Hiring a Property Manager / Technology

One of the challenges that I am facing at the moment is hiring a new staff member in regional Australia for a Property Management Role. Someone with some experience would be nice. But on the back of COVID-19 our industry has taken quite a hit - we have lost 30% of our workforce (maybe even more) and some very valuable industry knowledge with it. Whilst we have reached out to a couple of potential industry candidates, their response has been “there is no way I am doing Property Management”

Also this week I sat in on a University Lecture in Economics where they touched on some ABS Stats - one of which included the number of hours worked by the average Australian included the impact technology has made over the years. With the census last night got me thinking about when I started in Property Management and the hours I put in - and how different it is now.

I have found with the advancement of technology in our field how much easier it is to do our job and the reduction of hours that has followed. There is so much more technology coming our way too. I feel that our job has improved over the years which has made it easier to build client relationships.

So why does everyone hate Property Management so much? Ok - now I don’t want a barrage of reasons (I am aware that fundamentally the impact of people and expectations make the job complicated). But want I want to say, is that we have a responsibility to try and shed the “urgh Property Management” sentiment within the real estate industry to try and lift the spirit of Property Management being a good career path - because it is.

It is really import that Principals that have a Property Management department plan this sector of the business well, give the Property Management team the right technology tools to work with and remember (on a regular basis) to pat them on the back so they feel supported. Oh - and don’t discount your fees so that you can pay them well.

As a group we can rid the stigma attached to our great industry

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@louiseschofield this is great. If you add a couple of suggested action points, we could convert this into a blog :slight_smile:

Let me think on this and get back to you

A recent survey on a PM Social Media post from the question “What do you enjoy most about your job” got the following responses:

• Everything
• No two days are ever the same
• I really enjoy looking at all different kinds of property/housing – it really takes you out of your everyday life
• Putting roofs over families heads
• Helping people
• You are helping people with one of the biggest decisions / stressors of their life. And every day we go into work not knowing what is going to happen today. It’s exciting to me – most days
• When you know you’ve had a really positive and beneficial effect on someone else with what you contribute. There are tough problems to solve in our industry and doing it successfully, seeing the “whew” moment from all the stakeholders is immensely satisfying

By changing our language around describing the PM department (sure there are challenges that test the best of us) and including better language around the upside as well - such as those comments - shows that Property Management is rewarding as much as it is a career choice. A lot of Property Managers I know given the choice, would NOT work in Sales - as they find Property Management fullfilling and take pride in their work.

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I asked my PMs something similar recently. It was along the lines of why do you come to work each day, what entices you to continue this role.

The most common responses were Pay, Flexibility, No two days the same and helping people

So quite in line what you’ve discovered Louise

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Totally agree. I also think it’s good to have positive role models in clear view from the department leader through to speakers at conferences and awards.
Some employees just want that flexibility, and a good work environment, but others want a career pathway so you need to be flexible as an employer and provide opportunities for all.

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