May 23, 2019

Top skills for a career in residential property management

Fancy a career in the residential property sector? Then here’s some advice on how to succeed as a residential property manager.

8 key skills you need to succeed in residential property management:

1 – Excellent time management

As a residential property manager, you’ll be responsible for managing everything from tenant relations and financial reporting to marketing your properties and arranging inspections and repairs. Therefore, you’ll need to have excellent time management skills to ensure everything is completed on schedule.

2 – Sales skills

Everyone working in residential property management needs to have top-notch sales skills. You need to market your properties to attract prospective tenants, just as much as you need to demonstrate the value of your services to prospective landlords.

3 – Good communication

You’ll need excellent communication and interpersonal skills to succeed as a residential property manager. Much of your day-to-day work will involve meeting and greeting new clients, communicating with insurance company representatives, and liaising with other stakeholders. A good residential property manager should respond to all enquiries within a few hours (during normal working hours) or within 24 hours at the latest.

4 – Negotiation skills

Residential property managers have to negotiate regularly – whether it’s a quote for a boiler repair or a lease contract. You need to have sound negotiation skills to give your clients (landlords) the best value for their money, otherwise they may switch to another residential property manager.

5 – Ability to multitask

This is a very unpredictable industry. One week you may be rushed off your feet as you deal with dozens of enquiries, then the next week you may have hardly any enquiries.

Therefore, a good residential property manager needs to plan ahead and anticipate future spikes in demand. To multitask effectively, you’ll also need to learn how to work efficiently. For example, if you’re on the phone and a visitor arrives, you could briefly pause the conversation to greet the person, let them know that you’ll be with them as soon as you can, direct them to a seat, and continue your phone call until someone else is available to speak with them.

6 – Excellent organisation skills

It will come as no surprise that residential property managers need to be meticulously organised in order to avoid careless mistakes, such as forgetting an appointment or misplacing a confidential file.

7 – Good presentation skills

As this is a customer-facing job, you’ll need to look smart and professional at all times. Dress for success, project your voice, speak confidently and with authority, and show your enthusiasm.

8 – Good analytical skills

As a residential property manager, you’ll need to have an eye for detail to build and retain your client base. For example, you’ll need to be capable of spotting irregularities with payments or any other administrative errors.

If you’re considering a career in this sector, we hope you found this blog useful. If you haven’t done so already, please register your CV on the BASE database so we can connect you with all the latest jobs in residential property management.