Taking the Leap ..Launching a new business

[cu@thetop]

Best wishes.
I like the website and I like the fact that you are property owners yourself.
Read through the complaints about property managers on the forum as to get an idea of what not to do.

As a small business owner myself I will give one bit of advice: When I started out I took every bit of work that came through the door-and I was negotiable on price ( I run a referral only law firm so I don't advertise as such). This helped me get going but in the long term was perhaps counterproductive. You must set a price and not move from it (unless they are an exceptional client). And most importantly- there are some clients you do not want. Ascertain their expectations and see if they can be met profitably. If not, don't take them and refer them elsewhere.

Press on regardless and make sure you have cashflow-the oxygen and lifeblood of any business.

 

[balwoges]

Some comments after looking through your brochure -

1. POINTS OF DIFFERENCE OFFERED
Maximum of 100 properties per Property Manager

A good senior PM will expect to earn at least $4,000 per month, how will that stack up if she only has 100 properties to look after.


2. 7.5% plus GST ? NO inital client establishment fees.
Spelling mistake - should be initial, always a good idea to run a spell check through your copy

Cheers

 

[D.T.]

One minor issue with the website, both the Switch to DPM and Referral Program links both take me to the Switch to DPM page.

 

[Rolf Latham]

One minor issue with the website, both the Switch to DPM and Referral Program links both take me to the Switch to DPM page.

as an aside.

I really do believe its worth your while totalk with some existing PMs on "changers" vs organic new growth.

I would expect the client profile would be very different.

ta

rolf

 

[balwoges]

I have a couple of queries:

1.

WHAT WE OFFER
Portfolio Property Managers with a maximum of 100 properties: Portfolio property managers are responsible for undertaking all key tasks associated with property management, thereby, placing full accountability with one professional, offering the landlord one ongoing point of contact and not outsourcing core property management tasks to junior staff.

A senior Property Manager can expect to earn at least $4,000 per month, based on your limit of 100 properties at say rental of $2,000 per month = $20,000 per month - agents fees 7% = $1,400. This is without cost of junior & admin costs. Doesn't add up. A good senior PM should be able to manage up to 400 properties with admin help.

That's why a lot of real estate agencies employ juniors, they are cheaper and alas not very knowledgeable which is partly why some agencies have such a bad name.

2. No business address on website.

Cheers,

 

[rchad]

Hi Renee

Well done for taking the plunge! I did this almost a decade ago now and have no regrets. Running a business is certainly not easy, highly challenging at times (and damn hard work ) however can be very rewarding if you are genuinely enthusiastic and knowledgeable about what you do, get it right and you have a faithful client base. I am immensely proud of our buyers agency and what we have achieved and wouldn't go back to work for anyone again. If it's to be it's up to me

Most of the essential questions have already been asked, so I will desist from repetitiveness here but curious to know if you've purchased a small rental roll to get the ball rolling or are acquiring rentals organically? I know from other colleagues that this can be a good way to grow as a small PM firm initially.

Your website looks nice and clean so well done

Thank you Jacque - I did explore purchasing a small rent roll however after thinking through all the pros and cons of the high cost of purchasing a rent roll(even for a small rent roll) and transition management phase issues (as a landlord I like choosing my own PM and don't like being 'passed onto' another agency) we decided to do the hard work and start from scratch.

I have signed up our first two landlords during our launch week and am presently negotiating another four properties. We like starting off at a slower pace to build our capability in managing the PM process before we are working with a larger rent roll - essentially, we want to deliver a professional service of high quality and streamline our systems and processes well before managing a large rent roll. We established the company to be able to expand and employ others as a future vision. From our experience, it just seems you have to do the hard yards and demonstrate your passion and commitment ...scary but exciting nonetheless

 

[Kinnon Bell]

Out of curiosity - is there a reason you chose a .com domain and not a .com.au?

 

[rchad]

I have a couple of queries:

1.

A senior Property Manager can expect to earn at least $4,000 per month, based on your limit of 100 properties at say rental of $2,000 per month = $20,000 per month - agents fees 7% = $1,400. This is without cost of junior & admin costs. Doesn't add up. A good senior PM should be able to manage up to 400 properties with admin help.

That's why a lot of real estate agencies employ juniors, they are cheaper and alas not very knowledgeable which is partly why some agencies have such a bad name.

2. No business address on website.


Cheers,

We are holding down our overheads to offer the lower ratio of 100 properties per PM through utilising a fully fitted out professional office on third level of our home overlooking the CBD as the office - I have a 40m2 office on the top floor of our home 5 kms from CBD with lockable cabinets, phones/faxes/printers; desks etc - this saves our business substantially on overheads as we are fully committed to making it and not going broke.

We intend to move into a retail office space (we have already identified the location) hence, once our property portfolio expands sufficiently we will move to the commercial office.

We are able to deliver upon that ratio whilst we are a small business and as with most organisations I have worked at - we will review our strategic plan, and costings at the end of the first year and adjust fees and ratio's accordingly - this will also be openly marketed as our vision is to offer an ethical service.

As a landlord I have moved from agencies loading up their PMs with 300-400 properties as it is noticed by me the customer ie no follow through; nagging to get things done; poor quality property inspections undertaken on an APP with yes and no stated here and there, no qualitative statements and poor if any photos, as a landlord you know when your PMs are overloaded. From my experience leading staff for over 20 years I have learnt the value of having happy high performing team members - this does not happen if they are overloaded in their work. Just my personal experience here.

