Property Manager, a career?

Ok, so I am looking for something to do next year and figured something educational may be the way to go.. so I asked myself what interests me.. and two topics that came up were Property, and Management.. so I figured.. hey, why not look into property management as a possible career move..

I am currently working as an IT Project manager, while I still enjoy this work, I want to expand my horizons a bit more and figure property management could be a good step for me.

So, what do you guys think, are any of you property managers? Do you enjoy the work? Can you give any feedback on it at all?

Thoughts appreciated.
 
Ok, so I am looking for something to do next year and figured something educational may be the way to go..

:D thanks for the laugh but if you want to do something "educational" i don't think a short course at TAFE to be a glorified secretary is the way to go.

No disrespect to PM's but i think you'll find it's not really a "career" and has little future prospects. I also imagine the work would not be very challenging and it would be annoying to receive calls about leaky taps from tenants and whingeing landlords. All the best with your decision for a "career". My tip is to think again.
 
Be great if you can be sooo bad that the landlord gets sick of it all and just wants out.
The agent gets the listing and you may get to pick up a bargain.

(Seems to me that's how many agents operate:eek:)
 
The change from IT project manager to property manager is a long one and not in the good direction. The first thing you'll notice is the 70% pay drop. The only property managers I've seen who make decent money are the ones who actually have a stake in the business.
 
The change from IT project manager to property manager is a long one and not in the good direction. The first thing you'll notice is the 70% pay drop. The only property managers I've seen who make decent money are the ones who actually have a stake in the business.

Said quite well..
 
What do you know about linux

You could further expand your knowledge in IT. I am currently playing around with Ubuntu Linux as a way of learning more about I.T.
 
:D thanks for the laugh but if you want to do something "educational" i don't think a short course at TAFE to be a glorified secretary is the way to go.

No disrespect to PM's but i think you'll find it's not really a "career" and has little future prospects. I also imagine the work would not be very challenging and it would be annoying to receive calls about leaky taps from tenants and whingeing landlords. All the best with your decision for a "career". My tip is to think again.

johnduncan,

a property manager is more than just a glorified secretary thankyou very much; and it can indeed be a terrific career for a person with the right attitude. I certainly made a fantastic 15 year career out of it, and also made terrific money out of it too.

It is very challenging work, and also very satisifying as well.

It has its ups and downs like every other job/career, but for a person with the right attitude to customer service and the right time management skills, it can be a terrific way to earn a living.
 
I know someone that was a property mgr for many years then progressed to running the dept - the funny farm I used to call it..

I think the average PM earns about 45k a year in brisbane after an ''apprentiship''

Running the dept she was getting about 70k plus bonuses & car but i think that was more than normal.

Although very good at her job she used to hate it, constantly dealing with very rich and rude tenants and staff that used to try and take the mickey.. Mate dont go there, Its not worth the stress.
 
The change from IT project manager to property manager is a long one and not in the good direction. The first thing you'll notice is the 70% pay drop. The only property managers I've seen who make decent money are the ones who actually have a stake in the business.

My plan was to actually start my own PM business rather than just work for someone, but I guess I would need to get the experience first, it was just food for thought really at this stage.

Thanks all for your input :)
 
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Running your own PM business could be both lucrative and rewarding, but I don't think it would be easy to break into. I believe there are basic qualifications just to be able to work for someone else, and substantial qualifications required for trading yourself. There are minimum experience levels required to get the qualifications as well.

Getting into the industry is fairly easy but the road to the top is a long one and littered with corpses. If I was fresh out of high school it would be worth considering, but not after an IT carrier.
 
Expect hard work, responsibility, time management and lot's of communication.

The job suits an emotionally secure person, productive and non-reactive. A good company will foster those qualities. Most real estate agencies treat property management as the toxic waste dump of their business and people leave the industry very "damaged"

We no longer hire "experienced pms" for that reason. Who's experience?

People that have worked as amulance personell, chefs or other high impact careers are ideal.

