As a property owner in Dubai, your goal is to get a reliable commercial real estate professional. The challenge of finding the names of ever-changing property managers in Dubai can be challenging. The ability to see this necessary information is one of the essential ingredients to a property manager’s success. This blog will ease some of the best ways to find a commercial property manager in Dubai.
Find the Property Manager or Property Management Company
1. Consider Working With a Manager That Handles Your Leasing
To prefer the right commercial property manager, an excellent place to start is to check if your leasing company delivers property management services. If they do, hiring the same company for property management can be very helpful and lead to consistency and compatibility of services. This includes more seamless service for your tenants and streamlined lease negotiations. With these advantages and more, issues can address quicker and smoother than with two separate teams.
In addition, the management team can offer your leasing team practical insight into the daily status of the tenant.
2. Ensure The Property Manager Fits Your Property’s Needs
You should be sure the property manager in Dubai you are thinking has excellent and skilled staff to meet the size requirements of your asset. The size of the team essential for your property will vary depending on the asset’s size. A team can consist of but isn’t limit to a senior property manager/property manager, assistant property manager(s), administrators, accountants, and building maintenance engineers.
Management duties can vary greatly, depending on the ownership structure – private or institutional – and the type of property – retail, office or industrial. Be sure the management company has experience with your property or portfolio type and can execute your objectives and goals.
Generally, a property manager’s duties consist of day-to-day building operations, financial reporting and support, maintenance schedules, and tenant relations. They can also include emergency responses, including flooding, fire, chemical spills, and any other emergency or disaster that may arise. Management duties include leading major capital updates to property alongside a project manager.
And it’s not just about the building services. Be sure the management company you choose can adapt to your company’s processes regarding financial reporting, day-to-day operational procedures, and budgeting.
3. Make Sure the Management Company is Credentialed
Various credentials are prominent in the property management profession. It’s recommended that all management firms and managers have at least one of the following credentials to certify their property management expertise.
Certified Property Manager
To achieve Certified Property Manager in Dubai status, the applicant must have three years of experience before applying and have a real estate salesperson license. They are recognized as experts in real estate management. According to the National Association of Realtors, 70% of those who hold the CPM designation have the highest management positions in their offices. The Institute of Real Estate Management administers this certification.
Service Organization Control
A Service Organization Control proves that an external auditor has confirmed the security of the internal controls, meaning that client financial data is kept secure. This ensures that the property management company and the owner are protected and can make future audit requests run more smoothly.
Accredited Management Organization
An Accredited Management Organization is a company certification requiring an executive team member with a CPM. The Institute of Real Estate Management administers this. According to the IREM website, AMO Firms are led by knowledgeable executives who hold the CPM designation and are rigorously trained to maximize value, minimize risk, and partner with you to achieve your goals.
Real Property Administrator
The Real Property Administrator certification goes into detail on the operational side of the profession and is administered by the Building Owners and Managers Institute. All applicants must present three years of property management experience and conduct various courses. This program teaches property managers how to maximize an asset’s income and minimize risk.
Systems Maintenance Administrator
Systems Maintenance Administrator applicants must have three years of experience as a stationary engineer or equivalent at a property portfolio of 40,000 square feet. This program ensures the applicant can improve operations, create energy efficiencies, reduce costs and enhance the value of an asset. This is administered by the Building Owners and Managers Institute.
Generally, a more experienced and accredited team will better address your needs. It’s essential to consider the experience and expertise of building staff and engineers.
4. Consider the Local Presence and Reputation of the Property Management Company
The company should have an established local presence. A more significant local fact often means they will better address your property’s needs due to a large base of employees, connections, and resources. Not only will they be familiar with and have existing relationships with local vendors, but there are also economies of scale that can be secured by working with a firm that represents several properties in one market.
The property management company should have strong vendor relationships in your area. This will mean they can obtain all materials needed for routine maintenance and capital updates at competitive prices. This can help keep operating expenses from increasing drastically.
You should also consider the reputation of the entire team. While the quality of the managers you are working with matters, the work is only as good as the people doing it, so it is essential to know the reputation of building staff and engineers.
Beyond vendor relations, your property management company must have a good reputation with its tenants and other building owners.
