Know What Your Rental Property Before You Buy It.

Evaluating the profitability of rental property can be quite a difficult task, which is why it pays to do some research if you are unfamiliar with the steps you need to take when thinking of buying a rental property. What can you do to ensure a good deal? Here are some tips and tricks you may want to keep in mind:

Rental Property Buying Tip #1: Location, Location, Location

Let’s face it, there are properties that seem to have high-yield potential. Upon closer look however, maintenance costs may actually be more than what you bargained for, thus leaving you with expenses that are worth far more than the amount of money you make off them. When buying rental properties, take the time to personally inspect the neighborhood before making a decision. Take note of the average number of people looking to rent in the area, the median rates for different types of rentals, and of course, the crime rate in the neighborhood. All these will help you determine whether or not the money you shell out will indeed be worth the investment.

Rental Property Buying Tip #2: History Matters

Exercise your right to information by conducting property record searches on the rentals you have in mind. These records are open to the public and can easily be obtained from the county recorder’s office, city hall, or county courthouse. Doing so will give you insight to the property’s history including citations from annual property inspections, changes made to the property without authorization, and any other maintenance issues that can take a toll on your finances.

You can also conduct property record searches to determine the number of times a property has been put up for sale, how long the previous owner had it, pending foreclosures (which opens the possibility of a short sale), and any encumbrances or liens placed on the rental that may or may not affect your decision to make an offer.

Rental Property Buying Tip #3: Use a Property Investment Calculator

One important reason why you should use a property investment calculator when buying rental properties is the fact that some sellers often ask for more than a property is actually worth. As such, it is easy to be fooled into signing a contract that you think is a great deal only to discover that the property is not worth it in terms of profitability. There are free property investment calculators online. Utilize these as often as needed and compare the results with the property’s fair market value so you don’t get ripped off of the asking price.

Rental Property Buying Tip #4: Calculate Maintenance Costs

Determine how much money it takes to maintain the property you want to purchase until such time you find an ideal exit strategy a few years from when you first bought it. This allows you to have a clear picture of the expenses needed to finance the property and whether you can afford the costs.

Rental Property Buying Tip #5: Plot Your Annual Investment Expenses

It is important that you know how much you are expected to spend in one year just to be able to manage your investments. You can use this information to compare projected expenses against projected earnings of the property, and this alone can help you decide whether or not to go for the rentals you have in mind.

Rental Property Buying Tip #6: The Question of Profitability

Return on investment (ROI) possibilities are always a priority when buying rental properties. Any expert will tell you that a rental property is not worth it if it does not provide you with a definite structure as to how and when you will be able to recoup the amount of money you put in. Check if the profits you gain from the rentals can cover all maintenance expenses while still leaving you with a nice profit. A profitable rental will pay for itself sooner than later, but is up to you to determine whether the property you choose can in fact help you succeed in your plans.

The post 6 Sensible Tips on Buying Rental Properties appeared first on Happy Inspector.

     We all know that property management can be a time consuming job. All day you are running around from one rental property to the next. As you run around you have to take inspection reports so that you can adequately take care of the properties and keep the landlords happy. To add to it, when your inspecting rental properties, you have to write reports by hand, taking photos and notes, all the while trying to keep all the information organized; this just makes things even harder. In a day and age, where nearly everything is run through a tablet, whether it’s managing your businesses finances or buying a pack of gum, tablets now perform a hefty amount of services that make life much easier. It only makes sense that managing your properties and inspecting them should be this easy. Fortunately, there are rental property software solutions already on the market and work with your tablet and mobile phone.

     Here are a few reasons why you should drop the pen and paper and pick up your tablet.

1. Speed
   It’s frustrating when you have gone through an inspection and made sure not to mark the wrong box, but at the very end you make that fatal mistake. With apps like Happy Inspector you can rate any area of the house with the click of a button. Is the counter damaged? Mark it down with one click. Is the master bedroom pristine? Easily drag your finger along the section for the master bedroom and watch the entire row populate in a snap.

2. Notes
   Note taking can be annoying, especially when you are trying to take down every little note, suggestion, or complaint about a property. Also, notes can be misplaced, lost, forgotten and hard to understand later on. Property inspection apps change this by allowing you to take notes that are organized and easily to find. Notes can be edited and attached to specific parts or areas of the house. No more having to track them down later on.

