Questions to Ask A Property Manager

MPM has invested in web technology which gives our owners access to their rental income, expenses, work orders, and custom reports 24/7. This allows us to provide our owners with answers, even when we are out of the office.

We proactively inspect every property we manage. This includes exterior inspections at least once per quarter, annual interior inspections, and interior inspections through scheduled maintenance. Our annual interior inspection is considered when determining whether or not a tenant is eligible to renew their Lease Agreement. Please understand that while we cannot control how a tenant lives at the property, we can control the screening process prior to their moving in and use available legal procedures upon moving out.

Most tenants do not destroy/damage the property unless something goes wrong during their lease term. When a tenant doesn’t pay and we have to go through the eviction process is when we find that tenant damage is the worst. Most tenants hope to get their security deposit back and follow our detailed, Helpful Move Out Guide, to ensure the return of their deposit. With a successful lease term, most tenants receive a full or the majority of their deposit refund because they’ve followed our vacating instructions. They leave the property in a clean, rent-ready condition, with less normal wear and tear, which means fewer turnkey costs for our owners.

While each of our staff has primary responsibility for a function in our office, we cross-train to provide better service to our tenants and owners. In addition, we communicate daily about outstanding items so that at any given time, someone can typically assist you, prospective tenants, and current tenants with any questions.

When something arises that can not be immediately handled, we have a policy to address non-emergency issues within 24 hours.

The average tenure of our management staff is over 4 years and 10+ years for our Executive Team due to our ability to attract and invest in quality people. Our low turnover rate allows us to provide a better experience for our owners and tenants.

With the exception of our administrative staff, all employees are licensed property managers and members of NARPM (National Association of
Residential Property Managers). NARPM is a professional organization that promotes education, designations, and networking as a resource to empower its members with knowledge and skill. A NARPM member honors and subscribes to a Code of Ethics and Standards of Professionalism, and commits to the professional and ethical practice of property management.

The NARPM designations have stringent requirements for education, experience, and service. It takes many years of hard work to meet these requirements. Our staff travel and attend NARPM Conventions and NARPM Conferences to seek additional education.

It is important to ask if the company you are considering has the proper E&O insurance. There are only a very limited number of insurance companies that will underwrite insurance for property management due to the liability and
risk involved.

We have employees and pay workman’s compensation for ALL our staff, to protect YOU! We also carry liability insurance so we have the protection required to deal with any issue.

This is such an important area for owners of investment properties. We require that our owners have an adequate Landlord Insurance Policy that covers them as well as us for a minimum of $300,000 for liability. We
do this by asking to be listed as an Additional Insured on their policy so we can ensure the owners and MPM are adequately covered. Not all insurance companies will accept Additional Insured parties, so it is important to check with your insurance carrier prior to contracting with MPM. While $300,000 is the minimum amount, we certainly would encourage an owner to look into an umbrella policy as well as increase the limits above that for added protection. A million-dollar umbrella policy is relatively inexpensive. We can recommend an insurance agent, should you need one.

Maintenance is the second most expensive part of owning investment in the property, just over vacancy, and we understand the need to keep this cost down. We use our bulk buying power to get repairs done as cost-effectively and quickly as possible while making sure our owners and MPM is protected.

We work with reliable contractors who have been in the business for many years and have the proper licensing issued by The state of Montana and proper insurance including general liability, auto liability, and workman’s compensation. We review and evaluate the insurance and licenses of our vendors on a regular basis to make sure we are covered too.