Monday, 23 February 2009

Finding Property Management Jobs

Here are some quick tips to find your next Property Management job online. And all you have to do is open your Inbox.
Tips:
* Use search engines like Google to find both job boards, and employers. There are over 40,000 Niche job boards on the Internet. These sites are locally focused, or focused on specific types of Property Management, from Apartments, to Residential or Commercial Real Estate management. These sites also have a wealth of information, including salary information, local employers, and local industry trends, etc.
* Create Automated Job Agents. They are easy to setup, they email you daily, and they can find new jobs for you, while you are sleeping!
* Upload your Resume to the major job board resume databases... but don't expectanyone to call you. This is almost a formality. Most big employers subscribe to the resume databases, but they don't use them very effectively. Most smaller and midsize companies don't use resume databases at all.
* Visit your local Professional Association web site. There are thousands of professional associations, including National and Local Chapters. Many of them have job boards. Those job boards are not often utilized, but the jobs are VERY specific, a lot of times.
* Search for local Real Estate Companies, in many cases, Real Estate firms have sister companies or separate Property Management divisions, within their companies.
There are lots of job boards on the Internet. Most are national sites, with tons of jobs.
Finding the Right job board for you and your career is easy to do.
For example, say you are looking for a property management job in Los Angeles.
By searching Google for the term "Los Angeles Property Management Jobs", you will come up with a list of job boards, for the most part.
Many of those sites will be national sites, but some of them, might be targeted directly to job seekers and employers in Los Angeles.
When you find a site, like GOJobs.com, Review the number of local employers they have listed. More is not always better. What you are looking for is specific job titles that match what you are looking for.
Most of the major job search engines have Real Estate and Property Management Job listings, but a lot of the time, there isn't much local information about local employers, etc. A good job board will give you access to a wide variety of local jobs, as well as information about the employers posting those jobs.
Using a Job Agent, on these sites can help by just emailing the local jobs to you on a daily basis.
Also, when applying for jobs, make sure you are actually qualified for the position. There is nothing worse then applying to hundreds of sites, and getting limited responses.

Property Management

Real estate property management is a complicated task and quite difficult for a single person to handle it. It should be handled by a number of skilled professionals with expertise in their specific areas. The portfolios that are generally assumed to manage properties are as follows. They are the onsite managers, the leasing agent, the tenant representative, the manager of different properties and the portfolio manager. However it has to be borne in mind that in practical work scenario the professionals who are involved in managing the different properties may not stick to the defined job descriptions. There will be a lot of situations where one will overlap the other.
The first professional on the real estate property management team is the onsite manager also called the resident manager. He is the person who looks into the everyday issues of managing different aspects of a property. The onsite management position is usually considered to be at the beginning of the career ladder of jobs that deal with managing of various properties. The onsite manager is usually given accommodation in the premises of the property, whether commercial or residential, that he is managing. This is done to ensure better work efficiency and saving time. He is entrusted with the routine activities of the job that involves management of realty. This includes daily interaction with the house owners and the tenants, collecting the fees from the tenants and performing the routine maintenance jobs.
The real estate property management team includes the leasing agent who is responsible for getting new tenants for a premises and finalizing the tenancy deal. It involves working in a sales profile and does not require one to visit any property premises every day and taking care of the maintenance activities going on there. A leasing manager might be given the responsibility of a single property if it is large and a number of properties if they are small. A junior level leasing manager can be placed under the supervision of an onsite manger while a senior level manager might be placed under the direct supervision of the portfolio manager. The leasing activity can also be taken care of by the onsite manager or the property supervisor without appointing a dedicated leasing agent.
Real estate property management professional under consideration is also the tenant representative. The tenant representative works essentially on the same jobs that a leasing agent does but he takes care of the property related issues from the point of view of the tenant rather than the side of the owner. Tenants occupying commercial premises usually hire them. They assist and advise a prospective tenant in finding a property of their choice and help out in negotiating and finalizing the deal.
The next property professional to be considered is the manager of the property. The manager of the property is also called the realty manager. He takes care of a number of properties. Real estate property management under the supervision of the manager of the property involves visiting each property and looking after how well the management and other property related work is going on in each property. He supervises the onsite manager. He also works as a consultant in formulating management policies and budget plans for properties. He sees to it that the overall expenditure is within the limits of the budget plans. The manager of the property reports to the portfolio manager who is usually considered the highest professional in the team. He is also called an asset manager and he takes care of a large number of properties.

