Property management firms understand, all-too-acutely, that in a competitive market, they need to deliver value to their owner and investor clients. While the starting point is often management fees and fee structures, owners and investors want to be assured that their properties are well looked after and that their profits will continue to grow.
After talking to some of our industry-leading property management clients, here’s how they are delivering value to their owners and investors.
Lowering Vacancy Rates
All owners want to know that you can keep their units occupied at a fair-market rent. That’s why every property manager should know the occupancy rate on a building-by-building basis and across their portfolio as a whole, as well as the average occupancy rate in the market they serve. Being able to keep the units you manage filled with tenants is a huge selling point to prospective new owners.
Lost rental income, maintenance, repairs and cleaning costs, as well as advertising expenses all add up and negatively impact the bottom line. While the type of building and its location play a role, ultimately lower vacancy rates are a sign of a property management company that attends to repairs, keeps tenants happy and has a proven marketing strategy complete with automation to reduce the number of days between tenants.
Approving Higher Quality Tenants
Lower vacancy rates are all for naught if you’ve got poor quality tenants who miss payments or high yearly turnover. Property management companies can deliver value to their owners by ensuring a strong, consistent screening process as well as routine background checks on prospective tenants.
Empowering Self-Service
We live in a “nanosecond culture” – one in which we expect to be able to get instant answers to our questions. One of the most common reasons for owners changing property companies is a lack of communication. If response times lag, or there is a lack of updates, owners will start to question if the property firm is on top of their day-to-day activities.
Owners need a solid overview of their investments in your properties – the health of finances and operations, repairs and maintenance, access to legal documents and accounting reports – ensuring their investment is running smoothly and earning them a profit. And, they don’t want to have to wait for the property company to “prepare” it for them. An owner portal allows property management clients to instantly access important documents like financial statements and property inspection reports whenever and wherever they want.
Improving Cash Flow & Economies of Scale
Collecting rent can be challenging and frustrating for property managers at any time, but it has become even more difficult with the pandemic. When a property management firm can actively improve the speed of rental income into the bank, that’s of huge value to owners. Strategies that include automated rent reminders, a strong collections process and the online rent payment options help improve cash flow.
Additionally, owners and investors want to be able to leverage economies of scale. Larger property management firms that have extensive portfolios can use their buying clout to reduce costs, especially in the areas of contracting and procurement, renovation and inventory costs, and third-party vendor management.
Being Strategic Advisors
Over the last few years there’s been a shift in owner expectations. Property management firms can no longer rely solely on operational effectiveness and efficiency to satisfy building owners. Successful property organizations are evolving from strictly being providers of operational services and tenant customer service to becoming strategic advisors, who help reduce the risk associated with the property and act as asset managers, to safeguard the portfolio and improve the value of the building. The property management firm is now expected to understand the building owners’ strategic objectives and deliver solutions that contribute to and support those strategies.
How Property Vista Helps
Property Vista’s suite of seamless cloud-based solutions allows property management companies to deliver exceptional customer service to both owners and tenants -- all while maximizing efficiencies, reducing costs and allowing you to scale and grow your company. Why not give Property Vista a try? Check out our pricing.