3. Photos
   Toting around a camera can be a tedious job and transferring them from camera to computer to your document is a time consuming task. Wouldn’t it be great if you could simplify this task in to a two-step process? Point and shoot. You can! Check out this property management app.

4. Organization
   Keeping paper files so 80’s. Instead of having to search your home computer or your filing drawer for a past inspection all your files are kept on the cloud and stored in a house by house filing system.  See it in action here!

No one likes to waste time, take a step in to a Happier Inspection.

The post Be More Efficient With Rental Property Software appeared first on Happy Inspector.

This is what they had to say:

“Property management companies should focus on developing their employees into great teams. They should set high expectations with their employees and demand accountability. They should strive to hire people smarter than themselves and always provide a great working environment. The real key is getting the right people, in the right job positions, doing the right things.”

–Mike Levy, Author of 50 Interviews: Successful Property Managers

“My best advice for owners is: enable your managers and leasing agents to give great customer service and go the extra mile for your residents by having sufficient maintenance and office staff in order to be able to make repairs quickly. The resident experience as it relates to maintenance requests and customer service is such an important factor in resident retention. In the long run, keeping residents happy saves you lots of money. Also, you’ve got to have a great web site that not only represents your community well in terms of design, but effectively captures contact info for leads.

My best advice for on-site staff is to just remember that residents are people too. Of course, you have to be careful in terms of fair housing and you can’t have favorites or best friends from among your residents, but you can be attentive, kind and understanding in your interactions with them. Encourage yourself and your staff to treat residents with respect and consideration. This goes a long way in terms of the reputation of your community both on-line and in person.”

–Crystal Hadidan, Client Creative Director, Resident360

“I have worked with clients ranging from the first time landlord, to the seasoned investor. In both my personal and my business life, I believe in always trying to give back. My client’s needs are always on my mind, and of the upmost importance. If I had to choose 1 piece of advice to give, putting client’s first would be it.”

–Ian Joseph, Managing Broker, Miller Laine Property Management

“I think the best advice that I could give to someone just starting out in this business is to join NARPM®. I say this not because I sit on the National board but because I believe that the education and the networking within NARPM® can’t be beat. I have been in Property Management since 1991 and a member of NARPM® since 1997.

Since becoming a member I have been able to complete all my continuing education requirements for my real estate license. I have had many opportunities to talk and gain valuable information from Property Managers across the country. NARPM® has provided me with the opportunity to grow our company, as well as gain the knowledge that is needed to be a leader in our industry. Property management is a constantly changing industry. You have to wear different hats depending on whom and what you are talking to and about. To be a at the top of your game in this industry knowledge is power and that’s what I get from being a member of ‘The National Association of Residential Property Managers’”

–Leanne Ghiglione, VP of Operations, Dave Poletti & Associates

“If you are a new entrant to the property management field, work for the most highly regarded professionals who will teach you the most. The best way to enhance your career is to have the best mentor and to work for the best companies possible. Finding these companies takes research and patience. Just taking the first job that comes along may not be the best career path in the long run, however, you have to demonstrate your worth to the best people as well. The best people look for the best people, because they can.”

–Linda Day Harrison, Founder, theBrokerList

“Call people back. I am a stickler for communication. It is essential to running a successful business. With my busy calendar, if I can call everyone back, I expect the same from my staff. Communication will make or break your business.”

–John R. Bradford, III, MBA, MPM®, RMP®, Broker & Firm Owner, Park Avenue Properties

“I would have to say that the most important advice I would give any person or persons attempting to either perfect what they have or to start out fresh would be to seek education in their field of expertise. Surround and associate yourself with your successful peers. Just as one would not ask for advice on jewels from a baker, we should only seek knowledge and advice from those who do this for a living and succeed. Always be open minded enough to know that you do not always know. Never stop learning.”

–Rob Ferrier, President, First Class Management

“To excel in the property management business, one must be the Ultimate Jack-of-All-Trades: accountant, lawyer, broker, handyman, psychologist, janitor, sales man, web designer, photographer, trusted confidant, copy writer, financial advisor, and 24-custormer call center.”

–Trevor Henson PMP, Corporate Officer, First Light Property Management

“Take advantage and embrace any provided training from your company and be of the mindset that you also need to self-educate. Education makes you thirsty for more. Do not feel out paced by social media and the speed that things are shifting but do self pace your routine with the goal of ultimate self empowerment. Be present. Be prepared. Be profound.”

