Q: Duties and Responsibilities of the Property Manager.
A: Marketing and Keeping the Property Leased No matter what business you are running you must be good at sales, budgeting and have excellent service. Property managers' duties have evolved into more than keeping their buildings leased. Competition is stiff. Communications, competitive market analyses, advertising and quality service has become forefront in management. Are the existing rents comparable? Are vacancies at their lowest? Do we have good quality tenants? When making tenant choices consider credit worthiness, compatibility, and stability. What is the turnover rate? Are bad debts minimized? Companies should have a structured marketing plan with a unified theme or image. Good resulting public relations should sell the property. Budgets also need to be strictly followed to be successful. Lease management includes the renting of the property, lease accounting and handling any related court cases. Is the property benefiting from the highest and best use? If not, the manager should have a niche market analysis, design evaluation, physical condition analyses, and a cost of conversion estimate. Market analyses would then continue with an existing revenues and expenses report, ongoing negotiation strategies, the return/risk relationship of redevelopment and be able to prepare a new management plan. During job interviews, the property manager must sell himself as far as his education, motivation and experience. However, the property manager who says "I can build you portfolio" (through a solid management plan) will land the job. Collection of Property Income It is an accepted policy that rentals - office, store, loft or residence be paid in advance. When a tenant is delinquent, money is actually being taken from the landlord. The owner is furnishing the tenant with the facilities and services that were promised only in return for rental payments. Just because the tenant does not pay his rent when due, the owner is not released from the obligation of paying taxes, financing charges, etc. Therefore, the landlord is actually advancing monies to the delinquent tenant. It is the duty of the property manager to act quickly and prudently in order to protect his clients’ interests and to mitigate the loss. Financial Reporting Client goals must be considered at each level. i.e. What is the resulting cash flow, appreciation, tax shelters, leverages, risks, returns, timing, and image ramifications? Property managers must not simply pay the operating expenses each month but must also always be on the lookout for new ways of minimizing the client's costs through more efficient and effective management. This can be done effectively through full physical financial analysis, insurance analyses and legal analyses. Every decision should be financially based. I.e. If you spend money on new carpeting, when will the owner receive his investment back and with what benefit. Financial reports consist of rent and operating expenses, cash flow statements, debt service statements, budgeting, tax, security and insurance reports. The financial management plan should be devised in consultation with the owner. Property managers should take a proactive stance rather than a reactive stance. Maintaining the Physical Integrity One of the responsibilities of the property manager is to supervise the physical operation of the property under his management. This includes dealing with tradesmen, contractors, consultants and superintendents. Maintenance is a process that provides the repairs and services necessary to satisfy the tenants and to preserve the physical condition of the building and still control the daily operating expenses while maximizing the investment of the owner. Maintenance plans vary from emergency requirements, building act compliance, inspection and preventive maintenance, corrective maintenance, crisis management. All plans should be strategically implemented with feedback. Remember all properties have 2 lives; physical and economical. It is not enough to want to make improvements. Everything needs to be financially justified. In addition to the aforementioned, property managers should be able to deliver advice and total consultancy to the owner. The physical life depends almost totally on the quality of maintenance. It is the responsibility of the property manager to make certain that each element of the physical structure functions as it should. Preventive maintenance as opposed to responsive maintenance lengthens the physical life of the property and greatly reduces future operating costs. The tenants and owners are also happier with this type of approach. Attributes of Property Managers Property managers have a great capacity for details and a lot of integrity, education and expertise. Negotiation skills, decisiveness, energy, assertiveness, entrepreneurial skills and supervisory abilities are also key. |