There are a number of things real estate investors and landlords look for when they’re choosing a San Diego property management company. You want industry experience and leadership. It’s important to know there are consistent systems and processes in place that ensure the entire leasing, management, and maintenance components of the tenancy run smoothly. You also want a team committed to tenant relationships and exceptional rental experiences. This will lead to higher satisfaction and better tenant retention, eliminating the cost and hassle of turnovers and vacancies.
Local expertise is just as important as all of those property management qualities.
A local expert can deliver a more profitable investment experience by providing valuable knowledge and data that’s unique not only to San Diego, but to the neighborhood in which you’re renting out properties.
Let’s take a look at how local expertise can make your San Diego real estate investments, and how working with someone who isn’t in San Diego at call can lead to a breaking point for you and your property.
Pricing Your San Diego Rental Property
Before there’s even a listing, a set of scheduled showings, or tenant screening, it’s important to establish the right rental value for your investment. The rental price can make or break your investment all on its own. Pricing determines how quickly we will rent out your property, what sorts of tenants are attracted to it, and what kind of earnings you can expect over the next year. The price is the foundation from which rental increases are made during lease renewals.
Getting it right is essential.
Landlords who manage their own properties will use popular online rental sites. Property managers who aren’t local to San Diego will likely do the same. While the range provided by Zillow, Trulia, Facebook Marketplace and other online sites can be a valuable starting point, the insights and analytics collected by your local San Diego property manager will provide a lot more nuance and context, resulting in a rental value that’s both competitive and profitable.
Here’s why the right price matters:
- Pricing a rental property too high will lead to a longer vacancy. Today’s residents are more informed than ever. A well-qualified tenant knows they have options, and they’re not going to over pay for a property, no matter how good the listing looks.
- Pricing a rental property too low will squash short-term earnings and long-term ROI. Owners who set their rent too low might have an easy time placing and retaining tenants, but bringing those rents up to market value will be a struggle, especially if you’re renting out a property that’s subject to local or statewide rent stabilization laws. There’s only so much of an increase you can make at renewal time. Pricing too low now will leave you falling behind more and more every year.
- A competitively priced rental home will get the attention of good tenants, ensuring that the vacancy is minimized and well-qualified renters are interested in your property.
And here’s why the right price requires a local San Diego property manager:
- We understand the local rental rates and how they are rising and falling at any given point.
- We understand the competing properties and can make recommendations on improvements or updates that might allow you to increase what you’re charging.
- We understand tenant demands. Our pricing strategy includes an evaluation of the local market, the competition, and your own property’s condition and the features and amenities that set it apart from others.
The best way to price your investment property is not by hazarding a guess or seeing what Zillow says. It’s by listening to the information and advice provided by a property management company in San Diego.
Risk Management and Legal Liability
Making a legal mistake is easier than most landlords realize, and if you’ve ever suffered through a security deposit dispute or mistaken a support animal for a pet, you know what we’re talking about.
California’s rental laws are notoriously extensive. They’re detailed, they’re strict, and they’re always changing and evolving. Your San Diego property management partner will ensure that you remain compliant. We’ll protect you and your property from claims, violations, disputes, and lawsuits.
Here’s how we can help:
- Leases
It starts with the lease agreement. If you’ve ever considered downloading any template that you find on the internet, you’re putting yourself in danger of using a lease that’s neither legally compliant in California nor legally enforceable in San Diego. Your lease needs to reflect all of the state, local, and federal requirements.
- Fair Housing
Fair housing was once limited to the seven federally protected classes. Now, the laws have become far more complex. The state fair housing laws are stricter than the federal laws. There are terms you may not be familiar with, such as disparate impact and companion animals that demand understanding when it comes to screening and leasing. Our understanding of fair housing laws is locally driven and comes from continuing education and professional development.
- Security Deposits
San Diego property managers have had to work through a lot of security deposit changes recently. There’s a new limit to what can be charged. And, photos are required at specific points in the lease term in order for us to lawfully collect and return those deposits. If you’re working with a local expert, those things are being done anyway.
- Rent Control and Just Cause Eviction
Local San Diego property managers understand rent control laws and just cause eviction procedures much better than a property manager who is online or somewhere else in the country. These laws are nuanced, they’re detailed, and there are long lists of exceptions and requirements that are crucial to the lawful management of a rental property.
Expert knowledge of laws and regulations require a local sense of what’s important to owners, tenants, and the courts when it comes to California rental laws and local San Diego ordinances. Without a local management expert, owners are in danger of making expensive mistakes and stumbling into legal land mines.
Industry and Community Relationships
San Diego property management is a relationship business. It’s going to benefit your property, your residents, and your earnings when you’re working with a local partner. We have relationships within the community and the industry that will serve your investment goals better.
Consider maintenance. When it’s time to send a plumber out to your property or a contractor is needed to make some renovations during a turnover, relationships with vendors and service professionals will be essential. As you may have noticed, scheduling with these teams has become more complex. They’re busy. They’re expensive. But by leveraging our relationships with the best plumbers, roofers, electricians, landscapers, cleaners, (the list goes on), you enjoy the peace of mind that you’ll get a high standard of work when you need it. And, we’re able to negotiate the best rates, passing those discounts on to our clients.
We can also partner you with brokers, insurance agents, attorneys, lenders, and others who work within the housing industry. The reputation and relationship of a local San Diego property manager is good news for anything you’re hoping to do with your property or your investment portfolio.
Helping San Diego Investors Identify New Opportunities
Most rental property owners are counting on their property manager to do the things that they do best. Collect rent. Screen tenants. Enforce the lease. Handle maintenance. Deal with lease renewals. Provide accounting that reflects income and expenses.
With a local management expert who also knows and understands San Diego’s real estate landscape, a real estate investor can also identify potential opportunities that can grow their portfolios and their profits.
Thinking about a new acquisition? We can talk about the neighborhoods that are especially desirable to tenants. Looking to upgrade to more efficient systems and install some smart home tech to drive up your rental value? We know exactly what residents are looking for and which improvements are most cost-effective. We can talk about 1031 exchanges, diversifying your investment portfolio of properties, and even help you think through new investment goals and strategies.
Whether you’re thinking about an exit strategy or thinking about investing in San Diego real estate from outside of the area, we can help you navigate the essential early steps. We have a lot of technology that brings us important data. We consistently watch the market to see where prices are going, how home values are performing, and whether there’s anything happening in the future that can impact your portfolio. We’re monitoring risk, watching the competition, and making recommendations that will help position your property for what’s to come.
That’s what we’re here for. We want to provide full-service management, which includes using our local expertise to make you a more successful and profitable investor.
Let’s talk more about your own experience and how local San Diego property management can be the secret weapon you didn’t know you needed. Contact us at Chase Pacific Property Management & Real Estate.