New Year Resolutions or New Year Job?

The New Year brings not only New Year Resolutions in the bucketloads, but also a lot of thought about current employment options. It’s a time where people decide to stay put if they are happy in their current role, or to make a change.

We see many Trust Accountants decide to move on from their current jobs at this time of year. We have previously discussed, the Top 5 reasons Trust Accountants leave their jobs. Similarly, Property Managers generally feel the same way this time of year. And there are many similarities between the two in their reasons for leaving. 

Top 6 Reasons Property Managers Leave Their Jobs

  1. Stress

    Property Managers can bear the brunt of excessive stress in their role. They are the recipients of pressure from multiple directions including tenants, landlords and management. 

  2. Lack of Incentive

    The commission structure for Property Managers can be far below inviting. This therefore gives zero incentive to Property Mangers to bring in new business. Lack of incentive = lack of new business = minimal job satisfaction. 

  3. Excessive Workload

    The portfolios of Property Mangers is often too large for the capacity of a single person to manage. Property Mangers often don’t have the support staff they need to keep up with their workload. 

  4. Lack of Support from Higher Management

    It’s no secret that management can often focus more on property sales as opposed to management. Put simply, there is more money to be made. Property Managers can therefore often feel bridesmaids to the Sales Manager brides.

  5. Out-of-date Resources

    Often, Property Managers are lumped with the old adage ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ and are consequently stuck using technology that belongs in the dark ages. 

  6. They are overworked

    Property Mangers are often requested to do the role of multiple people. They are required to not only manage properties, but to also take on the role of the Trust Accountant. For the same pay. 

Is Your Property Manager or Trust Accountant on the Brink of a Walk Out? 

As the New Year rolls in and people trickle back to work, you could find yourself looking for a new Property Manager or Trust Accountant. We have already had 4 calls this year from Agencies who have lost their Property Manager or Trust Accountant before the year has even begun.

So, here is the question. Is it a Property Manager that you need or a Trust Accountant?

You Need a Trust Accountant

If you need a Trust Accountant, you need someone to:

  • Receipt rent
  • Reconcile accounts
  • Process invoices
  • Handle daily banking
  • Handle general account enquiries
  • Process water usage and other tenant charges
  • Data entry
  • Process payments to landlords, suppliers and management fees
  • Run End of Month accounting processes

Your Need a Property Manager

If you need a Property Manager, you need someone to:

  • Lease properties
  • Process applications
  • Routinely inspect properties
  • Sign leases
  • Manage ingoing and outgoing inspections
  • Handle maintenances
  • Manage vacancies
  • Renew leases
  • Increase rents
  • Handle general tenant and landlord enquiries
  • Chase arrears
  • Attend tribunal
  • Obtain new business…

the list goes on!

You can see where grievances occur when Property Mangers are asked to take on the role of the Trust Accountant. Where could it possibly fit in? (Without your Property Manager, most rightfully, simply losing it).

So, our aim here is to avoid any loss of key personnel at this time of year. You want to retain your good staff. The loss of good staff can be far more costly to your business than the cost of reducing the stress on your existing staff. Consider this:

  • Can the trust accounting be outsourced?
  • How about outsourcing other generic tasks? Think inspections, maintenance, arrears handling, lease preparation… Outsourcing these duties will free up Property Managers to do what they do best.

Get 2018 off to a good start. Let it be the year of proactive change. As opposed to chasing your tail after staff have walked out. Let 2018 be your year.

~ Jane Morgan is the Director of End of Month Angels, a consultancy firm specialising in Trust Accounting. Jane knows the legislative requirements of running a successful Real Estate office through her 20 years industry experience. Don’t trust just anyone with your trust accounting. Trust End of Month Angels and get back to what you do best – growing your business.