–Jonathan Saar, VP of Marketing, The Training Factor

“Embrace technology, respond well to change, and adapt and innovate. The property management industry is growing and evolving. What are you doing everyday to leave your mark or build a legacy?”

–Brenton Hayden, CEO and Founder, Renter’s Warehouse

“Learn to do your job, whatever it is: leasing, administrative, maintenance, and do it with joy. If you hate your job, it will show and you never want your Residents to see that. We’re in the relationship business, so build trust, maintain integrity, and have a sense of humor. Educate yourself in this field. Finally, embrace a mentor if you are as lucky as I am, to have a fantastic one!”

–Mindy Sharp, Senior Community Manager, McKinley Inc. (LinkedIn Profile)

“The best career advice I can give is to remember that all NOI is local so your onsite team must know more about the community and market than anyone else in the company. That said, your onsite team must also be trusted to make the decisions about how to operate the community. If you don’t trust your team, replace them with people you do trust – otherwise, just move to the community and run it yourself!”

–Doug Chasick, The Apartment Doctor

“My best advice? Communication is key. Learn to listen more and talk less. If a client is upset, just hear them out first. Once they feel they have been heard, then a resolution is much easier to achieve.”

–Jennifer Stoops, Regional Sales Manager, Park Avenue Properties

“When I first got started in this business, a wise man told me that the two golden rules of property management are:

1. Get the property in rentable condition.
2. Price it right.

If we do these two things, we have a very good chance of being successful. If we don’t do these things, we will certainly fail.

It seems simple and obvious, but people get it wrong all the time.”

–Duke Dodson, Owner, Dodson Property Management

“This is a tough industry so the best advice I can give to someone new to property management is to associate yourself with an organization of your peers who will be a resource and support system for you. NARPM has been this for me and has played an integral part in my career and success as a property manager. I would also encourage everyone to be a student of their industry, become and expert and resource and never stop learning and looking for ways to improve.”

–Danny Harlow, VP of Operations, Park Place Property Management

“Get a good staff of people who believe in the company culture. Have a good software program that you can rely on to be consistent and responsive. Treat your owners honestly and your tenants fairly. Know the expectations of your clients and exceed them — set the bar high. This will make your tenants and owners “ambassadors” of your business. Word of mouth is the best advertising you can get.

We believe that we can help everyone … and we do what we can for clients and customers. If we can’t help them, we plug them into other resources (or PM’s) who may be able to help.

Always look for new systems, or technology, to grow your business and allow your business to grow.”

–Jorgette Krsulic, Property Manager, Colorado Casa

“Before deciding your career decide what you want to do with your life. Select a career that makes you happy every day and also in line with your life goal. If you cannot work in your chosen field right away work part time and do not lose sight of your goals. That is what I did.”

–Mohamed Sulthar RMP, President, Sulthar Properties

“You’ve got to follow your passion. Real estate takes a leap of faith starting out because you are starting a job that provides no salary and no guarantees. You have to use the passion to fuel you to jump right in and hit the ground running. Try to find a successful property manager in your local marketplace and see if they would be willing to mentor you. You would be surprised at how much some people are willing to help out. It may even lead to a job!.”

–Dustin McClure, Property Manager, McClure Property Management

“To be successful in this business several things must come together. Obviously having owners who care and value what you do– day in a day out, sets the culture for an organization. Location always matters however being the best at what you do matters even more! The goal is to have associates that will ‘slay dragons’ for you, and who always go the extra mile. If you show me a broken property, I will show you a broken staff every time. The key is putting the right people in the right positions as excellence always follows that! Leadership by example is what raises the bar and my definition of a great leader is ‘someone who will take you to a place you could not take yourself’.

This is the greatest business in the whole wide world as anyone with the right smarts, the right attitude, in the right organization can get ahead!”

–Joy Anzalone, Chief Operating Officer, Burton Carol Managment

Do you have advice you’d like to add to the list? Feel free to submit it below and we’ll add it, as well as announce your contribution on Twitter!

The post 19 Property Management Industry Leaders Share Their Best Career Advice appeared first on Happy Inspector.