Thank you for your comments - they certainly highlighted to Martin and I the importance of keeping a close eye on costings whilst balancing the critical need to ensure quality service provision

Warm regards

Renee

 

[rchad]

as an aside.

I really do believe its worth your while totalk with some existing PMs on "changers" vs organic new growth.

I would expect the client profile would be very different.

ta

rolf

Thank you Rolf, I will get onto our web designer right now with that issue

 

[rchad]

Out of curiosity - is there a reason you chose a .com domain and not a .com.au?

Just to be quicker and easier to recall, we did purchase 'com.au' and many other options as well so it all comes back to us at Diligent

 

[rchad]

as an aside.

I really do believe its worth your while totalk with some existing PMs on "changers" vs organic new growth.

I would expect the client profile would be very different.

ta

rolf

Thank you - I have just emailed our web designers now to fix that issue

 

[rchad]

Out of curiosity - is there a reason you chose a .com domain and not a .com.au?

Sure, we chose .com for easy recall however we purchased all types of configurations including .com.au to capture all avenues

 

[rchad]

Some comments after looking through your brochure -

1. POINTS OF DIFFERENCE OFFERED
Maximum of 100 properties per Property Manager

A good senior PM will expect to earn at least $4,000 per month, how will that stack up if she only has 100 properties to look after.


2. 7.5% plus GST ? NO inital client establishment fees.
Spelling mistake - should be initial, always a good idea to run a spell check through your copy

Cheers

The learning curve has begun

 

[rchad]

Best wishes.
I like the website and I like the fact that you are property owners yourself.
Read through the complaints about property managers on the forum as to get an idea of what not to do.

As a small business owner myself I will give one bit of advice: When I started out I took every bit of work that came through the door-and I was negotiable on price ( I run a referral only law firm so I don't advertise as such). This helped me get going but in the long term was perhaps counterproductive. You must set a price and not move from it (unless they are an exceptional client). And most importantly- there are some clients you do not want. Ascertain their expectations and see if they can be met profitably. If not, don't take them and refer them elsewhere.

Press on regardless and make sure you have cashflow-the oxygen and lifeblood of any business.

Thank you for your insights - this is much valued. My mentor who runs PM Agency in Brisbane shared a similar insight re: some business is not worth taking - and I hear you when you say "I took every bit of work that came through the door" - with the fear that sits inherently within when you start out it is very seductive to take anyone and negotiate on price - my pricing is so low that it is not negotiable so I will stand firm on that one - we don't have add ons as it is on top of our mgt fees.

I also note your comment re: expectations - I will take this on board to ensure we can meet the landlord's expectations before accepting business as this is why many businesses fail - not managing expectations - it is also a core leadership capability to manage expectations

Thank you kindly for your comments

 

[rchad]

That's a great start Renee! I'm new to these forums but not new in property and I also have a number of investments.

Your main problems will be staffing as with any new business and maintain profitability with your promised staff / property ratios. I would suggest to go beyond residential and look at commercial property management to boost revenue as this will be more lucrative.

Also, it's not enough that property managers take rents, manage leases and co-ordinate maintenance. You have to add value to the owners investment. The highest thought in a good property / asset managers mind should be, how can I make my clients property worth more today? One of my pet hates is the silence down the end of the phone when I ask what do you recommend I do to the property to achieve a higher yield.

I wish you success with your business and hope it becomes everything you envision it to be and more.

Rudugger.

Thank you for the feedback - I will keep this in mind - always exploring ideas to share with landlords to add value to their properties to ensure marketability

 

[rchad]

Congrats for the leap Renee. This is my 10th year running a pm business.
I still have a temporary website that I have been meaning to turn into a proper website at some stage lol.

Yours looks awesome and good for you for doing it now before you get too busy Managing properties.

All the best to you and partner

x

Thank you for your kind wishes

 

[elsLan]

I have a couple of queries:

1.

A senior Property Manager can expect to earn at least $4,000 per month, based on your limit of 100 properties at say rental of $2,000 per month = $20,000 per month - agents fees 7% = $1,400. This is without cost of junior & admin costs. Doesn't add up. A good senior PM should be able to manage up to 400 properties with admin help.

That's why a lot of real estate agencies employ juniors, they are cheaper and alas not very knowledgeable which is partly why some agencies have such a bad name.

2. No business address on website.

Cheers,

400 properties with admin help? If my pm managed that many clients maybe I would share some of the negative experiences some of the owners here have detailed. 400 is crazy even with admin help. That's 400 potential issues. Imagine during spring or peak vacate time- no wonder properties sit empty.
I'm appreciating my superstar pm more and more.

 

[sanj]

I have a couple of queries:

1.

A senior Property Manager can expect to earn at least $4,000 per month, based on your limit of 100 properties at say rental of $2,000 per month = $20,000 per month - agents fees 7% = $1,400. This is without cost of junior & admin costs. Doesn't add up. A good senior PM should be able to manage up to 400 properties with admin help.

That's why a lot of real estate agencies employ juniors, they are cheaper and alas not very knowledgeable which is partly why some agencies have such a bad name.

2. No business address on website.

Cheers,

youre missing a zero...

100 x 2000 = 200k not 20k

 

[D.T.]

youre missing a zero...

100 x 2000 = 200k not 20k

Good pickup

 

[balwoges]

Oooops I hang my head in shame, my brain and calculator definately not synchronised when I posted this ... apologies