Managing a Rental Property: DIY or Hire a Company? 

Are you on the fence about hiring a rental property management service?

First things first, you’ve made a smart investment. However, like the other 8 million landlords, you have to choose between self-managing your properties and hiring a manager.

Managing a rental property requires a smart approach if you want to reap the highest returns. But it’s not that simple.

In this guide, we’re comparing both options, giving you all the information you need to make a smart decision.

DIY Property Management

Managing your own rental property puts you in charge of everything that comes with property management. You’re responsible for ensuring the property is safe and healthy for occupants. It’s your job to market it, screen tenants, draw up lease agreements, and respond to tenant issues.

The biggest benefit of DIY property management is you don’t have to incur any direct property management expenses. You can pay yourself for managing the property, but that’s like taking some money from your right pocket and putting it in your left pocket!

On the downside, property management can be a time-consuming task. If you have several tenants, rest assured that you’ll be attending to endless complaints. If you have other responsibilities on the side, you’ll quickly find out that you aren’t giving your property the attention it deserves.

And, property management isn’t a layman’s job. You have to learn how to manage a rental property; otherwise, you’d make costly mistakes, such as accepting bad tenants.

Professional Property Management

Professional property management involves hiring a company that offers property management services.

The company will take over every task associated with managing the property. This includes property maintenance and repairs, tenant management, and property taxation. It’s not an exaggeration to say that your job will be reduced to checking if the rental collection has hit your bank account as scheduled.

On average, professionally managed properties perform better. A property manager will, for instance, ensure your units maintain high occupancy rates throughout the year.

The obvious downside of hiring a property manager is the associated cost. You can expect to pay anywhere from 8 to 12% of the monthly rent collection as a service charge.

Although not a common issue, finding the right property manager can be difficult, especially if your property is located in a rural area where property management companies aren’t available.

Managing a Rental Property the Right Way

In a rental property, you’ve made a savvy investment decision. But that’s only part of the job. The other part is managing it properly.

Managing a rental property on your own saves you money. But if you lack property management expertise and enough time, things can go south quickly. Hiring a property management firm enables you to take a hands-off approach and put the property in the hands of the right professionals.

Explore our blog for more real estate and property management insights.