The real estate industry is highly demanding. Property managers need better time management to handle multiple responsibilities better.
While technology can make things easier, are you using it the right way? Our tips combine technology and human resources to create effective, time-saving strategies. Whether you work alone or as a team, these strategies will help you increase productivity in your business.
1. Document Everything
The first step to saving time is to know where your time goes. As property managers, you need to wear multiple hats throughout your day. Documenting the time spent on each task gives you a better idea of where you can save time.
Keeping your time unaccounted also costs you money. According to Finances Online, companies lose a total of $7.4 billion every day due to unrecorded activities.
Other than time, you need to keep track of all property management data. Even if they look trivial, documenting the number of tenants, unoccupied properties, and even small maintenance tasks can save you time in the long run. At the end of the year, this makes inspections and tax seasons smoother.
2. Use Online Payments
Accepting rent through checks comes with the hassle of running financial errands. They are not just time-consuming but also outdated. A report by Payments Canada stated that an increasing number of Canadians prefer online payments to cash or cheque.
Accepting online payments is quicker and comes with many benefits. For starters, every payment lands directly into your account. You don’t need to run to the bank to cash the checks or deposit the money. Additionally, digital methods help tackle late rent payments. You can set monthly rent reminders, so tenants don’t miss out on rent. Tenants also have the option of setting up automatic payments, which recur every month.
Online payments also document all transactions, so you don’t have to keep track of them separately. In case an eviction is inevitable, you can submit these details as legal evidence.
3. Schedule Team Tasks
For 32% of property managers, efficiency is one of the biggest business challenges. You can tackle this problem by delegating your tasks effectively. Checklists and forms are excellent mediums to keep track of your tasks. By noting down all the delegated activities, you can better manage your support team. But instead of manually maintaining the checklists, you can leverage property management software.
Property management software has scheduling tools and dashboards that help you keep track of the tasks. For example, if you assign a maintenance request to an employee, they can update the progress and completion through the software itself.
By providing access to your support staff, they can assign new tasks or take over pending ones. This increases the overall productivity and efficiency of your employees without much interaction from you.
4. Screen Tenants Using AI
According to My Smart Move, tenants with previous eviction histories are three times more likely to get evicted. Evictions are costly, but you can prevent them by thoroughly screening the tenants.
Even though tenant screening is essential, it is also taxing. A manual tenant application process can get time-consuming, especially with unsolicited phone calls and emails. Instead, you can opt for an automated tenant screening process using AI-backed chatbots.
You can set your criteria and create an online form through the bot. The bot will collect tenants’ details and automatically reject any application that doesn’t meet the prerequisites. This saves the time of both property managers and tenants, as the process is almost instantaneous.
5. Use Online Communication Channels
Communication is vital to run any business. And as a property manager, this communication is not only limited to your clients and staff but also your tenants. For effectively managing these communication requirements, you can use owner and tenant portals. These portals support both group and individual messages.
If you have any changes affecting all your tenants, such as a change in common amenities, you can use mass texting. But if something affects only one tenant, such as a change in the lease agreement, you can also communicate individually.
6. Outsource Tedious Tasks
As a property manager, you have multiple responsibilities such as managing tenants, advertising properties, and talking to clients. Instead of handling everything, you can outsource some tasks to save time.
Accounting and IT services are commonly outsourced tasks, with nearly 37% of businesses outsourcing them. Companies such as Assetsoft help property managers with lease abstraction, CAM reconciliation, and back-office accounting.
Other than saving time, outsourcing has many benefits. As companies only pay for the amount of work, outsourcing ends up saving expenses for the business. It also lets you hire expert resources and high-end technology at a fraction of their price. As most service providers operate remotely, you can also save office space and employee expenses.
Many companies also try a hybrid approach by delegating tasks to both in-house and outsourced employees. This helps them attain stability and accountability while also leveraging a scalable resource.
Leverage Property Management Technology Through Assetsoft
Property management software comes with many features such as accounting, CRM, and rent payment. At Assetsoft, we help property managers leverage the best features through software integration.
Not every software suits your business requirements. We understand your needs and create customized software for your business. With a combined experience of over 30 years, Assetsoft aims at helping property management firms with technology and expertise.
With us, you can not only automate your processes but also outsource your business tasks. We have experienced teams who are dedicated to back-office accounting, CAM reconciliations, and lease abstractions.
We can also help you leverage the latest technology such as IoT and machine learning to make the best out of real estate data. With Assetsoft, you don’t have to worry about any of your property management requirements.
To know more about our services, reach out to Assetsoft!