6 Critical Questions You Should Ask Before Hiring a Property Management Service in Seattle
If you’re considering retaining the services of a property management service for your Seattle area home or business, there is some essential information you need before deciding who to hire. After all, it’s not just a piece of property that needs to be looked at—it’s your property. And it’s your investment. That’s not something you want to gamble with. You’ll want to engage the services of someone who will treat it like you would. Here are six critical questions to ask potential property managements services.
How long have you been in business? It’s tough to gauge a company’s track record if they haven’t been around for long. You’ll want to find a service that can provide you with references from multiple clients—and has several years of good experience to back up their promises.
What’s your tenant qualification process? You wouldn’t rent your home or business to just anyone. What process does the service have in place to check backgrounds? What else do they do to screen potential tenants?
How many properties do your manage—and how many staff do you employ? Does the company you’re talking to have the resources to really manage the properties, or are they spread too thin? On the other hand, a service with too few properties may not have the experience or the reliability you’re after.
What’s your marketing plan for vacant properties? It’s not enough to simply have a list of available properties. Ask your prospective service for specifics on how they plan to put the right people in your property. Have them tell you—or show you—what they’ve done for other clients.
How do you handle maintenance and repairs? Will your management service be doing the work themselves or outsourcing it? If they hire it out, can they provide information about whom they use?
Who can I talk to? This one may seem obvious, but you’ll want references from at least 3-4 previous clients. And don’t settle for a list. Make sure you call several of the references provided.
What else would
you want to know before hiring a
property management service?