SELF-MANAGING LANDLORDS

Self management or self-managing landlords is a type of property management in which the owner (Landlord) is solely responsible for the development and management of the property. It is the responsibility of a self-managing landlords not to only own the property but also take care of the day-to-day operations necessary to make things go smoothly and keep the property up to date. The tenants look up to the landlords alone as their point person for routine things like paying rent and for addressing issues that come up.

Self-managing landlords are not only the landlords but are fully responsible for the running of the property which includes drawing up the legal contract, administrating all repairs and maintenance, and dealing with any tenant issues. The self-managing landlord firstly need to source the tenants; this includes advertising the property and hopefully, finding tenants a tenancy agreement needs to be created and agreed upon by both parties alongside insurance and deposits. This means self-managing landlords must ensure they are completely up to date on all tenancy rights and legislations to avoid getting into any sticky situations. 

Throughout the tenancy, the landlord has to directly communicate with the tenants over issues such as repairs or if there are any problems with rental payments. This means the landlords  must be contactable almost 24/7. Self-managing a rental property can save agency fees, it often creates a lot of additional work, complications and costs for landlords.

There are a few potential advantages to self management of rental properties if a landlord have the time and expertise necessary to do it well, this include:

i.        Greater Control: Self management gives the landlord a greater degree of control over daily operations. He will be the one making all necessary decisions. If he have trouble delegating, then he may feel more comfortable being in control of every detail of how his properties are run.

ii.      Closer Relationships With Tenants: Self-managing landlords can also expect closer relationship with tenants since he will be their point of contact. Of course, landlord-tenant relationships can turn sour at times, so in these cases, he may wish he didn't have to be the one to handle issues with tenants. 

iii.    Gained Experience: Self-managing landlords will also learn a lot about property management by doing it yourself, which some landlords may consider an advantage if they want to eventually focus more on management in their real estate career than on ownership. Expect to experience some hiccups along the way, though.

iv.    Financial Savings: One other advantage that is the determining factor in some property owners' decision to self manage is that it can save the money.

While there are some advantages to self management, there also are a number of disadvantages, as well. These include:

i.         Time Required: If that list of responsibilities provided above looks long, that's because it is. And that is just for just one property. If you have multiple properties, then your duties will multiply. The time it takes to take care of all these responsibilities can be significant, and it could certainly keep you from pursuing other business ventures.

2. Source of Stress: You may also cause yourself a lot of stress by taking on some of these responsibilities. If a tenant has a burst pipe at 2 a.m., you'll be the one taking that call and figuring out how to get it taken care of as soon as possible. If a tenant is not complying with a policy, you'll be the one confronting them with the policies agreed upon in their lease and taking any necessary follow-up actions, including eviction.
3. Lack of Expertise: Another issue is that, if you're just starting out as a landlord, you are sure to encounter issues that have to do with legal regulations or best practices that you are simply unaware of. It can take a long time to gain the experience and expertise necessary to manage a property well without running into problems.
4. Setting Rent Too High or Too Low: If you do not enlist the assistance of a professional, you may find you have not set the rent at the right level for your area, which means you will either miss out on potential income or miss out on renters. A property management service knows local rent levels for other places nearby and can aid you in finding the right figure to charge based on your location and amenities.

2.4       BRIEF HISTORY OF SELF-MANAGING LANDLORDS

According to Wootloth (1997),the early 1900s the beginning of self-management way before property management came into existence. At the start of the 20^th century, those who lived in tenement housing had it pretty rough. Their ramshackle buildings had poor ventilation, bad plumbing (or none at all), terrible lighting and low safety standards. Apartments were managed by property owners (self-managing) who often did nothing but the most essential repairs as they were not professionals or trained to self-manage their properties. There was no incentive or governing agency to tell them to do anything more. During feudalism powerful members of the society were granted titles to land by the King and they were referred to as “lords” Wootloth (1997). Land owners where referred to as landlords and they managed their properties which was called self-management. However, in the first decade of the 20^th century, more and more people flocked to urban centers. This created an unprecedented demand for housing in cities, and there was very limited supply. With so many people coming to the cities, the federal government took notice and cracked down on negligent property owners. Apartment quality improved and more updated multifamily buildings were constructed. This meant more income, better health and longer lifespans, along with more laws concerning the quality and upkeep of rental properties (Kapplin, 2005). By the end of World War I, cities were a big draw for middle-class jobs and, for the first time, wealthy renters. The Great Depression had arrived.

 

By 1933, the Great Depression had caused many apartment owners to default. (Property managers didn’t exist yet as we know them today they were still managed by the landlords). There was a great need for affordable properties that were clean and looked after. Thus, the caretaker manager was born. They collected rent, did maintenance and looked after the day-to-day needs of the tenants.Unlike modern property managers, caretaker managers didn’t do any marketing or leasing. Those were still jobs for the property owners (Scarret, 2007). The property managers then came into existence as professionals and this set out the self-management of property from property management until today.

In conclusion more research need to be conducted to identify the gap of the challenges faced by self-managing landlords. Property management need to be made known to the landlords and the population at large to help preserve the value of properties while maintaining good relationships and receiving maximum returns.