What does property management do?
Commercial property managers are often mistaken with residential property managers, despite extensive differences in scope of work and property types. As a commercial property manager, you’re most likely liable for the maintenance and operational oversight of business parks, retail spaces, storage units, or other kinds of non-residential properties.
While sharing some similarities with residential properties (leasing agreements, tenants, etc.), commercial properties come with a unique set of problems that widen the scope of a commercial property manager’s work.
Longer leases, common area maintenance (CAM), property wear-and-tear, and unexpected emergencies can sabotage a commercial property manager’s success. Luckily, there are ways to prepare, prevent, and rectify many of these common detriments.
What are property management services?
Before you sign a contract, you should be very precise about their services. A written agreement that spells out the how, when, and what of the services to be provided will go a long way towards preventing future misunderstandings.
Below are specific services offer by commercial real estate property management firms.
- Provide complete reports on critical data relevant to the property
- Handle all tenant leases and renewals; act as a general liaison between tenants. Also, handle rental collections and a daily record of deposits.
- Provide a market rent analysis
- Create and keep your property’s budget. This should be a total budget that includes everything needed to run your property successfully. There should also be periodic reporting of the budget status, which will allow adjustments when necessary.
- Document all procedures necessary for local, state, county, and federal laws. Also, document any administrative regulations and ordinances and fire, health, and safety code.
Why is property management important?
An experienced commercial property manager does more than manage your property.
Commercial property managers make it feasible for you to increase your net profit by maximizing the property’s potential rental income and minimizing expenses. A property manager who understands your investment goals will always look for ways to grow your investment property’s value.
They will also have an eye for enhancing the visual aspects of your property and the general property value. They will also strengthen tenant retention by building good relationships with tenants, even spotting problems before they occur.
Suppose you are relatively new to a commercial property. In that case, you’ll find that a commercial property management company can be a valuable source of information on how to increase the NOI of your property. As a third party, they will have a comprehensive understanding of the factors necessary for your property’s success, such as increasing the cash flow, streamlining management, or upgrading the property to attract quality tenants.
And because they are thoroughly familiarized with your investment goals, they can ferret out challenges to get information on potential properties by doing walk-bys.
Benefits of property management service
Consider these benefits of using a property management company. A property manager will:
1. Screen out problem tenants
One of the most significant benefits of property management is that the property manager will handle tenant screening. Experienced property managers see hundreds (or thousands) of applications, so their trained eyes are more likely to notice potential red flags when reviewing applicants’ paperwork. They’re quickly able to spot good tenant qualities, such as paying rent on time, taking care of the property, and more. Letting them manage the tenant screening process can improve your chances of landing a reliable renter.
2. Decrease tenant turnover
Good property management companies understand how to keep their renters happy. They are responsive and available, and they take care of problems when they arise. Happy renters are also less likely to look for another place to live and more willing to accept reasonable rent increases. Of tenants who choose to stay in their current lease, 50% think their home is a good value for the price and 40% say they love the place they rent2.
3. Ensure rent is paid on time
Because property management companies deduct their fees from the monthly rent, they are motivate to keep those payments flowing in. Consistent rent collection is key to receiving rent payments on time, and using a property management company will help enforce lease policies if payments aren’t accepted.
Suppose tenants consistently fail to pay their rent on time (or at all). In that case, the property manager will know how to deal with the situation, including issuing an eviction notice if necessary. Payment collection can be a common issue — the typical renter spends 29% of their income on rent, and a significant share of rental households are one considerable expense away from being unable to pay3.
4. Avoid potential legal issues
Property managers understand landlord-tenant laws and fair housing laws, which can help you avoid potential lawsuits and save time, money, and energy in the long run. They will also typically cover any lawyer fees associated with evictions or property damage issues. If you’re not comfortable handling evictions, signing and terminating leases, and handling rent and security deposits, you may need expertise in the property management company.
5. Save you money on maintenance and repair costs.
A property management company may also come with discounts for maintenance services if the property managers work with a regular service provider or employ an in-house maintenance staff. They can perform regular inspections and find issues before they turn into more significant problems, which will reduce the number of emergency repair bills.
