Considering becoming a landlord? Explore the amount of time that goes into being a landlord and how to decide if you want to self-manage your rentals.
Being a landlord can be an exciting choice that comes with a lot to do and think about. It’s an excellent direction to take your investment journey, but one that carries with it many responsibilities and concerns for you to handle. Self-managing your investment properties can be rewarding, but it’s important to know what to expect. Between maintaining your property, communicating with your tenants, responding to emergencies, and other various responsibilities landlords must keep up with, you will have a lot on your plate.
But how much time actually goes into being a landlord? The count of hours varies significantly, depending on several factors, from your property count to the number and kinds of tools you use. Some property owners are self-managing landlords, while others use property management companies; both often utilize property management software to streamline their tasks.
How much time does it take to be a self-managing landlord?
According to Bigger Pockets, a self-managing landlord will spend about eight to 12 hours a month managing each property they own. This breaks down into three to five hours spent resolving tenant issues, two to four hours coordinating maintenance services, and one to two hours collecting rent. You can also expect to spend about an hour or more inspecting, marketing, and showing the property, and about an hour on paperwork. This estimate is only for one property, so the amount of work scales with each additional unit.
The article also indicates that many landlords feel overwhelmed with the needs of both their day job and their work as landlords. It also cites industry data claiming that 65% of self-managing landlords are sometimes overwhelmed by their responsibilities. But these concerns are precisely why property managers and property management software exist. They can help you decrease the amount of time and energy you spend on each property.
Of course, these numbers aren’t exact. The needs of your property will vary significantly depending on the time of year, your tenants’ needs, and the systems you use to automate or streamline your processes. Additionally, some locations may have different maintenance needs than others. For example, winterizing your properties isn’t a necessary maintenance task if they are somewhere that doesn’t experience winter.
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How does property management software impact how much time it takes to be a landlord?
Another component of the time commitment required for a landlord is property management software. If you use property management software, you will streamline your processes. The kind of software you choose to use will affect how much time you need to spend on these tasks. Some platforms are created to help you manage specific tasks, which will make those tasks much faster and easier, but they may not cater to your other needs. You may save time on rental collection, for example, but it will not necessarily help with accounting or tracking expenses.
Automated processes are highly beneficial for lessening the time required to be a self-managing landlord, but you have to make sure the one you choose meets your needs. If a platform does not meet your needs or is not intuitive or easy enough to use, it may result in more time spent struggling with it in the long run.
Overall, property management software is beneficial. Most of them will reduce the time you need to spend as a self-managing landlord. As an additional benefit, it will make your tenants’ needs easier, allowing them to pay rent and request maintenance services.
Additionally, if do-it-yourself property management isn’t for you, hiring a property manager may be beneficial. A property manager is an industry expert who can care for your properties for you, freeing up your time and energy.
Final Thoughts:
Being a landlord is a time-consuming process, often one that you take on in addition to a full-time job. Additionally, when you care for more properties than just the one you live in, there is a lot to think about. However, with the help of property management aids, these stressors can be significantly alleviated.
