Property Management

There's only one way,  and that's the right way. Our clients are our top priority, so you can be assured your property is in great hands.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why should I use My Space Real Estate to manage my investment property?

• We handle maintenance and emergency repairs, allowing you to sleep at night.
• We enforce collection of rents and serve the proper notices upon failure to pay.
• We understand and apply the correct federal, state and local laws to keep you and your investment out of trouble.
• We know the local market, have an extensive network of contacts and have advertising resources available to us at discounted rates. This allows us to effectively market your vacant home to prospective residents to get it filled.
• After you add up the increased rent we can often command, the discounts you'll receive on advertising and the company rate we get on repairs, you'll often make more money than if you managed the property yourself.

How do you determine the rental amount?

Rent amounts are determined by finding the "fair market" rent value of comparative properties in the neighborhood.  We do extensive research using local newspaper, internet, other property management companies and our own expertise to provide you with a rental rate recommendation. We believe it is best to rent a house right on or slightly below the fair market rent. By doing so, we will generally have more applications to consider and rent the property quicker.

How long will it take to rent my property?

It is impossible to predict exactly how long it will take to find qualified applicants for your property but a correctly advertised, priced and presented property greatly increases the chance it will rent in the first 2-3 weeks, with a goal of no more than 30 days on the market.  A number of factors are involved including the size, location, amenities, overall condition of the property, time of year and the rental price relative to that of comparable properties in the neighbourhood. Pricing your property competitively and having your property in the best condition possible are crucial to effective marketing.

Why won't my property rent?

There are many factors that may contribute. Some of the reasons may be that the property is overpriced, lacks amenities or the location. You may also want to consider other factors such as cleanliness, outdated appliances, deferred maintenance and curb appeal i.e. paint, landscaping, neighbours, etc. In addition, the time of year your property becomes vacant may contribute to a longer vacancy i.e. less people tend to move during the winter months.

Is there anything that needs to be done to make my property rent ready?

The better condition a property is in, the faster it will rent and better quality tenants it will attract. If necessary, we recommend that the interior be painted or touched up; the carpets, window coverings, floors, fixtures and appliances are clean; all overdue repairs be made; front and back yards mowed, trimmed, edged and free of weeds. After price, the most important controllable factor in renting a property is condition. We would be happy to offer suggestions to you to help you make the property look great. My Space Real Estate is a full service and provides all the vendors needed to get your property rent ready.

How do you market vacant properties?

•  The property is displayed on the My Space Real Estate website, realestate.com.au and Domain as a feature listing.
•  We will place an attractive "For Rent" sign at the property. 
•  We constantly get referrals from current and former owners and tenants with friends, family and neighbours looking to rent property.
•  If the Lessor has any specific advertising approaches or would like to discuss options, we are happy to accommodate them!

Should I accept pets?

The majority of prospective tenants have pets and having a no pet policy greatly reduces the pool of qualified tenants to select from. It is up to you to allow or not to allow pets on your property, but our standard policy is that pets are acceptable depending on the property, pet size/type and the landlord's preferences. We require prospective tenants to provide us with a current photo of the pet.

How are maintenance requests handled?

The tenants are asked to contact us via email or phone whenever they have maintenance or repairs issues. We have developed certain guidelines to alleviate your stress and to aid in the expedient service for your tenant. For any legitimate, non-cosmetic maintenance request that will cost less than $200.00 (unless otherwise specified in the management contract), we will contract the work without contacting the owner. Any questionable or cosmetic items or repair costs that exceed our agreed on amount will be handled with the owner's consent. If we find that a repair is due to tenant negligence, misuse, abuse, etc. we will automatically bill the tenant.  If we have a health, safety or any other emergency situation, the $200.00 limit will not apply. Many times we are able to solve problems over the phone avoiding what might have been an additional expense. 

Do you provide me with a report of activity on my property?

Yes, a comprehensive and easy to read accounting report detailing all income and expenses will be sent to you each month along with a copy of any repair, maintenance, utility or other billing. In addition, an end of year statement is prepared for you and your tax records.