I owned my park in Ohio for 9 months now and lately the wheels have been falling apart…It was great during non winter months. Once winter rolled along it was a sht storm… Maintenance have been through the roof with frozen pipes etc… My problem is I gave my Park Manager in the beginning an introductory pay… It was going great until I raised his pay. He started slacking off… everything went downhill…Now to a point where i have to get rid of him… I can post job listings on craigslist etc… but it seems like whoever inquires wants more than what I am asking Most people of looking to relocate for this job. But the pay that I am asking for is not worth the move…I want to find a local guy so its convenient for them… Its a small community so the only way I can get an add through is word of mouth… local newspaper charges $300 per ad… I am not willing to pay that…I was hoping for some suggestions besides word of mouth… I tried contacting local church. I am thinking to post flyers on peoples cars… I am out of ideas… This has been bothering me for a while and I want to get it over with… I am looking forward to a long grueling process to find the right guy…by the way I am about 5 hours away from the park so if I plan on making a trip i have to make it worth it…Thanks in advance
Have you looked internally? Do any of your residents have decent home with clean yards and decent cars? Those are your best prospects as 1) they don’t have to relocate 2) they already know the park 3) they have demonstrated that they are not nuts. We always look internally first, and only go to the outside if nobody pans out (but they normally do as we let many of our managers work part time after work).
First, have you personal been the real owner-manager of any park? Second, if you have you realize being all things to all people including the owners is walking a thin line. Third did you give the present manager a COMPLETE JOB DISCRITION?? We hire office help so we have time off and managers will NEVER have the focus and diligence that a owner has, therefore would you be comfortable with the manger’s responsibility with that pay?? Great employees are out there, try Craig’s List, local newspapers, etc–paying $10 per site per month is not a living wage and thus we are willing to pay over $12 per hour for fantastic help!!! As an owner having a successful business includes paying our help a living wage!
New here, but… oddball suggestion after everything everyone else has mentioned… Have you ever thought of sending a letter to the local Kingdom Halls in the area asking if they know anyone who has rental experience and looking for work? In my experience Jehovah’s Witnesses are very good ethical workers, usually you can find a couple, or a person that has apartment or rental experience and they are more than willing to work PT. Usually they have connections as well and know others who are handymen, lawn care, construction they could refer you too as well.
Frank… I thought about eternal since day 1. There is no real candidate.
I called 2 local churches and really hoping I get someone from there…
Carl… I was working together with the property manager in the beginning and I was doing all the administrative duties… it was working so well… until he decided he could handle it on its own… which now blown up in my face… so he knew his job description… I have a bit of time to spare daily so for now I don’t mind doing the admin but in the future I will be hiring admin staff… accounting etc…
Jamie… I prefer a religious person to be on my staff… I have a better chance not to be Scammed…
Thanks all for your thoughts…
Be carful with your assumptions. There is no direct relationship between believing in a deity and being trust worthy. Your chances of being scammed are the same. Your prisons are full of “religious people”. Do not allow your religious beliefs to guide your business decisions.
I found one part time person to do the rent collecting deposits and leasing…
All I need now is a maintenance guy who takes all maintenance calls… this is a touchy situation if I pay him a salary and not hourly…
if he is on call 24 hours a day just for my parks should I be committed to giving him a salary. Would be unfair to be on call and only pay him based on what he does… I mean I have 60+ units and there is always work getting units rent ready mowing grass and maintenance calls… thoughts appreciated. .
You don’t need a maintenance man. Just use licensed contractors with insurance, and you’ll be miles ahead. The manager should take any repair call, verify it actually exists with a smart phone photo for you, and then you make the call on who you use (unless your park is large enough to allow for a more professional-grade manager), and then the manager verifies the work is done with a smart phone photo before the vendor is paid.
Here are a couple thoughts. I agree that having someone who lives in the park be contacted first. We are letting our 28 year onsite manager go. We just bought the park, had a forensic accountant go through the 2014 numbers, and see where the profits went. The owner was elderly, had not been involved the past 2 years and past away during escrow. Half of the park owned homes were empty from lack of management and the rents were 1/2 the local average going rate. The manager said we do not need a computer because “That is not how it was done round here”. The manager also suggested we give her the income from the laundry as that was a perk in the past. Lot’s of upside here.You can put an ad on the AARP web site for free. We use to put ads on Craigslist but end up with folks with higher financial expectations. Also contact the local Chamber of Commerce. They usually will allow you to advertise. Always give your manager a list of expectations.Good luck.~CL~