Small Apartment Building

Whether you own one small apartment building or several, you should have two very specific goals in mind. The first one is to keep each unit consistently filled with reliable tenants. And, the second one is to keep your rental income coming in. However, it is not that easy. In fact, the more tenants you have the higher volume of complaints, maintenance issues, and vacancies you will need to deal with. Although owning a small apartment building or duplex is a great investment, it also comes with a lot of work. 

From finding tenants to rent collection and maintenance to evictions, as a landlord you must constantly balance cash flow, expenses, tenant needs and legal requirements. For this reason, we offer some insight on managing a small apartment building.

Owning A Small Apartment Building

Owning a small apartment building has its pros and cons. For one, you must devote most of your time and energy to operating the building. And, if you own an old apartment building, it’s much more challenging than operating a newer one. But, there are also several advantages like multiple streams of income and building equity. Owning an apartment complex does have it pros and cons but it essentially boils down to risks versus rewards. 

Managing A Small Apartment Building

Managing a small apartment building is about taking care of not just the building, but also the tenants. In fact, if you decide manage it yourself, you will be responsible for ensuring that apartments are filled and repairs are done while also maintaining profitability. For this reason, it would be wise to evaluate the opportunity cost of the time required of you to manage the building. While the responsibilities will vary based on the specific needs of the complex and the owner, property management is the same.

Management Responsibilities 

Regardless of the size of your building, there are a number of duties that come along with managing a property. Property management responsibilities include: 

Property Management Responsibilities:

• Managing Rent: manage rent collection, enforce on time payments, set the right rent rate 
• Manage Tenants: find tenants, deal with complaints and evictions, screen tenants, negotiate leases, facilitate move-in and move-out walk through inspections
• Maintenance & Repairs: handle the physical management of the apartment complex, including regular and preventative maintenance, as well as repairs
• Legal Issues: understand local, state and national laws on tenant screening, dealing with security deposits, lease terminations, evicting a tenant, and safety standards
• Budgeting & Records: maintain thorough records of income and expenses, inspections, leases, maintenance requests, complaints, repairs, rent collection, insurance

Conclusion

As a small apartment building owner, the more tenants you have the higher volume of complaints, maintenance issues, and vacancies you will need to deal with. For this reason, you may benefit from hiring a property management company. Whether you are interested in changing property managers, or simply looking to hire one for the first time, we can help!

We take care of all types of residential rental properties including homes, condos, and multifamily properties such as multiplexes, duplexes and triplexes, and even small apartment buildings. Let us manage your rental properties, so you can enjoy your life!  Call us today at (858) 576-2176. We will save you time, money, and the stress that comes along with managing your own rentals.