Investors who own large or even mid-size apartment buildings or condo communities often debate whether they need an on-site manager to take care of issues as they come up. This might be a good option for buildings that may be older and in constant need of repairs and attention. Otherwise, a professional Philadelphia property management company that remains offsite can typically take care of any work, communication, or coordination that’s necessary.
An on-site manager comes with pros and cons. Here’s what we recommend you consider if you’re thinking about how to best care for the property and its tenants.
Community Size and Amenities
The size of your community will often dictate whether or not on-site management is necessary. For a building with 10 or 15 units, it’s likely unnecessary. Even 100 or 200 units is manageable without a full-time property manager taking up office space at the building.
If you own a building with 500 or 1,000 rental units, the necessity becomes a bit more urgent. There will be a lot of tenant turnover, a lot of repair requests, and even the occasional emergency or tenant dispute that may require an on-site management team.
Amenities sometimes make on-site management more attractive as well. One pool is easy enough to take care of from afar as long as it’s being cleaned and maintained regularly. Five pools in the community and a couple of fitness centers and a clubhouse that’s always rented out for private parties might require in-person coordination and oversight.
In addition to size and activity, you have to consider the age of your property. If there’s a lot of wear and tear or things are beginning to deteriorate, you may be facing some large capital improvements. It could be helpful to have someone there every day to supervise the progress and provide access to the vendors and contractors who are coming and going.
Leverage Technology to Avoid On-Site Management
One of the reasons that on-site management is less necessary now than it once was is the increase in technology. Managing rental homes, individual units, and even entire buildings is a lot easier to do from offsite now than it was 20 years ago. So many property management functions are automated and we’re communicating via text and email and even social media. Your property manager doesn’t have to be at the building all the time. It’s easy enough to check up on how things are running and systems are performing without being there physically.
It’s likely more cost-effective to keep your property managers offsite. When you hire dedicated property managers who are focused on one building, you’re going to have to pay much more than you would pay a Philadelphia property management company that works elsewhere but shows up at the building when on-site work is required.
There’s also increased liability when you have an on-site manager. This property manager effectively becomes your employee. That’s going to require extra management and trust on your end so you can be sure the job description is being followed and your property and tenants are being served the way you expect.
We can talk to you about the unique and specific needs of your multi-family property in Philadelphia. At TCS Management, we take care of individual units and entire buildings. Contact us to find out what makes most sense for you.
TCS Management is a full service property management company headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, also serving Cherry Hill, NJ, Wilmington, Delaware and the surrounding areas. We focus on single-family and multifamily residential property management of homes, condos, townhomes, and apartment buildings.
