Property management or Do it yourself?

[mdmurrell]

Hello Everyone,
We are closing on a Whispering Pines home in the Peidmont Village on May 3rd and planning on leasing the property as much as possible. I interviewed TV's Real Estate Property Management and was shocked at the charges (20% plus outlandish hidden fees). After interviewing another firm (15% short term lease of 3 months or less; 10% on long term lease of 6 months or more) I am wondering whether it is possible to do this myself or find someone who is competent locally? Any suggestions are most welcome!

[l2ridehd]

Personally I do mine myself. I have two rentals and am able to keep them rented 9 or 10 months each year. I do work at it, advertise, send newsletters, give incentives to repeat renters, provide a quality home at a competitive price. So yes it can be done and you will do better then anyone you can hire. If I ever do hire someone, it will be Vilas Hinkle. She does a good job at a reasonable rate.

[dalecrenshaw]

I have tried 3 or 4 property managers over the years. They were all terrrible. The last one was the worse. She seemed to be very nice and professional, but was a huge huge huge disappointment and cost us of a lot of money. We now do it ourselves and do it much more efficiently and without all the costs involved....and yes, there are a lot of hidden fees that they don't tell you about when they sign you up.

[Heartnsoul]

congratulations!! the whispering pine is beautiful. I would do yourself. advertise it on talk of the villages. good luck!!

[Cantwaittoarrive]

I think it's easier to do yourself if you live locally. If you live out of town you may want to consider a management company.

[tv2016]

You can advertise your home somewhere like thevillages4rent.com and do business on the phone and email. You can hire someone to check your home between renters and weekly when no one is renting. Try The Home Watch.

[walkr]

At first we had a property manager who did not have a real estate license, but when we found out that was not legal, we decided to do it ourselves. We lived out of town and it worked out well. We had a really good caretaker, and fortunately we also had some great renters. We advertised on vacationrentals.com and thevillages4rent.com and had no trouble renting it. We never had any major problems. The few minor problems we had, our caretaker was able to handle.

I would give it a try if I were you.

[ijusluvit]

After three other property managers, Vilas Hinkle and her husband Dennis have been taking care of my place for the last two years. They are fully licensed, live in TV and take care of a relatively small number of homes SUPERBLY!!!

Their fees are less than our previous managers and they take care of everything, including taxes. Our guests rave about the personal service. Since we are unable to take care of all of the details ourselves, Vilas is a godsend.

Send me a private message if you'd like her phone number.

[gomoho]

If you are not local and can find a good property manager that charges a fair fee it would be worth its weight in gold. We have 3 rental properties in NM - 2 are with a property manager and we still manage one ourselves that is occupied by a long term renter. Can't imagine with the turnover here in TV trying to do it long distance.

[capecodkev]

I just spoke to Ms Hinkle the other day about using her as my property manager and she informed me she was not taking on any additional customers at this time.

[Kirsten Lee]

Any other suggestions for property management since the Hinkle's are not available?

[dalecrenshaw]

Don't use someone name Katy....Terrible experience!!!!!!!!!!!

[asianthree]

do it your self and hire a homewatch person...you will sleep better knowing that person cares about your home...not how much money they are making..

[ducati1974]

I agree with TV2016- we did exactly what they said- advertised on thevillages4rent.com and hired The Villagers Homewatch to handle overseeing of the house, checking for damages after each tenant, arranging for cleaners and repairs. We handled screening the renters, contracts, rental & security deposits and taxes ourselves. It worked out very well for us for two years and now we are full time!

[ijusluvit]

do it your self and hire a homewatch person...you will sleep better knowing that person cares about your home...not how much money they are making..

Since our other home is out of state, I know we could not manage our place with the service we provide strictly with a home watch company. Home watch is not there to welcome and orient guests, or take care of things which might need attention during a guest's stay. They don't do the cleaning, the quality of which can be very poor unless you know you can depend on the cleaners AND it is carefully supervised. They don't do the taxes, advertising or contracting with prospective tenants. They generally do not arrange for needed repairs and services from a list of companies they know are honest and reliable. And they are not there to admit them when work needs to be done. They don't screen guests to make sure the numbers staying are accurate. And if you have a manager who charges reasonable fees like ours, the difference between those costs and the costs for home watch are quite small.

