When you’re choosing a
Hawaii property management company, you have some important things to look for. You want to make sure you’re hiring someone who has experience in the local market and with your type of property. You also want to know if they have a good reputation, and if current and former clients had a good experience working with them.
A lot of research can be done online. At some point, however, you’ll want to have a meeting where you can ask them questions about how they work and what they’ll do to lease, manage, and maintain your property.
These five questions are a great place to start.
How Will Communication Work?
Thanks to technology, we have a number of ways to communicate with each other today. We can make phone calls, send emails, share text messages, and follow social media posts.
Make sure you understand how your property manager prefers to communicate, and discuss whether it measures up to the way you prefer to communicate. If you’re an
out-of-state investor in another time zone, online communication will be the best way for you to keep up. If you like the in-person meetings and weekly phone calls, make sure your property manager is prepared for that.
Discuss your expectations when it comes to communication. This is going to impact your relationship, and you want to understand not only how they will communicate with you – but also how they will respond to your residents.
How Well Do You Know Hawaii Landlord Laws?
Landlord and tenant law in Hawaii is always changing, and there are also federal laws such as fair housing to keep up with. You’re looking for a property manager who understands the regulatory and legal requirements that come with renting out a home. Make sure you’re satisfied that your property manager will keep you in compliance and ensure expensive legal mistakes are avoided.
How Do You Collect Rent?
You need to know how rent will be collected and how it will be paid to you. Find out when rent is due, how tenants are expected to pay the rent, and whether there is a grace period or any late fees when rent doesn’t come in on time. You also want to ask when you can expect to be paid. You’ll need to know if your payment will be deposited directly into your account or if you can expect to receive a check in the mail.
It’s also important that you receive a statement every month, either online or in the mail. You want to be sure you’ll understand the income and expenses associated with your rental property. These statements should be clear, easy to read, and accurate.
How Do you Respond to Maintenance Requests?
Find out how your property manager handles routine and emergency maintenance. Are you going to be asked permission every time a $75 fix for a garbage disposal is requested? Or, will you only be bothered for repairs that are more than $500? Will you be required to keep money in a maintenance reserve?
You need to understand the parameters. Ask about the vendors your property management works with and how quickly they respond to small repairs. You’ll need to know if they’re available 24 hours a day.
What Kind of Data do you Use to Price my Property?
Properly pricing your rental property will result in a placing a great tenant quickly. A property that’s priced under market will cost you money, and a property that’s over-priced will probably cost you even more money in vacancy. You need to know your property manager is using good data and reliable information to price your home, and not just picking a number out of the sky.
These are only a handful of questions you should ask when you’re considering a property management company in Hawaii. We can talk to you further about what to look for, and we’d also be happy to answer these questions ourselves. Please
contact us at Hawaiian Dream Properties.
