How To Optimize Your Property Management Workflow

No matter how large your business or how many rental properties you oversee, property management has many moving pieces. Luckily, you don't have to do everything alone. Some techniques to optimize your property management workflow can be employed quickly and will make your day-to-day operations exponentially easier.

What Is a Property Management Workflow and Why It's Important

Your property management workflow refers to the process by which the day-to-day tasks of your property management business are accomplished. It could include managing new rental applications, communicating with potential and existing tenants or guests, processing rent payments, scheduling cleaners, keeping track of repairs, and ensuring that the payroll stays up to date.

Why You Should Optimize Your Current Workflow

Property management is challenging, with many moving parts to keep up with. It's easy to miss something, costing you money and time. For example, routine maintenance can save you from having a significant maintenance emergency that takes weeks or months to repair and leaves you without a paying tenant. An efficient workflow will save you time and ensure that you are keeping up with the needs of each property so that your business runs smoothly.

How To Fine-Tune Your Property Management Processes

To fine-tune your property management processes, first list the tasks that need to be completed and how often you do them. The list can include processing applications, collecting rent payments, updating or modifying lease agreements, performing routine inspections, communicating with tenants, scheduling move-out cleanings, advertising, and more.

Once you know all the tasks that need to be completed regularly, you want to delegate and automate repetitive tasks when possible. Property management software is a great way to start fine-tuning your process. This way, your energy can go toward the aspects of running a business that require a more human touch.

Consistently Analyze and Evaluate Your Workflow for Gaps

As you start to automate and delegate, look for ways to increase efficiency, especially as your business grows. When managing a small portfolio of properties, it may make sense to see to things like maintenance, cleanings, or processing applications as they arise but, as your portfolio grows, automating these tasks and performing them in batches will make things much easier.

Think about swapping out the batteries in a smoke detector or changing air filters. If you only manage five properties, it makes sense to perform these tasks when the need arises, but if managing hundreds of properties, you may want to schedule this routine maintenance in batches on a regular schedule.

Track Key Property Management Metrics To Identify Patterns

Quality property management software will be able to help you track metrics to determine where changes may be needed. You will be able to monitor occupancy and vacancy rates, acquisition costs, net operating income, late payment of rent, customer satisfaction based on surveys, maintenance request status, and tenant turnover rates.

You will also want to keep track of income from all investment property sources, including rent, parking costs, security deposits, pet fees, and other revenue streams. Then, you will want to ensure that your expenses are within your income. Tracking this information through property management software will make it much simpler to identify when there is a pattern that needs to be addressed.

Automate Repetitive Tasks, Communication, and More

Sending bills, processing payments, communicating with tenants, and scheduling maintenance in advance are all daily tasks that can be automated. Take advantage of property management software to handle these repetitive tasks and create an automated workflow. Using quality property management software, you can monitor the application process, receive e-signatures to complete lease agreements, keep track of maintenance to-do lists and schedule service, process rent payments, keep track of income and expenses, communicate with tenants, and more.

These types of software have come a long way. They reduce human error and many have highly intuitive easy-to-use interfaces. In addition to the many features offered, with property management software, all messages from tenants can be integrated into one central inbox. This makes receiving and replying to tenant email addresses regarding communication such as maintenance requests or property issues a breeze. A few recommended property management software providers are Hostaway, Guesty, and Uplisting.

Consider Property Maintenance Software To Streamline Cleaning

Cleaning is one of those tasks that can be difficult to keep up with once you manage more than a few properties. Cleaning is essential to any property management business, and a clean space can drastically change a potential tenant or guest's impression. With property maintenance software, you can schedule your favorite cleaners to automatically arrive upon move out, and even schedule cleaners in a pinch when there's an emergency.

Move out cleaning is a special skill that takes time, attention to detail, and dedication. Through property maintenance software, you can create custom solutions, chat with your cleaning and maintenance crew, provide them with property-specific deep cleaning checklists, and ensure that your cleaners are paid accurately and on time.

Develop a Screening Process for Potential Tenants

Having a screening process in place for tenants will ensure that by the time an application is reviewed, it meets the requirements you have already laid out. Tenant screening can be accomplished through property management software and may include steps such as a background check, credit check, employment and income verification, and collection of references. For property managers, one way to ensure that you are only attracting tenants who would be a good fit is to clearly state any rental property requirements up front and be fully transparent about move-in costs.

Start Optimizing Your Property Management Workflow Today

When you're ready to optimize your property management workflow, check out TIDY. TIDY is a one-stop property maintenance software that can easily be integrated with other great platforms you love. With TIDY, you can coordinate cleanings, provide deep cleaning checklists for each property, create a maintenance to-do list, track expenses, pay your cleaning team, and more. Let TIDY help you add efficiency and ease to your property management workflow.

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