[capecodkev]

But your manager is not taking on any additional clients so that does not help for those of us who do not have her representing us.

[ijusluvit]

But your manager is not taking on any additional clients so that does not help for those of us who do not have her representing us.

I do not intend to "rub it in" that we have a great property manager who is currently operating at capacity. I sent you a pm to address that issue and then verified with my manager that things are changing all the time and that she has openings very often. And I can't believe that there are not other good managers out there.

I wrote this reply because I believe there are serious misconceptions about how practical it can be to hire a home watch service as a substitute for a competent property manager.

[asianthree]

Since our other home is out of state, I know we could not manage our place with the service we provide strictly with a home watch company. Home watch is not there to welcome and orient guests, or take care of things which might need attention during a guest's stay. They don't do the cleaning, the quality of which can be very poor unless you know you can depend on the cleaners AND it is carefully supervised. They don't do the taxes, advertising or contracting with prospective tenants. They generally do not arrange for needed repairs and services from a list of companies they know are honest and reliable. And they are not there to admit them when work needs to be done. They don't screen guests to make sure the numbers staying are accurate. And if you have a manager who charges reasonable fees like ours, the difference between those costs and the costs for home watch are quite small.

So when we had a property manager from a know company here, and came to our home six weeks after the renters left, our patio door was wide open no not broken into just left open, mold growing in food left on the counter,showers had dirty footprints in them, carpet stained, and $1800 in damage. The answer for all of this is. Guess we forgot to check the house before we gave back the deposit...right...I use the villages4rent..I talk to each person myself, and yes there have been people I have turned down just didn't like the vibe...we have had wonderful people stay at our home, and yes my home watch person greets them goes over the house, helps them with problems while they are there, checks them out, and has the house cleaned...at least when I come down I know my home is well cared for and it's not about taking the first person who calls just to get the money, after all this my home, and sometimes companies forget that

[ijusluvit]

So when we had a property manager from a know company here, and came to our home six weeks after the renters left, our patio door was wide open no not broken into just left open, mold growing in food left on the counter,showers had dirty footprints in them, carpet stained, and $1800 in damage. The answer for all of this is. Guess we forgot to check the house before we gave back the deposit...right...I use the villages4rent..I talk to each person myself, and yes there have been people I have turned down just didn't like the vibe...we have had wonderful people stay at our home, and yes my home watch person greets them goes over the house, helps them with problems while they are there, checks them out, and has the house cleaned...at least when I come down I know my home is well cared for and it's not about taking the first person who calls just to get the money, after all this my home, and sometimes companies forget that

Sounds to me like you've got one EXCEPTIONAL home watch person!! Is she Redwitch?

[BettyCrocked]

Do it yourself and hire a homewatcher. I spoke with a couple of the recommended managers and without even seeing the home told me the most they would rent mine out for in peak months is $3400. I'm already booked up at $4000/month for those months handling it myself. So I would have been paying someone 10% to rent it out for $600 less.

[twiceis]

Villages4rent and u can do it yourself!

[crummybuttons]

Call Realty Executives. They do it all for me and I sleep better at night. Worth every penny.


Hello Everyone,
We are closing on a Whispering Pines home in the Peidmont Village on May 3rd and planning on leasing the property as much as possible. I interviewed TV's Real Estate Property Management and was shocked at the charges (20% plus outlandish hidden fees). After interviewing another firm (15% short term lease of 3 months or less; 10% on long term lease of 6 months or more) I am wondering whether it is possible to do this myself or find someone who is competent locally? Any suggestions are most welcome!

[doubled]

I am a new owner and an out of state. Any good templates for contracts? We plan to rent on our own.

[Bonanza]

I have been a Realtor for 30 years and to charge 20% is outrageous, particularly when you said that there were additional fees, which there often are. My company's standard fee was the equivalent of one month's rental amount (per annum).

Just as a point of information, in Florida, there is a luxury tax on rentals if the rental isn't at least six months. Many owners will make up a lease for six months and one day, which is perfectly legal, but if you plan to have multi rentals per year, be careful. All you need is one angry neighbor who turns you in.