Why use pro management services to build real estate investment portfolio

Real estate could be an effective place to grow your hard-earned money, but it must be managed skillfully. It could become a drain on personal time, resources and create frustrations which may force anyone to abandon the idea of investing.

After acquiring real estate, it is best to use a paid property manager, who will efficiently and professionally manage the property while you as owner/investor receive returns directly into your account monthly. Management fees would be written off as an expense on your taxes and you save frustrations of handling it by yourself.

To be successful at managing a property, time is needed to:

• Advertise and market — Wider marketing yields a better pool of tenants.
• Screen tenants — Always use the right tools and resources to help to select the best tenant. The process must be thorough and correct each time. Taking shortcuts and not dedicating enough time to screening can be disastrous.
• Prepare lease — These are legal documents that must always contain terms to protect your investment.
• Handle maintenance and respond to emergencies — This is time consuming, costly and can severely impact the bottom line.
• Collect rent, file and serve notices, and appear in court for eviction hearings.
• Learn tenant and landlord law — It takes time to learn and know the duties of a landlord. Tenants have rights and landlords must abide by the rules relating to upkeep of the property, visiting the property, security deposits and eviction processes. Failure to know those rules could be very costly and may cause your investment to have negative returns.

Property management companies know the Arizona Landlord and Tenant Act and have the legal resources to manage all issues that may arise in the process of managing rental property.

Maricopa residents Sherman and Euphemia Weekes have more than 30 years’ experience in property management and own Crest Premier Properties. Licensed Realtors and active members of the National Association of Residential Property Management with a Certified Residential Property Management designation.