How to run a successful property management service

Everyone strives for consistency. And property management can offer that in the form of a solid customer base, steady revenue and annual profitability.

“But it’s extremely competitive, and you have to be super efficient to make money at it,” says Scott Neave, president of Neave Group Outdoor Solutions based in Wappingers Falls, N.Y. “It takes years to develop good staff, good processes and good clients.”

He should know. Property and snow management make up 65 percent of Neave Group’s business.
Offering property management has helped the company because it’s somewhat recession proof, Neave says. “Obviously people get price sensitive during recessions, but most of our clients aren’t going to mow their own grass or take care of their yards. The business stays there more or less – it’s something people can’t cut out completely.”

The key to being successful at it is being able to manage client’s expectations. Some might want their grass to look like a golf course, others might care more about their front entrance or clean up, Neave says.

“It’s managing client’s expectations and managing what they value, not what you value,” Neave says. “That is the tough part for most people.”

Here Neave gives five tips for entering the property management market and keeping customers happy. – Carolyn LaWell

1. First you need to decide whether property management is going to be an add-on or supplement service and who your clients will be. That will allow you to decide what type of resources you’ll need: additional staff, staff training, perhaps new equipment.

2. To be successful, you have to understand the marketplace and what to price the service at. Ask: What is the competition doing? What are jobs going for? “Go online and try to find from PLANET or other resources production rates that you can estimate from how long things take. (Then) come up with an estimating system that will help you price things properly,” Neave says.

3. Target the customers you hope to go after. Will they be residential, commercial or both? Try to determine what is important to that customer base.

4. Selling property management is like every other service; you need to find out what the potential customer is already doing and go in with the approach that you’re able to offer them greater value. That might be selling them on your ability to enhance what they’re already doing or finding ways to save them money, Neave says.

5. Continually communicate with your clients. “You really have to spend the time to understand what’s important to the client and manage that,” Neave says. “No matter if it’s residential or commercial, every client has things that are important to them – not you – and they’re different from client to client.”