A Property Management Career

Are you by chance considering a career in the domain of property management? Hang on, this article is for you.
Management encompasses very vast avenues. Retail managing and sports managing are well known areas of a management career that are fairly popular. However, there exists another very enjoyable branch of management known as property management. Some people take to it as a fish takes to water. These are the people who have a definite aptitude for managing a property. As with any other career, there are certain pre-requisites, certain qualities that are essential to posses to make a success of this career. For an aspirant to this branch of career, if you have a thorough knowledge of the skills required to manage property and also exactly what duties are involved in such a career, your choice of a career in this management of property would definitely prove correct.
Firstly, let us see what makes a good manager stand out as a great manager. To begin with, he should have a flair for leadership, because managers are essentially leaders. He belongs to the category of people who lead others rather than people who follow leaders. A great manager is also a great motivator. He knows how to get the best out of workers. He also knows how important the job satisfaction is for his workers. So most definitely, the basic two skills of a great manager are leadership and motivation.
In addition to these, as far as property management is concerned, you also must have people oriented skills, in other words, public relations skills. You will be required to work with the tenants as a property manager day in and day out. You will be the one they will turn to in case of problems. Solving their problems is part and parcel of a property managers job. You as a property manager will have to interact not only with tenants, but also with workers, maintenance staff and last but not the least, with the landlords. Good communication skills will stand you in good stead through all these.
A property manager is entirely responsible for keeping the affairs of the establishment or buildings running smoothly. You will have to get the maintenance problems attended to as promptly as possible by the staff members. You will also be advertising and showcasing the empty apartments in the building. It will be your job to process all the applications and keep a track of credit checks

Property Management Systems

For property investors, property maintenance and management should be of prime importance if one wants to achieve maximum value in the market for their assets. However, many owners tend to ignore the significance of property management either due to lack of knowledge about the issue or they are unable to garner sufficient time to look into various aspects related to the property. Some investors even tend to refrain from managing their assets as they find the job cumbersome and stressful. In these circumstances, signing up for an online property management system can be a useful alternative.
In the last couple of decades, technological advancements have played a major role in improving overall efficiency, reorganizing processes and helping property investors and property management firms gain optimum control over their property management issues. A property management system can be simply defined as a software program designed and developed with the objective of helping customers manage and gain maximum control over every aspect related to their property. At present, property management systems are being used widely in several sectors including real estate, banking, hospitality, logistics, hotel management, and managing intellectual property issues. Also, there are different types of property management systems available in the market, thereby confusing users about which one to select.
In this regard, below are described some important points that can help in choosing a property management system.
Why do you need a PMS? - It is important to address this issue and so as to select software that is aptly suitable for one's needs and requirements. For example, a PMS required for a hospitality industry must have features that can ease out guest reservation, facilitate speedy check-in, increase productivity and create a better guest experience. On the other hand, a PMS suitable for a property owner must have provisions where one can maintain tenant database and handle issues related to property maintenance.
A properly selected and installed property management system can simplify your business operations significantly, thereby making your life easy and comfortable. Also, it is possible to eliminate human errors and increase efficiency by replacing manual processes with user-friendly interfaces.
Understand your needs - Whenever you are planning to implement a PMS in your business, it is important that you understand what you really require. For this, it is important to interact with all those people who will be using the system directly or indirectly. In this manner, one can gain insight into their needs and requirements that they feel can improve their efficiency and make their jobs simple but interesting. Also, one must even take into account viewpoints of people not interested in implementing the system and include their concerns while looking out for a PMS. In addition, remember to include your technical staff in these discussions as they are the persons concerned with the installation, integration and implementation of the system.
Make a list and get quotations - Make a list of features that have been proposed. Usually, these lists normally include some features that are absolutely necessary, while others can be easily ignored. So, while preparing a list of needs and requirements, it is important to segregate features depending on the requirements. Once the list is prepared, one can now go ahead with the buying process. For this, one has to look out for options that satisfy your requirements and fits in your budget.
Consider your budget - It is important to determine how much one can afford on getting a property management system. At present, there are many property management systems available in the market. All these systems differ from one another in terms of features offered. Accordingly, the price range also varies. By determining the budget, selection becomes easier as one can conveniently eliminate options that are outside the range.

