Questions to Ask Property Managers
Short questions for screening several property managers by phone before you commit to meetings, covering coverage in your area, fees, capacity, licensing, repair markups, and references.
The questions
Open any question for the note
Do you manage properties in my area, and how many?
Why ask it
Ask for the neighborhood or zip code, not the city. Firms list wide service areas and concentrate their staff in two or three districts, which is where their contractors and market knowledge actually are.
Do you manage properties like mine?
Why ask it
A single-family home, a duplex, a small apartment building, and a condo in an association each involve different rules and workloads. A firm with none like yours will be learning on your property.
Are you taking on new properties at the moment, and how soon could you start?
Why ask it
Some firms are at capacity but will still take the meeting. Asking early saves an hour, and a start date more than two months out usually means they are short-staffed.
What is your monthly fee, and is it charged on rent due or rent received?
Why ask it
Two answers in one question. Fees on rent due keep flowing during a vacancy or an arrears case, which is exactly when you least want them, and the difference rarely appears in the headline percentage.
What is your leasing fee, and do you charge again at renewal?
Why ask it
A full month for placement plus a renewal fee every year changes the real cost substantially. Any manager can answer both in a sentence, so hesitation here is worth noting.
Do you add a markup to repair invoices?
Why ask it
A blunt yes or no, and a percentage if yes. Firms that make money on maintenance recommend more of it, so this answer belongs in the first call rather than the contract review.
Is maintenance done by your own staff or by outside contractors?
Why ask it
In-house crews are often faster and cheaper but remove competitive quoting. Contractor-based firms can be slower but priced by the market. Either works; you want to know which model you are buying.
Is rent held in a separate client account?
Why ask it
The correct answer is yes, and it comes quickly. Confusion or a description of an operating account is a reason to stop the call, since it is where owner money most commonly goes missing.
Are you licensed here, and what is the license number?
Why ask it
Getting the number on the call lets you check the public register in a couple of minutes, including any disciplinary record. Refusal to give it is unusual enough to be disqualifying.
How many units does each of your managers carry?
Why ask it
This one number sorts a shortlist quickly, because the spread between firms is usually wide and the answer is easy to compare. A manager carrying several hundred units will get to your property only when something breaks.
Who would be my point of contact, and would I speak to them or to an office line?
Why ask it
A named individual is worth more than a service promise. If the answer is a general queue, expect to re-explain your property to a different person each time.
What is your current average time to let a property in my area?
Why ask it
Ask for the figure from this year, not a typical range. Anyone tracking their own performance knows it. Compare across your calls and you will see who is optimistic and who is measuring.
Do you have a minimum rent, portfolio size, or property standard?
Why ask it
Plenty of firms decline single properties or homes below a rent threshold without advertising it. Finding out in two minutes is better than after a viewing and a proposal.
What insurance do you require me to carry?
Why ask it
A specific answer, with cover levels and a request to be named as additional insured, indicates a firm that has dealt with claims. It also lets you price the requirement with your insurer before you go further.
What is the shortest agreement term you will accept?
Why ask it
A one-year term with a reasonable exit is normal. Insistence on multiple years, or a term you cannot leave without a fee, tells you how they expect the relationship to be maintained.
How many owner clients have you gained and lost this year?
Why ask it
Both numbers, side by side. Growth with heavy losses suggests a firm that sells well and delivers unevenly. Firms who track this and say so are usually the ones worth meeting.
Will you give me two owner references in my area?
Why ask it
Ask on the call and see how fast the names arrive. Same-day is a good sign. A promise followed by silence is the most common way a shortlist narrows itself.
Has a complaint been filed against you with the licensing board in the past three years?
Why ask it
Most will say no, and the register lets you verify it. A candid account of one complaint and how it was resolved is more reassuring than a firm answer you later find to be untrue.
Can you email me the management agreement and full fee schedule today?
Why ask it
This is the whole screen in one request. Firms with clean documents send them immediately. Firms that want to walk you through it in person first are managing what you see.
What do you not do, that owners often expect?
Why ask it
Common honest answers include tax filing, insurance claims, association dealings, and major renovation management. It takes thirty seconds and prevents a whole category of later misunderstanding.
Screening managers efficiently
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
How to run the calls
Aim for ten minutes each, five or six firms
The purpose is elimination, not selection. Keep the same order of questions so answers line up, and reserve the long conversations for the two or three that survive.
Lead with the disqualifiers
Area coverage, property type, capacity, and whether rent sits in a client account. Any of these can end the call in two minutes and save an hour.
Write the numbers down as you go
Monthly fee, leasing fee, markup, doors per manager, days to let. Five figures per firm on one page makes the shortlist obvious.
Ask for the documents on every call
Whoever emails the agreement and fee schedule the same day has both to hand and nothing to stage. The response speed is as informative as the contents.
Checks to run afterwards
- 1Look up each license number on the state or provincial register, including disciplinary history
- 2Read their current rental listings to see how your property would be advertised
- 3Read tenant reviews rather than owner reviews, since tenants report on repairs and deposits
- 4Call the two owner references and ask specifically how quickly bad news reaches them
- 5Compare the first-year total cost, not the monthly percentage
Reasons to end a call early
- No clear answer about where rent is held between collection and payment to you
- Refusal to give a license number or to send the agreement
- A rent estimate offered before anyone has seen the property, well above the other firms
- No named point of contact, only a general office line
- Pressure to sign before you have read the fee schedule
- Vagueness about repair markups or about who owns the maintenance company