Property management is a relationship business. We work hard to develop and maintaining positive and pleasant working relationships with the owners who entrust us with their properties and with the tenants who live in them.
If you’re working with a Jackson property manager, you don’t have to spend a lot of time worrying about managing your tenant’s need and complaints. You won’t have to worry about vendor relationships, either.
That’s because your property manager is your point of contact, whether it’s dealing with a maintenance emergency, enforcing the lease agreement, or managing a lease renewal.
As a landlord who might be managing on their own and not partnered with a management expert, it’s your job to nurture and grow those relationships. You’ll want to ensure your resident has everything they need for a pleasant rental experience. You’ll also want to make sure your property is protected and maintained.
That will require a strong vendor network.
The importance of reliable, professional vendors cannot be overstated. When you have a preferred network of qualified service providers in place, you can make sure you have help regularly maintaining the property, promptly addressing any issues that arise, and ensuring that repairs are made quickly and effectively.
Local partnerships make a big difference in the success of your investment, whether we’re talking about plumbers or insurance agents or attorneys.
Let’s take a look at the power of local partnerships and why vendor networks are essential for property management, whether you’re self-managing or working with a professional team. We will explore how local partnerships can help you save time and money, as well as provide a better living experience for your tenants.
Access to a Network of Trusted Vendors
One of the most significant benefits of local partnerships is that they provide you with access to a network of trusted vendors. This means that you don’t have to spend time searching for vendors, checking references, and negotiating prices. Instead, you can rely on the expertise of your local partners to connect you with the right vendors for your property’s needs.
You don’t want to be looking for a plumber in the middle of the night when a pipe has burst and begun flooding your property. You want to have that relationship in place already.
When you’re using your local contacts and relationships to find that plumber and all of your other vendors and contractors, you know that you’re working with reputable professionals who have already established themselves in the community. They’re going to stand by their work and do everything they can to earn additional referrals. You can expect high-quality services and excellent response times.
By partnering with local vendors, you can take advantage of their expertise and knowledge of the area to ensure that your property receives the best possible care, whether it’s during a renovation, a major repair, or some minor preventative work.
Streamlined Communication and Coordination
Local partners such as property managers in Jackson can help you enjoy streamlined communication and coordination. When a repair is needed, you can lean on your management team to communicate with the tenant, coordinate with the right vendor, and keep you in the loop as the work is being completed. This creates a lot of peace of mind for owners and investors who don’t want to spend endless time and resources checking with tenants on a good time for making the repair or negotiating times and prices with service providers.
Without a local management partner, you’ll have to make sure you’re communicating proactively and responsively. Don’t leave your tenants hanging. Get back to them when they’ve requested a repair, even if it’s to tell them that the work may take longer than expected.
You’re looking for vendors who can communicate well with you and with your tenants. Ask for referrals from local partners who can speak to a vendor’s commitment to customer service.
Vendor Networks Provide Better Cost Control
Local partnerships can also provide better cost control for when you’re looking for vendors and contractors for your Jackson rental property. By working with a specific network of preferred vendors that are shared by those local partners you trust, you can negotiate better prices and take advantage of bulk discounts. Additionally, because local vendors are more familiar with the area, they can provide more accurate cost estimates for repairs and maintenance.
Working with a vendor network can also help you manage your budget more effectively. Instead of dealing with unexpected expenses or surprise costs, you can plan ahead and budget for regular maintenance and repairs. This can help you avoid any financial surprises that could negatively impact your bottom line.
If you’re working with a Jackson property management company, you’re likely saving a lot of money on the vendors and contractors they use to make repairs to your property. That’s due to simple unit economics. A property manager will provide a lot more work to plumbers, electricians, HVAC contractors, roofers, cleaners, and landscapers. They’ll have multiple properties that they’re managing, and when they call the same vendors for help, they’ll access the best pricing.
Independent landlords can rarely get the same cost savings simply because you’re only providing a fraction of the work to those vendors. Work on establishing a great relationship so that you, too, can negotiate the best pricing for everything you need.
Good Vendors Improve Tenant Experience
Local partnerships with high quality vendors can provide a better tenant experience. When you work with a list of preferred vendors, you can feel safe that your property is well-maintained and that any issues are addressed promptly. This can help improve tenant satisfaction, reduce turnover rates, and increase your property’s value.
When tenants talk about why they move out of a property instead of renewing their lease agreements, one of the most common reasons they give is that their maintenance needs were not met. If you ignore a tenant’s request for help or you allow terrible maintenance people to show up and make a mess in your tenant’s home, you’re likely to lose that tenant at the end of the lease term. Don’t lose a tenant that way. Instead, invest in good vendor relationships so that you can improve your tenant relationship.
By partnering with local vendors, you can also improve the speed and quality of repairs. This ensures that your tenants can continue living in a safe and comfortable environment. If you want to build a strong reputation as a landlord and attract high-quality tenants, it’s essential to prioritize tenant experience.
Reducing the Cost of Turnover
Let’s say you do have a resident who is moving out at the end of a lease term. You’ll have to spend some time turning the property over and making it ready for your next tenant. Depending on how long the previous tenant lived there and the amount of wear and tear and damage you’ve found during your move-out inspection, you may need to make some pretty serious repairs and upgrades during the turnover time.
You’ll need your vendor network.
If you don’t have one, it may take you some time to find the vendors you need and to get them into your property to complete the work. Lately, vendors have been choosy about who they’re willing to work with. They can afford to be. There’s a high demand for their services, and not a lot of labor to support that demand. You’ll want to give the best vendors a good reason to work with you. Pay invoices on time. Communicate openly. Be flexible. This will help you establish better relationships and take better care of your property.
Time is of the essence during turnovers. Not only do you want to get work done affordably, you want to get it done quickly. The longer it takes you to complete the maintenance and cleaning that’s necessary, the longer you’re going without rent coming in.
Partner with Jackson Property Managers
It makes little sense to try and find all the vendors and service providers that you need on your own. When you partner with a property manager, you can leverage their relationships and access their entire vendor list. This saves you time, money, and frustration.
Even if you don’t want to hire a property manager for all the services they provide, at least develop a relationship with a great management company you can trust. They will likely feel good about sharing some of their ideas about who to call when something specific is needed. This is a local relationship that will help you have a better investment experience.
Local partnerships and vendor networks are essential for property management. By working with a network of trusted vendors, you can save time and money, streamline communication, ensure cost control, and improve the tenant experience. Whether you are managing a small portfolio of properties or a large real estate portfolio, partnering with local vendors can greatly benefit your real estate investment business.
Let’s talk. We’ll help you build some of the partnerships you need. Contact our team at Lucroy Residential.
