HOT MANAGEMENT NICHES – Property Management may lack the glamor of megamillion-dollar closings, but the payoff is steady income, especially if you pick a growing niche.  By Meriwyn Evans

Single-Family:  For the many home owners who can’t afford to sell at current prices, renting can provide a financial lifeline.  “People are getting on with their lives and moving or moving up and hiring us to manage the homes they leave behind until they can sell” says Michael McCreary presidetn of McCreary McCreary Realty Management Inc. in Marietta, Ga.  Individuals who’ve experienced foreclosure and aging boomers who no longer want the headaches of ownership are also fueling single-family rentals.

Lower home prices are prompting a new wave of investors who plan to buy, hold for a couple of years, and then flip, says Matt Schall, CEO of RE/MAX Horizons Property Management in Pensacola, Fla.  His company has seen a 20 percent increase in homes under mangement in the last year.

Single-family mangement is a good niche for smaller companies because it’s not dominated by the large full-service mangement and brokerage companies, says Russell Munz, co-owner of Pyramid Real Estate Group in Stamford, Conn., and author of The Quick Start Property Manager Program.

Complete Realtor® Magazine Online Article (PDF)

While the article looks for opportunities in commercial management I reiterate my experience that single family homes and small condo communities are easier to start with.  Easier to sign up as clients, easier to manage and you don’t face the competition from more established companies as you do with larger condos and commercial properties.

When the article comes out it will be provided on this site.

Mike’s book is part of a series of books where he interviews 50 industry experts so the reader can learn from the shared experiences about a specific topic.

I am a big believer in learning from other’s mistakes and successes.  The Quick Start Manager Program is a collective of my 10 years of experience in growing a property management business.

I encourage you to have a look at Mike’s useful resource at Michael Levy’s Interviews of Successful Property Managers.

The Quick Start Manager Program is in use in California, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

Give the program a try in your state, your city, your town.  I am certain you will start your new business as a property manager faster.  I guarantee it.

Mr. Randel wrote “Confessions of a Real Estate Entrepreneur” (which I hand out to new real estate professionals at my company)and  just recently won a national award for his book “The Skinny on the Housing Crisis”.

Skinny On the Housing Crisis

The book won first place on June 20th at a book competition in Washington sponsored by a group of journalists who cover real estate, housing and finance.  www.theskinnyon.com

My wife and I, a book club of 2, are reading the book together and talking about our own housing situation.  I hope you too find it helpful.

Thank you very much for the Quick Start Property Management Program and associated materials. You included all the multi-purpose tools necessary to start a property management business. Now all I need to do is to start implementing the marketing plan. Thank you!

Juan Mejia
West Palm Beach Florida
July 20, 2008