Choosing a Property Management Company and Its Maintenance Services Policy, Part 1

There are many tests in the process of choosing a property management company in Alpharetta, one of…

There are many tests in the process of choosing a property management company in Alpharetta, one of which is its maintenance services policy.

There are basically two policy types with a variety of hybrids in between. A common policy is having an in-house maintenance operation. The stated intent of such policy is to control costs by having a salaried maintenance staff. On the surface this makes sense, but when you look at it closer, maybe not. In such a program there is an inherent need to make the operation profitable. Even though the original intent may have been to provide a good economic solution for the property owner, that virtuous intent can become quickly overshadowed by an insatiable pursuit of profitability. In such cases, maintenance work often finds a way to self-generate.

For example, I acquired an investor a few years ago who owned a duplex. He was jumping ship with a professional property manager because in over a year of service, he had never received a single rent proceeds check. Maintenance services consumed 100% of his rent payments every month. He was frustrated, and rightfully so. This landlord was helping pay the wages for that management company’s in-house maintenance staff.

One hybrid of this policy is to have an in-house maintenance staff handle some or most of the handyman-type work, while independently contracting for specialized services. While this approaches a better solution, the same potential fault resides in the policy. We will explore another service option in my next BLOG.

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