As a property manager, your to-do list can feel overwhelming. Managing resident relationships, liaising with onsite staff and working with external vendors can use precious time and budget.
Although there are many benefits to working with independent vendors for your apartment turns, that doesn’t mean to say that these types of relationships don’t come with their challenges.
We’ll take you through the benefits and drawbacks, as well as introduce you to an option that combines the positives of both.
The Drawbacks of Working With Independent Apartment Vendors
Time
Do you ever feel like there are never enough hours in a day? With a never-ending list of property management tasks, finding the time to source, liaise with and invoice vendors can be difficult.
Without proper automation or internal systems, you might find yourself drowning in paperwork and trying to process multiple invoices simultaneously. Keeping tabs on where your turns are up to can also be challenging, particularly when there are multiple vendors from several companies onsite every day.
Budget
When working with multiple independent vendors, managing your budget effectively can be a tricky task. Whether you have budgeting software or use spreadsheets, inputting the individual expenses of vendors can take time and be laborious to track.
Price can also differ between vendors. What you pay one cleaning company for a clean could be much more expensive than another, skewing your budgets in the process. While working with independent vendors can be cheaper, there’s often more admin involved.
Quality Control
When managing your turns, quality control is an essential part of the process. You want to ensure the make ready meets the right standards for your new residents. You also want to make sure you get what you pay for.
When you’re liaising with multiple vendors at once, quality control can be time-consuming. Keeping tabs on what work has been done can be hard to audit, as well as working with vendors to schedule any extra work or resolve issues.
Contingency Planning
We’ve all been there — you’re getting busy for your busy turn season, you call your trusted vendors and they don’t have any availability. They’re either sick, on vacation or working elsewhere, meaning you have to quickly devise a backup plan.
It’s sensible to have a contingency plan in place in case this situation arises. Getting your apartment turns done on time and to the quality you expect is your main priority, and scheduling problems can derail your careful planning.
Sourcing the Right Vendors for You
Sourcing and negotiating with apartment vendors might seem like one of the simplest tasks of turn management, but it isn't. When you start to compare individual ratings, pricing, quality and ability to do a specific job, it quickly turns into a lengthy research project — one where you wish you had a pool of trusted vendors at your fingertips.
The Benefits of Working With Independent Apartment Vendors
Having said this, there are many benefits to working with independent vendors. The most notable being the trusted partnerships you build. Often, you’ll have been working with the same vendors for years. They understand your apartment communities, turns processes and preferences, leading to smoother working relationships in the long run.
But that doesn’t mean to say that you can’t have it all.
The Best of Both Worlds
Imagine if you could merge the benefits of independent vendors with the ease of an automated process. With Rent Ready, that’s possible.
Our automated turn board streamlines the entire process, giving you everything you need to manage your turns in one place. With a pool of trusted, vetted and experienced vendors, you can schedule your services with the click of a button. Plus, if you’re preferred vendor is unavailable for a last-minute service, you have a network of vendors available to schedule within seconds.
Want to know what’s even better? You can bring your own vendor and carry on the partnerships you’ve come to know and trust.
Want To Find Out More?
At Rent Ready, we’re dedicated to making your turns as seamless, easy and stress-free as possible. From automated turn boards to quality management and logistics, we can help with it all. To find out more about the benefits of partnering with Rent Ready, download our infographic by clicking the link below.
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