What to Do When You Realize You Chose The Wrong Property Manager

It should be a relief when you finally hire a property manager, but what should you do when you realize that you chose the wrong property manager.  There are a variety of different reasons that you may think that you made a poor decision, however your steps to address this issue are the same, for the most part.  Obviously if you hired the wrong property manager, you shouldn’t just let it go.  It is important to take some kind of action in order to get the best possible results, as quickly as possible.  Here’s a quick rundown of a few key things that you need to do when you realize you chose the wrong property manager.

Find a Way Out

Assuming that you have talked to your property manager and realized that there is no way to continue working together, the first step is finding a way out.  In order to do this, you need to take a close look at any paperwork that was signed and agreements that were made in writing.  In many cases, if the property manager is doing something that warrants the negative opinion that you have then it is likely breaking your agreement in some way.  It could be something as simple as a procedural issue or something as serious as fraud.  If the property manager is meeting all of the requirements outlined in your agreement, then you may be forced to pay some kind of contract termination fee.

Review Everything

Once you have gotten rid of your property manager, or even during your decision process, it is important to review everything you can.  Along with reviewing the agreements that you made with the property manager, you should also review anything that is or should be on paper.  This includes rental agreements that were signed by your tenants, any maintenance record, and especially the financial records to find out whether or not anything has fallen out of line.  It will also give you a better idea about the current state of your properties.  It will also allow you to take any necessary action against your property manager and potentially your tenants, if you discover that they have not been paying rent in a timely manner or are breaking your lease agreements in another way.

Start the Transition Process with a Visit

Now that your property manager will no longer be the point of contact for your tenants, it is a good idea to meet with them directly.  This allows them to know exactly what is going on and if you haven’t dealt with them before, it gives them a face to go with your name.  One thing to keep in mind is that many tenants may try to play you against your previous property manager in order to get something they want.  This is another reason that it is important to closely review the lease agreement that they signed.  Unfortunately, there could be cases when the lease agreement is on their side.  If this is the case, you will have to wait until the lease is up to make the changes that you want.  Another benefit to doing this is that it will eliminate any excuses that your tenants have in terms of being uninformed about the transition.

Discovering that you made a poor choice when hiring a property manager can quickly make you start second-guessing everything.  Fortunately, as long as you know what to do when you realize that you hired the wrong property manager, all of these problems can be taken care of.  Also in the future, if you want to hire another property manager you have a better idea of what to look for and what questions to ask.  You can be begin the process by getting a property management quote.