If you are mulling over property investments in SE Queensland, Australia, there is something very important you need to think about, something which is neglected by all too many novice real estate investors. If gone about the right way, there’s a good profit to be made by selling the property once it appreciates in value or a steady revenue stream to be had by renting out the property. However, if you try to do this by yourself, you may run into trouble.
Let’s say that you just bought a new rental unit and you lease it out. Everything is going great for the first month and you start to think this is easy. Then all of a sudden, your tenant calls you and they’re yelling. They inform you (in a not so pleasant tone) that the toilet is overflowing and has flooded the entire bathroom. Of course this is taking place after 7:00 p.m. on a Friday night. You were about to go out to dinner with your family, but instead you have to find a plumber. You make half a dozen calls and realize that you’re out of luck for the night. You consider waiting until morning until your tenant calls you again in a panic. You decide to make a special trip over to your property to look at the toilet yourself.
You come into the house and the tenant is extremely upset. It’s obviously not your fault that this happened, but they’re still holding you responsible. You go into the bathroom to find water everywhere. This isn’t what you had envisioned when you started to invest in property. You had visions of equity building and extra money in your bank account. Now you are bombarded with toilet water on the floor and a screaming tenant.
This is the case with many property investors. They invest in a property and fail to realize exactly how much work they’ll have to do to succeed. While there is a lot of work involved, you don’t have to do it all yourself.
One solution is to hire a property manager. They can take care of these kinds of situations for you for a low cost. You get to collect the income, but they handle all of the hassles - it’s a good arrangement for everyone.
Why is a good idea to hire a property manager? A lot of property investors know nothing at all about the laws governing rental properties, but still want to invest.
A property manager is someone who already knows all of the applicable laws and regulations and can take care of many things which new landlords find problematic. Property managers can create lease agreements which protect you from liability issues, handle maintenance requests and collect rents for you. Trying to do all of this by yourself would take up far too much of your valuable time and distract you from your work.
When you decide to get a property manager, look for one that is reputable and has been around. You want someone who knows what they’re doing and can take care of everything for you. Once you find a good one, hold on to them. A good property manager is invaluable to you and your real estate business.
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