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Top Skills for a Commercial Property Manager Today

In commercial property management today, the skills of the property manager need to be relevant and well applied to the particular asset.  There is no doubt that skilful commercial property managers are in short supply. 

Differences and Directions

There is a significant difference between the processes in residential property management and commercial property management services.  Any property manager moving from one discipline to the other will require extensive knowledge upgrade and skill development to cover the new property types and situations.

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Personal Performance in Commercial

This being said, any manager can improve their personal performance and knowledge base through deliberate effort.  The landlords of commercial and retail property assets require managers that can direct the property through many challenges and strategies.  That is why the fees for commercial property management are relatively high for the quality services provided.

Clients that seek low fees are not respecting the requirements of the property management service and the people that help them in management. If the client is seeking a low fee-for-service, then they are not serious about the end result when it comes to their investment. Choose your clients and get better fees as part of that.

Property Management Processes

Here are some tips to help the property management processes and systems in your agency today.

  1. Every landlord that you work for will have specific needs when it comes to property performance.  For this very reason, every landlord should be understood and interviewed at the commencement of a new property management appointment.  Get to know their requirements as to rental, lease negotiations, documentation, maintenance management, cash flow, and property performance.
  2. The reporting process on a weekly and monthly basis to each landlord will be specific and dedicated to the property type.  Whilst you may have some standard reporting processes as part of your services, it will need to be suitably matched to the needs of the landlord.  At the end of each month, every financial report should be supported by a written explanation or report and suitable recommendations.  The same process applies when it comes to leasing management.
  3. Every property owner will have certain strategies relating to property ownership and lease management.  It really depends on how long they want to own the property and for what reasons they currently own it.  These factors will then influence the landlord decisions made regards rental, leases, maintenance, and refurbishment.
  4. Get to know the tenants within each managed property.  Stay close to them on a regular basis so that you can respond and react to any lease requirements, tenant relocation needs, or lease expiry.  It is quite likely that other leasing agents in your local area will be chasing some of your tenants in an effort to relocate them to other properties.
  5. The vacancy factors in any commercial or retail property will change from time to time.  Importantly the property manager needs to stay ahead of the vacancy factors and the lease changes.  In this way, they can optimize the rental income and minimize the vacancy factor.

These are some other key factors behind property management activities today.  You can add these to your list of daily tasks so that your clients receive the best levels of response and control as part of your property management services.

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