Far be it for me to bore anyone here but here's a (typical) office day for me:
9.00 am rang contractor, reminded him I needed the keys back 'cause second contractor was coming to collect them to clean up gardens in courtyard surroundered by high brick wall, organised keys for front desk collection
9.05 rang real estate institute to clarify court process for rental arrears (long story), rang the Owner and explained the process, prepared cleaning and gardening word orders for this same property, emailed Owner as per our verbal conversation, added to computer notes
9.10 started downloading (123) photo's from previous days inspections on my antiquated (office), collected battery for camera
Signed in keys from previous days inspections (all 12 of them) was too busy to do it yesterday, had to tick them off key registry
Typed up reports for 12 property inspections, including cover page/photographs, wrote tenants letters where required (for example breaching for unkept gardens), printed off the (standard) cover letters to owners, had to write one an extensive email and explain gardens were reinspected, that they weren't up to scratch and that I'd organised our gardening contractor to attend to clean 'em up and we would be invoicing tenant, also in this process organised work maintenance orders where required - leaking taps, RCD (safety) compliance electric switches and smoke detectors
10.00 (or thereabouts) Emailed Owner who had complained about the gardening contractor who we had sent to clean up gardens at her investment property, she wasn't happy 'cause they had pruned the hedges as per her instructions (I actually lifted the wording from her email direct into the work order) and now she was wanting the hedges pruned to the FENCE line!! And to be invoiced (again) to the tenants
10.15 took a phone call from a concerned prospective tenant/single mother who has been rejected by 3 other agents 'cause of her breach notice from previous rental and did we have a property/owner who would take her?
10.16 BREATHED DEEPLY, SMILED
Read emails - various instructions from Owners, feedback from contractors, replied where appropriate
Rang alternate real estate agent and reminded them I still did not have a response regarding the fence claim for adjoining properties we manage, faxed them the quote twice, both times it bounced, left message for their PM to call me back
Got email from tenant who was wanting reimbursement for 2 night's hotel stay - his apartment got smoked out/fire and everyone on that floor were evicted, I'd faxed off his claim to strata company 2 months ago and they had not replied, told him I would follow up (again)
Replied to email from prospective tenant, she loved the photos I'd sent her for vacant property - in fact she wants to buy it!! Owner is overseas, told her I'd follow up and referred it to our sales department
Today I did x3 final bond out inspections. The x3 properties were approximately 20 minute drive from the office. Started by taking extensive photographs of gardens, power boards, then all rooms in the property. Then I opened the inventor (property condition report) and started at the front and ticked off, made notes in the margin for relevant cleaning/gardening, tested reticulation - first property the front sprinkler was snapped clean off, checked RCD switches for compliance, checked description of each room/wall for chips/damage, checked blinds for cleanliness and operation, checked window tracks for cleanliness, checked all light bulbs were working, plugs in sinks, checked that toilets weren't running, checked visually for any other damage/rubbish left etc
Rinse/repeat (twice)
On the way back to office stopped off to check keys on a new listing, owner had dropped off 3 sets but said there was one key that didn't work properly, stopped at her property and checked, made a mental calculation how long it will take me to do the ingoing PCR report (I take my laptop computer to do those, minimum of x2 hours)
Back at the office
BREATHE/SMILE (Oh I ate my sandwich in the car on the drive back)
Rang the tenants of the x3 outgoing bonds, explained the cleaning/gardening for each required, organised work orders, rang x1 local owner who complained bitterly about the RCD switches, explained it is acompliance requirement at change of tenancy and shared with him last week's little story - one of our current tenant's sons ALMOST electrocuted himself !! This owner has a new tenant going in on the Friday, old tenant couldn't fix the snapped sprinkler as he has already gone to the country, its such a small job for me to send a handyman. So I rang the new ingoing tenant and asked him to fix it and send us theinvoice and we'll take it out of the old tenant's bond (wrote it all down on the bond disbursement cover sheet)
BREATHE
Then about 3pm we got a doozie today...
Try this one on...New management, new tenant signed up, lease signed up, money paid, due to move in on friday
Except...
owner has returned from eastern states and has MOVED BACK INTO HIS PROPERTY
Tenant has already enrolled children in the local school, organised their furniture removal, got to be out of their current place etc etc
We explained to Owner he CAN NOT move back into his property as tenant has right of occupancy, it's a legally signed lease
Owner refusing to move
BREATHE
So we are lookng around for another comparative property in that suburb for hte tennat but problem is there aren't any!!!
Took phone call from international Owner, he wanted rent increased, new lease drawn up, maintenance items attended to, he got cross 'cause one of our staff had taken his instructions 2 months ago and hadn't sent the tenant the 60 day rent increase notice
BREATHE
Sorted it out!!
BREATHE
And guys, that's just a typical day, within that day is heaps more emails/phone calls/conversations
I sometimes read about landlords wanting property management for 4 or 5% management fees.
BREATHE
SEriously, I tell you there's very few occupations with staff more hard working than property managers!!
I guess the joke is I dont HAVE TO WORK as our investments/income/passive and otherwise are high enough that it isn't a necessity for me. But having siad that, as busy as my days get I LOVE being able to make a difference in the lives of people, that is why I get up each day and go back and do it. Btw I am only part time 3 days per week. So if you call me and I"m not at work I am SORRY but I work really hard and this way at least I don't burn out. (Last office I worked at was turning into 10 hours day and I burnt out after 7 months)
Be nice to your property managers okay? and if we make a mistake remember we're human. No, I'm not going to know your property as intimately and individually as you do BUT I do a damn bloody good job!!!
Now if I could just find an awesome PM to manage my own properties....
And he said we could stick our septic tank anywhere we want as long as its 2.5 metres from practically everything. Woo!
