‘To Die For’ Holiday Cottage at Foxwood, in Lake of Bays
Real estate investments are like kids and pet dogs, in the sense they all need looking after. An investor with a large portfolio – or perhaps a property a distance away – may delegate this task to a property manager. Today we examine what property managers do in some detail. Although we hasten to mention not all of them are as good as this ideal model.
A person unable or unwilling to attend to managing their property should seek out a competent individual to assist. The Building Owners and Managers Association promotes standards and lobbies legislation in Canada and the United States. There are over 50,000 property managers in these two countries.
Overview of Property Types and Responsibilities
Property managers have oversight over individual title, condo-style title, and company title homes. They may also manage residential, office, retail, and industrial space. Their duties may include:
# 1: Finding, signing on, and managing tenants. They also attend to signing them off, and evicting them if necessary
# 2: They usually collect the rents, and disperse these for maintenance and taxes, with the balance going to the owner
# 3: They should inspect the properties they have oversight over each month, and report findings back to the owner
Not all real estate investors delegate all these tasks to a property manager. Some only delegate the first two to realtors; perhaps under the impression they will do all three.
Property Manager Tasks for Vacation Homes
Some property owners have second, holiday homes they only visit occasionally. In this case, their property manager may arrange security monitoring / house sitting as necessary, and take care of maintenance tasks with prior approval.
Some even spruce up a holiday home prior to the owner’s arrival, to the extent of stocking the refrigerator with their favourite food and beverages. It’s always best to choose a reliable property manager to keep these expenses under control!
Registration and Training of Property Managers
In Canada, property managers are a type of realtor, and therefore must meet the educational and licencing requirements as set by their provincial regulator.
It’s therefore advisable to appoint a property manager with registration at the Canadian Real Estate Association or similar. Unless you are lucky enough to have a family member or friend, who’s able to play ‘property manager’ on your behalf.
Stonegate Equity provides these thoughts in good faith, but does not intend them to be legal advice.
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