If you are a new rental property owner, you may be wondering who you should hire to manage
your real estate investment. Some landlords choose to take care of their own property before
realizing this time-consuming and challenging task is better suited for a professional. Other
property owners make the mistake of hiring a realtor to take care of their property.
Yet the best person you can hire to deal with tenant issues, handle maintenance requests, and
find new applicants is a property manager. Why? Because a property manager’s sole job is to
take care of residential or commercial properties on behalf of property owners, while a realtor is
focused mainly on property sales.
A few other issues to consider when deciding if you should hire a property manager or realtor
include the following:
● Focus and attention: Property managers concentrate on addressing all property issues
and they receive a management fee for their work. Realtors are paid a commission
check in the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars for facilitating real estate
transactions. Since the average monthly PM fee is around $200, realtors have less
incentive to manage properties when they could be selling them instead.
● Finding quality tenants: The key to a successful landlord experience is finding the right
tenant. Your property manager has a financial incentive to find and keep good tenants
because they cause less issues, pay rent on time, etc. Realtors often take a large
placement fee for finding a tenant, but have no financial consequences if the applicant is
a poor fit or fails to pay rent.
● Time: When hiring a professional to look after your property, it is essential that you
choose an individual who has enough time to manage your real estate. Since realtors
are often preoccupied with property listings and showings, they may lack the time
required to properly handle tenant concerns, building repairs, and other issues.
● Some Property managers are also realtors: It’s okay to hire an individual who works
as a property manager and realtor. However, you want a property manager who also
does real estate, not the other way around.
If you want your property managed properly, carefully, and professionally, you need a property
manager, not a real estate agent. While realtors can certainly perform the job, unless their top
priority is maintaining your property, you are doing a disservice to your tenants and yourself by
hiring a realtor to manage your property.
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