What small landlords and property managers get wrong about each other

This guide is for owners with one to a handful of rental homes and the property managers who work with them, in Canada and the US. Most of the friction between them comes from a small number of misunderstandings, and they run in both directions. Owners tend to judge managers on the fee and on what they can see, which isn’t much. Managers tend to assume owners care only about the fee and would rather not be bothered. Both are usually wrong, and the fix is almost always the same: agree on how decisions are made, and keep each other informed.

Here are six that come up again and again, each from both sides.

The fee

Owners often pick the manager with the lowest monthly percentage. It’s the easiest number to compare, but it’s rarely what a year actually costs. Leasing fees, renewal fees, markups on repairs and per-visit charges can make a 6 percent manager more expensive than an 8 percent one, and a manager who fills a vacancy a few weeks faster can be worth more than either. What a property manager costs works through three real quotes.

Managers, for their part, often assume the fee is all owners care about, and compete on it. In our experience, small landlords care more about whether rent comes in steadily, whether repairs get handled without them chasing anyone, and whether they know what’s going on. A manager who explains those clearly rarely has to be the cheapest.

Repairs

Owners sometimes assume repair bills are padded. Usually they aren’t, but the owner can’t tell, because all they see is a total on a statement weeks later.

Managers sometimes assume owners will approve whatever is recommended, and send a request with a number and nothing else. Then the owner says no to a repair that was needed, or says yes and resents it.

The fix is the same for both: an approval limit agreed in the management agreement, and, for anything above it, a short note with what’s wrong, a photo, the quote and what happens if it waits. Owners who can see the reasoning approve more readily, and managers who show it are trusted with more.

Setting the rent

Owners often price from the highest listing they can find nearby, or from what a friend says their place rents for. Asking listings aren’t what homes actually rent for, and the difference between them can be a month empty.

Managers sometimes go the other way and drop the price quickly when interest is slow, without explaining why, which an owner reads as giving away their income.

A short conversation with the evidence works better: what similar homes rented for recently, how many inquiries the listing has had, and a plan, such as holding the price for ten days and then adjusting by a set amount if interest stays low. An owner who has seen the numbers is much more comfortable with the decision either way.

Communication

Owners often read no news as nothing happening, and start to wonder what they’re paying for.

Managers often assume owners don’t want to be bothered, and save everything for the monthly statement. Some owners do prefer that. Many would rather have a two-line message when something changes, such as a renewal coming up, a repair that will take longer than expected or a resident who’s behind.

The fix is to ask at the start how often, and about what, the owner wants to hear, and then do it. An agreed rhythm, plus a message whenever something needs their decision, covers most owners. Why rental owners leave their property manager goes through this from the manager’s side.

The long-term tenant

Owners sometimes look at a tenant who has been there for six years at below-market rent and see money being left on the table.

Managers sometimes see the same tenant and recommend raising the rent to market at the next chance, because it’s the obvious number to show the owner.

Both can miss what that tenant is worth. A resident who pays on time, looks after the home and isn’t moving out saves a vacancy, a leasing fee, cleaning and painting, and the risk of a worse tenant. A steady increase, within what the rules allow where the home is, often makes more over a few years than a large one that prompts them to leave. That’s worth working out together before the renewal comes up.

Who decides what

Owners sometimes hire a manager expecting never to think about the home again. Then a large decision lands on them unexpectedly, like a new roof or a tenant who has stopped paying, and it feels like the manager has failed.

Managers sometimes treat owners as clients to keep happy rather than partners in decisions, and make calls the owner would have wanted to make.

The answer is to decide early who decides what. Day-to-day work belongs to the manager. Big decisions, such as major repairs, rent strategy, whether to sell or renovate, stay with the owner, with the manager bringing a recommendation. Writing that down in the management agreement saves a lot of frustration later.

What it comes down to

None of these are really about bad owners or bad managers. They come from two sides seeing the same home from different places, with different information. Owners see a statement and a few messages. Managers see the day-to-day, but not always what the owner is worried about.

If you’re an owner looking for a manager who works this way, ask about each of these in the first conversation, and we can help.

Tuze makes the software property managers use to run their business, from leasing and rent to AI teammates that keep residents and owners up to date at any hour. For your home, that means fewer surprises and a manager who brings you the decisions that are yours to make.

Through Find a property manager, we’ll introduce you to a trusted manager near you who runs on Tuze.