Recently I had to replace a property manager that was not working out after 18 months of trying.  My new manager Brian has been on board for nearly three weeks now and he’s been a dream!  Rather than compare the good and bad points of these two managers, I thought it would be useful to share some details about how our working relationship is set up. 

Many investors are afraid to invest out of state because of the management issue.  It doesn’t need to be an issue at all.  If you have the communication channels in place and expectations set up front, you can feel as secure with your properties as if they were across town.

I’ve created a landlord system for Brian to follow.  This system lives within a multi-tabbed binder and details all of our procedures.  It includes instructions for how to screen tenants, market the units, maintain the buildings, fill out forms and notices, handle incoming funds and outgoing expenses, and loads of other miscellaneous issues.  I’ve also supplied all the forms and letters that Brian should ever need.

Brian and I communicate using an online collaborative workspace called Basecamp.  It’s a great place to post questions and answers, photos, scanned copies of signed leases - anything.  You create conversation threads that can be organized by category and then named to reflect a more specific topic, such as a tenant name, unit number, or issue.  These threads are saved and can be reviewed again anytime in the future.  Brian scans copies of bills that I need to pay and posts them there.  He also keeps an activity log of his activities so I can look anytime and see what he’s been working on.  I can create to-do lists and assign anyone’s name to each item, and see when they’ve been completed.  I’ve set the system up with users and permissions for each one.  This way we can all access what we need to, when we need to.  The system allows you to set up many different projects, so each property manager is assigned to the project that is appropriate and of course can only see and comment on activities related to that project/city/building/etc.  As the administrator, I see every project in the system.

Last week I went to the city where these particular properties are and met Brian in person for the first time.  I had found him, interviewed him, and trained him virtually.  Oddly enough, now that I think of it, I didn’t even go to the properties on this trip!  Funny.  I guess subconsciously I knew I was comfortable enough with him that my mind didn’t tell me to stop at the buildings.  I found Brian to be a genuinely really nice guy and I’m very happy with my choice now that I’ve met him in person.

Turns out this new venture in Brian’s life is motivating him to expand his context and his own investing activities.  I had sent him some Rich Dad materials to read and listen to as part of his training, and he has since purchased eight other Rich Dad products for himself.  It’s exciting to see him excited to learn and grow personally, and him taking the initiative to learn more on his own can only benefit our arrangement.  Brian is buying his educational products for a fraction of full price on half.com.  I had never heard of this site before but he tells me he got everything he bought so far for $30!  He’s frugal, which is another great attribute of a property manager!