In addition to leasing, managing, marketing, and overall maintenance of Real Estate owned by others, it is also expected that a Property Manager function as a market analyst, residential leasing Agent, accountant, advertising specialist, and maintenance person all in the same day. In addition, the Property Manager frequently interacts with people in various professions, including lawyers, environmental engineers, and accountants.
The Property Manager has three principal responsibilities:
- Achieve the objectives of the property Owners
- Generate income for the Owners
- Preserve and/or increase the value of the investment property
The Property Manager carries out the goals of the property Owners by making sure the property earns income. This can be done in several ways. The physical property must be maintained in good condition. Suitable Tenants must be found, rent must be collected, and employees must be hired and supervised. The Property Manager is responsible for budgeting and controlling expenses, keeping proper accounts, and making periodic reports to the Owner. In all of these activities, the Manager’s primary goal is to operate and maintain the physical property in such a way as to preserve and enhance the Owner’s capital investment.
Some Property Managers work for property management companies. These firms manage properties for a number of Owners under management agreements (discussed later). Other Property Managers are independent. The Property Manager has an agency relationship with the Owner, which involves greater authority and discretion over management decisions than an employee would have. Illinois Property Managers must be licensed managing brokers, under a Sponsoring Broker, because they engage in collecting rent, negotiating leases and rentals, and procuring Tenants, among other functions.
However, the Illinois Real Estate License Act of 2000 specifically exempts resident Managers of apartment buildings, duplexes, and apartment complexes from licensure requirements when their primary residence is on the premises being managed.
Illinois permits individuals whose Real Estate practice is limited to leasing or renting residential property, collecting rent, negotiating leases, and similar activities to obtain a residential leasing-Agent license instead of the broader-scope broker or managing broker license. An individual with a residential leasing-Agent license must be sponsored by a Sponsoring Broker.
Securing Management Business
Possible sources of a property management business include:
- Corporate Owners,
- Apartment buildings,
- Owners of small rental residential properties,
- Homeowners’ associations,
- Investment syndicates,
- Trusts, and
- Owners of office buildings.
