The role of a commercial or retail property manager is perhaps the most important from an agency perspective in the service provided to its clients. When the skills of the manager are lacking in any way, the property will suffer and the landlord will be underserviced.
It is interesting to note that many inexperienced landlords (first timers to commercial or retail investment), rarely know what type of property manager they should have. They invariably do not know when things are poorly serviced until the vacancy factor rises, rent reviews are missed, leases are not signed, or the rent is not collected. These landlords choose their property manager based on the lowest fees for service. You get what you pay for in this game. Intelligence and accuracy in property management takes good people and they cost money; reasonable fees are required.
So if a real estate agency wants to manage and lease commercial property, they should find and train the right people to do the job very well. Inexperienced people are of no value to the management process.
The role of a commercial or retail property manager will include some very deep and specialised issues such as:
Rent income optimisation given the trends of the local property market and the competing properties.
Expenditure tracking and controls that allow managed properties to operate efficiently at or near benchmarks for outgoings that are acceptable for property types.
Establishing budgets for all the properties managed so there are few (if any) surprises in property performance during the year.
Creating reports and communication systems that inform the tenants and the landlords of accurate property activity and performance.
Instigating timely and legally accurate debt collection for any arrears or breaches of lease
Establishing tenant retention plans for all managed properties that take into account the plans of the landlord and the age of the property
Optimising the tenant mix so the balance of tenants underpins the rental and property performance for both the tenant’s trade and the landlord.
Monitoring and implementing energy management plans for the property that contains operational costs
Managing leases so that the tenants occupy space on sound and secure leases with appropriate rent levels and review processes.
Implementing and tracking the maintenance and maintenance contracts for a property, so all service contractors respond to breakdowns correctly and finish the works undertaken inside approved budgets.
Marketing the vacant space for the property so that any period of vacancy is minimised
Identify any matters of risk that threaten the property performance during the year.
The list is not finite; there are more things that you can add subject to the property type and your location. Property Managers should remember that they really do make a lot of difference in the property performance. Landlords should choose their agent and manager well.