Buying to let is a tried and tested way for investors to increase their wealth. Some investors manage their own properties, while others choose to hire a property management company like KPM Group.
Those investors who choose to manage their properties themselves will certainly save some money on management fees, however they take on all the responsibility in doing so.
A property management company will take on all the responsibilities involved in managing a rental property for you.
So what should you do? Here are some helpful tips and examples to help you decide.
Location of rental property
One of the most important decisions you will have to make when purchasing your rental property is location. Are you going to invest in something local, or are you planning on taking on something further afield? This is an important decision because if you choose to manage the property yourself, it may result in many long distance trips and being unable to deal with small problems promptly which in turn could impact you tenants negatively, souring what would hopefully be a good relationship with quality tenants.
Taking on a property management company can take your location out of the equation altogether and can stay on top of maintenance and upkeep on your behalf.
Unfortunate Events
As Landlords, many of us have had to deal with unfortunate events with our tenants. This is another reason it is so important to choose the right tenants for you, but that is another topic.
Many issues can arise such as Unruly tenants/children, Domestic disputes, Illegal activities, Loud music, Animals, unregistered extra tenants and destruction of property.
If you choose to manage your property yourself, you will be responsible for dealing with all of these issues. On the other hand, if you enlist the services of a property management company, they will deal with all of it for you.
Maintenance becomes overwhelming
Managing just one or two properties yourself is certainly manageable to those committed enough, but even the most dedicated amongst us will soon become overwhelmed with maintenance calls, upkeep costs and tenant phone calls and issues, etc.
For example, your trusty handyman has let you down and cant help on time, all of a sudden another call comes in for another issue and all of a sudden you have two properties requiring attention, but no maintenance man on hand.. You are now responsible for finding a solution on short notice which can become stressful and at particular times of year like winter, problems can accumulate quickly.
Having a property management company looking after all of this for you just makes sense.
In closing, many investors choose to manage their properties themselves and do so very successfully, saving money along the way. But this often depends on the scale of the portfolio. Should you feel like your portfolio would benefit from a professional property management company like KPM Group, please contact us today and let’s talk.