Property managers face a burdened workload, constant interruptions, a deluge of information, staff and tenant issues – in short, there is way too much to do and not enough time to accomplish it.

According to the National Association of Professional Organizers, we waste an average of 40% of the workday. Not for lack of trying; it’s because of bad organizing skills to cope with the ever-increasing workloads and demands.

One of the biggest challenges for property managers is to complete all tasks efficiently and accurately. Given the number of interruptions you get during the day, completing a fraction of must-do tasks is remarkable. Furthermore, regaining your attentiveness after a distraction takes a few minutes.

How many times are you distracted each day? Maybe it’s about 10 times a day? Multiply the amount of time lost by 10, and you can see why the quality and quantity of work can suffer.

On any given business day, property managers act on a number of issues:

• Negotiating leases with existing tenants
• Negotiations with prospective tenants seeking to occupy vacant space
• Addressing maintenance issues
• On-going discussions with current tenants regarding occupancy issues in their existing lease
• Chasing payments for outstanding arrears
• Inspecting properties to ensure compliance
• Reviewing lease documentation for critical dates
• Completing reports to property owners involving property upkeep and lease management,
• Reviewing vendor contracts and negotiating quotes
• Performing capital improvements, income and expenditure analysis
• Marketing and networking

As you can see, a jam-packed schedule that’s bursting at the seams has the potential for disaster. And in the midst of all your activities, you move from one task to another without completing any of the priority issues.

The key to efficiency is planning. When you have a plan written down you avoid the distractions.

Where Does My Time Go?

Simple changes to your work habits and mindset will get you on track. Here are some ideas to help:

1. Build each workday around a simple plan that allows you to complete priority tasks first thing in the morning. Mornings are when we have the momentum for decision making, so focus this time to developing your schedule.
2. Break down your daily time-consuming tasks into smaller increments and try to complete a task before moving on to the next.
3. Devote mid-mornings to reviewing your emails and returning telephone calls. Of course, every email and telephone call has the potential to derail your daily plan. Handle high priority problems immediately and when possible, delegate work.
4. Afternoons should be reserved for activities out of the office. This includes meetings with vendors, landlords, tenants, and property inspections.
5. At the end of every day, review your schedule to see how much you accomplished and if any tasks requires follow-up or re-scheduling.

Simplicity and time management is the key to an effective workday. Yes you will encounter days when this plan will not be achievable due to some unintended event; however for every hour you devote to planning, you’ll save 3 to 4 hours from poorly managed tasks, so it definitely pays off handsomely to stick to a schedule.

The post Time Management for Property Managers appeared first on Happy Inspector.

HotPads

HotPads helps you search for an apartment in a unique way. Most apartment search engines just use the standard city/price search but HotPads uses heat maps. When you search for an apartment, heat maps of various data such as population density, household income, median age, and median rent in that area pop up. These heat maps offer a comprehensive and unique way of looking at your future neighborhood that simply using a standard apartment search engine cannot. HotPads also gives you a look at the price of the apartments compared to others in different zip codes, cities, countries, and states and even lets you search for roommates or rooms to sublet. It’s a truly comprehensive and novel way of apartment hunting online.

WilliamPaid

From accessing your bank accounts to watching movies, there’s nothing you can’t do online these days. So why not pay your rent online? WilliamPaid is an easy way to do just that. With WilliamPaid, you don’t have to write a rent check or trek to the mailbox; your rent will automatically be taken out of your bank account for you each month. It’s one less bill you will have to worry about keeping track of at the end of the month. No more coordinating rent checks with your roommates or forgetting your rent check on your way out of the door in the morning. WilliamPaid even lets you pay your rent with cash, pay your rent with multiple cards, earn rewards from your bank, and build your credit score by reporting your rent payments to a credit bureau.

Walkscore

WalkScore is an online neighborhood-rating tool that helps you choose the best neighborhood for you to move to based on proximity to conveniences within walking distance. Living in a big city, I use WalkScore to know how close I am to public transportation, a grocery store, and coffee shops. WalkScore measures the “walkability” of your neighborhood on a 100-point scale. It shows you how close you are in walking distance to restaurants, transportation, gyms, coffee shops, and many other conveniences that are important to have in your neighborhood. All of these features make walkscore an essential tool for apartment searching as well.

This is a guest post from WilliamPaid.com a service that allows renters to pay their rent online for free.

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