Hiring a property manager is usually a smart idea when buying real estate in Dubai, whether you have a wide inventory or just one apartment that you acquired as an investment.
It’s important to hire a good estate agent, but it’s also important to hire trained professionals who will take away all of the day-to-day stress of managing your property (from dealing with tenants to registering contracts to even handling repairs and maintenance), leaving you to enjoy the benefits of your asset. But, because you are handing a precious investment to someone who is virtually a stranger, you should do your homework thoroughly!
Here are some suggestions from managemyproperty.ae for selecting the correct property manager for your investment, whether for leasing or full management:
ASK FOR A REFERRAL. TAKE FIVE
Using your network is the greatest method to find a reputable property management. Ask your friends, coworkers, and family members whether they’ve worked with property managers in Dubai; make sure to acquire more than one reference or opinion on the same individual or organization.
Another smart approach is to contact the agent who assisted you in buying the house in the first place. Some Dubai real estate agencies also provide property management services. For example, MMP provides both property and lease management services, as well as a variety of other value-added services such as dealing with rent committee issues and registering your title deed.
PERFORM YOUR OWN RESEARCH
Aside from approaching your network for recommendations, each knowledgeable investor understands the need of doing their own research. Google is your buddy, but make careful to check for information from many sources – Facebook community postings on the company’s page and private groups (search for keywords like’real estate investors Dubai‘ and ‘Dubai property’) are a fantastic method to see what the general public thinks about various property managers. And if you locate a few property management companies with great evaluations based on your own research and input from your network, you’re on to a winner!
MEET THEM PERSONALLY
There is no better way to assess someone than to meet them face to face. Set up meetings/interviews with your shortlisted property management companies and prepare your list of questions:
- Where are available homes presently advertised? Make a note of this and return to the listings later to ensure that they are professional and present residences in the best light possible, both through their text and their images.
- What does the management fee include? More crucially, what isn’t and how much it will cost if such services are required.
- How long will it take for your property to be leased?
- Which regions of Dubai do they specialize in?
- How are prices for maintenance and other services determined?
- What about financing, rent collecting, and so on?
- What happens if the renter fails to pay the rent on time or at all?
- Will the property manager serve as your only point of contact for both you and your tenant? If not, how many people are there?
CHECK OUT WHAT THEY’VE DONE
If possible, attempt to see a property that your potential property manager is currently managing. How does it appear? What do the present tenants think of the management? Have they experienced any problems? When it comes to hiring a property management, there is no such thing as too little information.
It’s also a good idea to look into their qualifications before witnessing them in action. Check to see if they have finished the CPM (certified property manager) course offered by the Dubai Real Estate Institute. While the training is not required for property managers in Dubai, it is an excellent approach to assess the basis of your nominated manager. Yet, even if the property management you want to deal with does not have this accreditation, you should not rule them out – trust your instincts!
The process may seem hard at first, but with a little effort, you will be able to discover a good property management company in no time, providing you with invaluable peace of mind.