What A Property Management Service Is In Charge Of
Whether you are looking to hire a property management service to tend to one or more of your properties or you are looking for the right property manager to help you find the right rental, it is a good idea to understand the roles of a property management service. In this short guide on, you can learn more about things the property management service takes care of when they are in charge of managing a rental.
Preparing the rental unit
After tenants move out of a property, the manager will make sure the property has been cleaned, that any maintenance issues have been taken care of, and that the rental unit is all ready for the new tenants to move into it. Some things that need to be done include:
- Cleaning or painting the walls
- Steam cleaning the carpets
- Replacing burned out lightbulbs
- Cleaning the entire unit, usually with the help of a cleaning service
Screening new tenants
A property management service will receive applications from those interested in renting a property. The property manager will then verify the information on the applications to make sure everything is correct. Some of the other things the manager will do when screening applicants are:
- Review their credit reports to ensure they have no judgements or evictions
- Run a background check to ensure they haven't been convicted of certain crimes
- Call their previous managers to ensure they aren't problem tenants
- Call their employer to verify they are currently employed
Signing the lease
Once the manager has selected the best applicant to rent the property, they will fill out the lease and present it to the tenants for them to review and sign. The lease will provide information such as:
- The official move-in date
- The date the lease expires
- The names of everyone who will be living in the unit
- The utilities that are the tenant's responsibility
- The information on pets that are okay to reside at the address
- Other stipulations or requirements
Receiving payments
The manager will take the first month's rent and the security deposit from the tenants, then provide the tenants with the keys to the property. The property manager deducts their fees from the payment, then sends the amount due to the owner of the property. Each month, the manager will receive the payment and ensure the property owner gets their payment.
Tending to issues
No matter how nice a rental property is, there can still be things that happen. Toilets can stop working correctly, leaks can happen, heating and cooling systems can stop working correctly, and many other things can happen. The manager will have someone come out to take care of things when the renter complains about problems. Sometimes, there will be a maintenance person on staff who is qualified to tend to many different types of issues.