of the companies rarely return tenants` phone calls or do maintenance in a timely fashion. I heard from another investor today that the company they have a contract with (his place has been vacant since September) told him that there have been a few "showings" of his place, but that they don`t know how they have gone because they just hand the keys to people who inquire and tell them to go see the place themselves! His house is a beautiful property with an attached garage and it sits unnoticed due to lousy management. What`s to keep someone from cutting keys and coming back one night after renters have moved in?
We have lost at least two families and possibly more prospective tenants that we have sent to two companies, never to be heard from again. We have made three trips north (we live in Edmonton) to show our place, put up signs, etc., but we can`t keep this up. We`ve considered managing our places ourselves, but it is very difficult from this distance, and we`re not sure that it `s a good idea even if we could make it work.
Don mentioned at the Edmonton meeting last night that we need answers to the property management problem in Grande Prairie. We really do. I`ve heard from several investors who tell a similar story, and we are all looking for a trustworthy management company who will do the job in Grande Prairie.
Does anyone out there have an answer?
On the positive side, we have learned so much this past little while. I can now write dynamite ads that really do get people`s attention. It`s a lot of fun and very rewarding to hear people call and say that they picked my ad out of pages of other ads. We now know how to question tenants on the phone and pre-screen them that way. We know how to show our place and how to not bother booking showings for certain people. We`ve learned the hard way what to look for in a management company, or shall I say, what to make sure isn`t there? Lastly, we learned that a person ought to line up a management company before buying. Fundamentals aren`t enough if there is no management! That`s probably the biggest lesson that we have learned.
We worked hard to set up a team of professsionals before the purchase. We did it by the book: mortgage broker, lawyer, assessor, inspector, realtor, check, check, check, . . . When it came to a management company, we just took a referral and trusted that it would work. We didn`t even interview the first company. Mistake number one.
Once we rent these properties, we will move on to our next purchase, but guess what? We will find a management company first.
That`s my food for thought for today. Happy investing!
Long story short: we bought three properties within one month of Quickstart and within three months of joining REIN. Our first two were in Grande Prairie. We took possession mid-August, and they have been vacant since. In previous posts I told the story of bad property management. The saga continues, because as yet, we have not found a workable solution.
I know that one company in GP has a reputation for billing owners for maintenance and cleaning that has never happened. I know from talking to many tenants that most of the companies rarely return tenants` phone calls or do maintenance in a timely fashion. I heard from another investor today that the company they have a contract with (his place has been vacant since September) told him that there have been a few "showings" of his place, but that they don`t know how they have gone because they just hand the keys to people who inquire and tell them to go see the place themselves! His house is a beautiful property with an attached garage and it sits unnoticed due to lousy management. What`s to keep someone from cutting keys and coming back one night after renters have moved in?
We have lost at least two families and possibly more prospective tenants that we have sent to two companies, never to be heard from again. We have made three trips north (we live in Edmonton) to show our place, put up signs, etc., but we can`t keep this up. We`ve considered managing our places ourselves, but it is very difficult from this distance, and we`re not sure that it `s a good idea even if we could make it work.
Don mentioned at the Edmonton meeting last night that we need answers to the property management problem in Grande Prairie. We really do. I`ve heard from several investors who tell a similar story, and we are all looking for a trustworthy management company who will do the job in Grande Prairie.
Does anyone out there have an answer?
On the positive side, we have learned so much this past little while. I can now write dynamite ads that really do get people`s attention. It`s a lot of fun and very rewarding to hear people call and say that they picked my ad out of pages of other ads. We now know how to question tenants on the phone and pre-screen them that way. We know how to show our place and how to not bother booking showings for certain people. We`ve learned the hard way what to look for in a management company, or shall I say, what to make sure isn`t there? Lastly, we learned that a person ought to line up a management company before buying. Fundamentals aren`t enough if there is no management! That`s probably the biggest lesson that we have learned.
We worked hard to set up a team of professsionals before the purchase. We did it by the book: mortgage broker, lawyer, assessor, inspector, realtor, check, check, check, . . . When it came to a management company, we just took a referral and trusted that it would work. We didn`t even interview the first company. Mistake number one.
Once we rent these properties, we will move on to our next purchase, but guess what? We will find a management company first.
That`s my food for thought for today. Happy investing!
