Perfect managers are hard to find, so better keep them! Also, when you say a prospective manager, can't he be both, do both parts of the work?
@kate why do you feel you need a second property manager? is the one you have unwilling to manage both properties? I wish you had more information on the actual property manager, it seems you are talking about houses. Many property managers actually manage more then one home or investment property. My advise would be to look into someone who is 1. Insured as a property manager 2. Has managed other properties and has adequate experience 3. Is licensed as a property manager. Contrary to popular belief it is not hard to be a property manager, especially when things are new and nice, because there are not that many things that need to be done. The worth of your manager comes into play when the bad things happen, like a fire or a massive issue like the property sinking or something of that nature. There are companies that will do the management aspect up to and including the accounting portion, giving you a nice neat document for your taxes. Whether or not this is a good investment idea is a moot point because you have already made the investment, be equally as careful with your property managers. Most property managers do not make it in the industry for more then five years before they quit. Obviously the size of the property plays into this quite a bit. For homes? You don't need a lot. Just so we are clear, a property manager and a maintenance person are not the same thing, if you are calling the person that fixes stuff up on your behalf a property manager you are making a grave (and potentially expensive) error.