Wednesday, 31 December 2008

Working in facility management

Services Offered By Facility Management and Property Management
Facility management is the management of communal buildings,estates which encompasses both building fabric and service. Facilities management accomplish that everything is available and operating properly, so the building occupants can start doing their work. This includes air conditioning, cleaning, decoration, lighting and security,monitoring and supervising devices, control and regulation systems, management and optimization mechanisms in buildings. Facilities Management is about managing risks within an organization, controlling costs and improving the levels of service within that organization. The services are sometimes divided into 'hard services' and 'soft services'. Hard services includes things such as the air conditioner is working properly and safely. Soft service includes cleaning of buildings and monitoring the performance electricians and builders. Facilities management is the integration of process within an organization to develop and maintain the agreed services which improve the effectiveness of its primary activities. Every day effective facilities management provides a safe and efficient working environment, which is essential to the performance of any business.Property management is the operation of commercial, industrial or other residential real estate. Once an investor decides to construct on his land, the management property organization takes care of his land and takes care of all the legal proceeding that are involved in the construction. The owner doesn't bother about knowing the legal intricacies personally. He trusts his assets managing firm to take care of the legal complications for him, though it is advisable for the owner to be aware of all the legal procedures. The managing firms have a list of architects and construction personnel with them and they arrange for them.Property management manage construction, maintenance, repair and development on a property. The relations with the tenants provides a buffer for those landlords desiring to distance themselves from their tenant constituency. It includes participating in or initiating litigation with tenants, contractors or agencies. Special attention is given to landlord/tenant low and non-payment, harassment, reduction of pre-arranged services and public nuisance. The property management are also responsible for taking care of mobile home parks, automobile storage areas and recreational facilities. The tasks that are involved in taking care of private assets, that involves maintaining and developing office premises, shopping malls and entertainment venues. The work is tougher and more elaborate than in the case of managing houses because places of public access need to be maintained in a top class condition as the business venues can attract a lot of clients only if they are very impressive to look at and be in.

Friday, 7 November 2008

Whats involved with property management

Does the property need frequent visits, repairs, or attention? If your rental property is a veritable money pit, you can find yourself spending more time there than at your regular job. If you're getting constant requests for repairs to a property, having someone who can devote the majority of their time to your property is very helpful. The more units you have, the more you can benefit from a professional maintenance worker or property management company.
What services do you need? If you're looking for a small amount of assistance, such as monthly rent collection, a full-service agency may be too much for your needs. Since you'll need to budget in the fees charged by a property management company, this will cut into your profit margin. Therefore, instead of hiring a full-service company, you may be better served by a part-time property manager or specialist who can handle the most frequent problems.
On the other hand, if you do need a complete solution, make sure that the company can provide you with all the services you require. For example, if you need someone who is capable of light maintenance work in addition to rent collection, keep this in mind while you shop for a property management company.
Is the company trustworthy and friendly? Before hiring a property management company, do thorough research to ensure that it is reputable. If you are an absentee landlord, this is extremely important. You will be relying on this company to collect rent and represent you and you interests. Check references and talk to other landlords who have worked with this company. Make sure the representative of the property management company is level-headed and diplomatic. Just one bad interaction between tenant and rent collector can destroy goodwill that can take years to restore.
Hiring a property management company should result in more free time and less worry for you. If you hire a property management company and find that you are still constantly worrying about your property, you may need to restructure your schedule to spend more time at the property, or have more frequent communication with the property management company.

Should I Hire a Property Management Company for My Rental Property?

Managing Risk
Turning over a facility to a management company is convenient and the benefits are plentiful. But one should keep in mind that handing over the keys means handing over responsibility—which means potential risk. Even the most experienced professionals err on occasion. Before hiring a management company, you want to know it is prepared and properly insured if an incident should occur.
When hiring a management company, treat the situation similarly to that of hiring a vendor. Have the company listed as an additional insured on your current business owner’s policy. Next, check to see if it has an adequate property-management errors and omissions (E&O) policy in force. This coverage is designed to protect property management companies if they fail to render the professional services contracted and also provides the owner assistance with defense costs associated with responding to lawsuits and investigations.
Request a certificate of insurance from the management company as evidence it is insured by a financially stable entity and carries appropriate amounts of insurance for the type of services performed. The certificate should have information on the insurer, insurance agency, types of insurance, policy numbers, effective dates, limits, certificate holders and any special provisions it may have. Check to see the policy limits are equal if not greater than your facility’s limits.
More About E&O
Here are a few reasons property-management E&O coverage works. Let’s say you bring in a management company and its contracted services include paying property taxes on your commercial building. The property manager fails to make these payments in a timely manner, and you, the property owner, are slapped with a fine and a penalty. Since the management company breached its contract by not paying on time, you would most likely make a claim with the company’s insurance company, requesting it pay the fine and penalty on your behalf.
What if you authorize a management company to have maintenance work done at your facility? Let’s say the cost of the project is $500,000, and the repair company is to be paid in increments of $100,000 as each stage is completed. However, your property manager advances money to the repair company prior to completion and neglects to identify the licensing, bonding and insurance company of the contractor.
The repair company leaves the work site prior to repairing several buildings and, because it wasn’t licensed or insured, you now have to hire and pay a new company to finish the work. You want to ensure your management company has the resources and insurance coverage to allow you to recover amounts improperly paid to the first repair company. It is never easy to point the finger and cast the blame when mishaps occur; however, when everyone involved has proper insurance coverage, the end result is less costly all around.