Foreign Property Management Methods for Landlords

How do successful landlords tackle foreign property management without even leaving home? Learn how to manage tenants and rental properties abroad today.


RELATED: Option 1: Manage Rental Properties Abroad by Yourself


Option 2 : Hire a Property Manager for Foreign Properties

Handing over foreign property management tasks to a trusted property manager is the most popular choice with landlords. It's hands-free and worry-free as long as you pick the right property manager to do the job for you.

Most property management companies will ask for 5 to 10% of your monthly rent depending on the range and quality of their services. Make sure that you factor in property management fees into your rental expenses to see if it makes financial sense for you to hire a property manager.

The most effective way to cut your property management fees is manage your property online whenever possible and hire property managers for on-site services such as property maintenance. A full-featured property management program such as Buildium allows you to collect rent, contact tenants and perform rental property accounting remotely.

If you're a new landlord and don't have anyone to help you watch over your overseas properties, then going for the services of a property management firm is an easy decision.

If you want your rental properties abroad to be both profitable and hassle-free, it's crucial to take your time and pick a property manager who is both competent and reliable - Click here to learn how to choose and hire a property manager.

A property manager can take care of the all ins-and-outs of property management for you - finding tenants, screening tenants, collecting rent, property maintenance and tax accounting.

Option 3: Get a Friend or Family Member to Help You Out

If you happen to know someone who lives near your foreign rental properties, then you have a third choice of asking them to help out with your overseas property management.

Whether you choose to pay your family and friends a regular fee or have them do it for free is entirely up to you. Personally we will recommend giving them a token sum of money to show your appreciation. More importantly, this also fosters their sense of responsibility towards your tenants and rental properties.

While it's assuring to have someone familiar to keep an eye on your rental properties aboard, we don't recommend that you leave all your property management chores to them. As you already know first hand, managing a rental property is never a piece of cake.

You cannot and should not expect your family and friends to be completely up to task. Without the proper training and experience, they will be helpless in the face of major problems (e.g. a fire consumes your rental property or a tenant simply walks out owing months of rent).

That's why you should only rely on them for simple routine tasks like collecting rent or making basic repairs. When a serious problem crops up, you should always be ready to take charge personally or have professionals standing by to clean up the mess.

Managing Tenants

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Becoming an overseas landlord and dabbling in foreign property management can be a thrilling yet stressful affair. By casting your net wider, you will …