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With Toronto's perpetually low vacancy rates, renting out a condo for an extra income stream—and to put one more good landlord into the mix!—makes a lot of sense: enough that buckets of local condo owners are getting into the rental game. But it's also a job, with responsibilities to yourself, your tenant, and the law, and it's frequently a bigger job than condo owners bargained for.
Enter the property management company.
For a fee, a property management company will run your condo unit's day to day operations, finding tenants, collecting rent, making repairs, dealing with any issues—basically doing that full-time landlord job.
While you might be the type of landlord who prefers the hands-on approach, here are five reasons why working with a property management company could be the right fit for you.
1) There is no substitute for a professional
We discount, in some ways, what experience can mean. It's almost intangible, but it's the difference between diving for Google when a situation arises and being able to say, "Yeah, I've seen this one before"—and knowing exactly what to do.
Property managers know what a good—and legal—lease looks like, which contractors are fast as well as good and affordable, which expenses you can write off at the end of the year on your taxes, what a reasonable market rent is, and more. It's their business to stay current with the developments, standards, and pitfalls of renting out units in the specific neighbourhood you're in.
There's a wealth of experience available through condo property management companies that can be frankly hard to access as the landlord of a single or a few units, even if you've been in the game for a while. That accretion of experience means being able to take the best route forward the first time, and save yourself time, money, stress, and the other bumps which come along any learning curve.
2) Stop problems before they start
One of the major problems a property management company can eliminate—the one that sends landlords looking for one the most often, according to the Globe and Mail—is getting burned. Eviction's a miserable process: paperwork, bad blood, stress, repair expenses, and the not-to-be-discounted disappointment of having someone betray your trust.
If there is one service property management companies offer that's worth their fees by itself, tenant screening would be it. The ability to bring the expertise, big-business resources, contacts, and knowledge on what makes a tenant great stuff or someone to avoid is the first, fundamental step to setting a smooth course for your condo unit. Because every issue is easier to deal with when the right person's on the other side, helping you solve it.
The other major problem a property management company can handily disappear is not knowing the law. The Residential Tenancies Act isn't the most oblique document that's ever come out of a government, but it's a law, and it's got plenty of nuance to learn. Having an expert on hand can keep you from making any innocent missteps that would be a little too interesting to the Landlord and Tenant Board—or to the Canada Revenue Agency.
3) Time matters
Yours, and that of your tenants. Being a landlord isn't, unfortunately, a nine-to-five job; that pipe might burst on the first day of your beach vacation, or that stove might break when you're in the middle of a serious deadline at work—and because those are basic necessities for other human beings, they'll need to get fixed now.
If you have a demanding workplace, substantial family obligations, or just generally do the time and money equation and find time winning out, a property management company might well be the way to go.
4) Stay competitive
The vacancy rates in Toronto are ever-high—but with Urbanation's most recent report showing condo rents on a slight decline in the downtown core, there's still competition for good tenants at rents that cover your mortgage and expenses. The convenience, peace of mind, and access that a property management firm can offer a good tenant matters when it comes time to put in an offer.
What's more, a property management company has contractors on call, and can handle the kind of soft upkeep that keeps a property in excellent condition. A property is a long-term investment, and the tinkering repairs matter: a cabinet hinge here, a fussy closet rail there. Property managers are trained to consider the long game. A commitment to making sure the little things don't add up keeps your unit rentable for market rates over the course of years.
5) The satisfaction of knowing you're a good landlord
Very few people wake up, start a new business venture, and go, "I think I'll phone this one in." So of course you want to be a good landlord: have a great, cordial relationship with your tenants, pick your renters well, offer a great space, and know that both you and your tenants are happy every year at lease renewal time.
On the more budgetary side, word about the quality of a landlord gets around through sites like Rate My Landlord, local startup R3NTR, social media, or just the endless Toronto grapevine. Good landlords rarely have to worry about their unit sitting vacant while tenants pass it up, and good landlords won't have trouble finding new (also responsible) tenants as departing ones recommend the unit to their friends.
Having a property management company on your side is a great, simple way to know you're giving your tenants responsive, polite assistance—and building yourself and your unit a good name. It means less stress and the satisfaction of knowing the job's being done right.