They are certainly not receptionists! In real life senior property managers have receptionists and personal assistants working for them!
 
Ok, so I am looking for something to do next year and figured something educational may be the way to go.. so I asked myself what interests me.. and two topics that came up were Property, and Management.. so I figured.. hey, why not look into property management as a possible career move..

I am currently working as an IT Project manager, while I still enjoy this work, I want to expand my horizons a bit more and figure property management could be a good step for me.

So, what do you guys think, are any of you property managers? Do you enjoy the work? Can you give any feedback on it at all?

Thoughts appreciated.

If you own property, why not self-manage, to give you a small taste?
 
With the current economy, and very low vacancy rates property management can be a rewarding career, however to move from I.T Project Management? You would have to be crazy.

You will learn alot about investing in property, anyone who says you won't has no idea...You will learn how to pick quality tenants before they even hand in an application, what tenants look for in accommodation, and what locations etc. You will also understand how to market and present a property to get maximum response and interest from tenants, you will get a very broad understanding of rental values in that area, and how agents operate.

You will also learn to be very well organised, develop excellent negotiation skills, problem solving, and management skills also come to mind.

But it is a bit of a dead-end job, you will be put under alot of stress and coupled with low entry wages and possible weekend work it's not the best career.

From the horses mouth, 3 years in the job.
 
With the current economy, and very low vacancy rates property management can be a rewarding career, however to move from I.T Project Management? You would have to be crazy.

You will learn alot about investing in property, anyone who says you won't has no idea...You will learn how to pick quality tenants before they even hand in an application, what tenants look for in accommodation, and what locations etc. You will also understand how to market and present a property to get maximum response and interest from tenants, you will get a very broad understanding of rental values in that area, and how agents operate.

You will also learn to be very well organised, develop excellent negotiation skills, problem solving, and management skills also come to mind.

But it is a bit of a dead-end job, you will be put under alot of stress and coupled with low entry wages and possible weekend work it's not the best career.

From the horses mouth, 3 years in the job.


Bombtrack, given your three (3) years experience, how difficult would it be to set-up a small PM-only focused business IYO?
 
Some interesting feedback and does put things a little more into perspective, I certainly wouldnt just drop everything and become a PM, I am just in the initial stage of planning my next five years and what I want to do.. and PM was one of those things I want/ed to investigate, along with opening a soup kitchen or a champagne bar, or maybe even doing private investigation :D .. but lets not get started on those in this forum :)

I certainly can't see myself being the bottom of the rung at an RE office and dealing with the crap, but I can see myself in a boutique, investor focused PM agency whether it would be my own startup, or part of a franchise possibly, but it would be something that would need some really hard work, determination and lots of learning..

Anyway just food for thought for now, thanks for the comments.
 
how difficult would it be to set-up a small PM-only focused business


hi buzz,

whilst the question was not directed at me; i'll just say that I did set up my own real estate agency that specialised soley in residential property management. I did this after about 9 years in the industry.

i positioned myself correctly within my market place, i charged the right fees; but more expensive than your franchised normal run of the mill real estate agencies, i had my systems, procedures and policies down pat due to the extensive experience i had, i was incredibly conversant with my market, and i had clients (both tenants and landlords) walking through the door.

the main difficulty was getting out there in the beginning and getting myself known. but once the momentum got going; it just kept going. the set up costs weren't huge. the biggest expense was the cost of the software i used.

it was a hard slog, but well worth the effort.

i regret selling the business.
 
I was a property manager for a number of years. What a terrible job!!! I would never do it again. Look, gave me great knowledge base, but I have never been paid or treated so badly in my life!!! Good luck!!
 
Unlike going from IT career to mortgage broker? :D

Cheers,

The Y-man

I was wondering who would bring that one up :) Property management was actually something I considered when I changed careers but there are a few elements to the role that I'm not keen on and don't think I'd be well suited to.

Fortunately I own my own business. Mortgage broking isn't a career I'd really want to work for someone else in either.

I imagine though, that owning and operating your own PM business would be equily satisfying.
 
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