It is important to consider hiring a rental property agent
when investing in commercial or residential property. A good rental property
agent can help you to reduce a lot of the day to day work you must handle
regarding your property. The key to making this type of arrangement work for
you; however, is in knowing how to find a good agent and what to look for.
One of the main tasks which an agent handles is finding
tenants for your property and depending on the terms provide the rental
agreement. If you decide to use an agent you need to make sure that your agent
covers several critical areas.
First, they should always provide you with an assessment of
the reliability of the tenant. Not only should the agent check the references
of prospective tenants but they should also utilize other methods so they can
be assured the tenant will care for your property and pay their rent on time.
Before hiring an agent question them regarding the methods they use for this
purpose.
You should also make sure that the agent will be able to
handle the collection of rent effectively. Speak with them regarding the
methods they use for collecting back rent when a tenant fails to pay their rent
on time. In addition, find out how the agent addresses the issue of bounced
checks.
In addition, you should speak with prospective agents
regarding how often they will inspect the property and what they will look for
when they perform those inspections. Furthermore, find out how they will record
information and provide feedback to the tenant as well as to you. This
information can be vital to ensuring a well operated rental property. For
Instance, find out how payments will be passed on to you and how frequently you
will receive rental payments. Not all agents have the same policy. Some agents
will actually retain payments for a month so they can earn the interest on the
money before they pass the payments onto the landlord.
Of course, you should also find out how much the agent
charges for the services they provide. Shop around to find out whether this fee
is on-target for the service which the agent provides. If the agent is
providing a good, reliable service it can be a benefit to you and your
investment property and as a result it can be a good investment.
Be sure you ask to review any forms the agent uses,
especially the rental agreement. You should always know the terms under which
your rental property will be rented. Keep in mind that on site managers usually
charge more however, that cost can often be offset by the fact that you may be
able to decrease maintenance costs by ensuring you have a well run property.
Remember that having a good property management agent can
essentially bring you more of a profit. Perhaps one of the biggest costs you
will face when operating a rental property is the cost associated with changing
tenants. When you figure in vacancy rates, the cost is even higher. Therefore,
it is obviously in your best financial interest to keep good tenants. A
competent property management agent can help to make this a reality.
