Apartment Living: Finding the Right Place to Call Home

If and when you decide to leave the country for a few weeks to a few months, you may want to hire a property management company. Aside from renting your home to make some money while you are gone and having a property manager handle these transactions, there are a lot of good reasons for having a property manager.

Deterring Intruders and Thieves

Having someone that is guaranteed to check on your home a few times each week helps deter intruders and thieves. It makes the home appear as though someone does live there, but that he/she is coming and going and there is no rhyme or reason to his/her appearances. It is hard to plan an intrusion and/or theft when you do not know how often someone is going to enter a home and catch somebody in the home. Make sure your property manager picks random days to visit your property and check for break-ins or signs of something stolen.

Finding and Reporting Squatters to the Police

Here in the U.S., you are very fortunate when it comes to squatters. When your property manager discovers that squatters have taken over your home, the property manager only has to call the police and have the squatters arrested on trespassing charges. Squatters tend to look for homes that seem abandoned, and this event usually occurs when a home has been empty for some time.

Keeping up With the Landscape to Avoid Fines

Many cities have ordinances in regards to tall grass and weeds. You are required to keep the grass and weeds cut and pulled or cut down, respectively. If you do not, the city fines you and then sends someone to do the job for you. At least when you have a property manager, these things are maintained, and you never have to face a fine from the city when you are not even home to do the job.

Deterring Pests

There is nothing bugs, mice, and rats like better than a quiet, uninhabited home. Within three months of your departure, you can bet that one or more of these pests will try to move in and take over. They can do quite a bit of damage in a short time, but a property manager is trained to spot the damage and the signs of a pest. He/she then calls a pest control expert who makes the pest problem go away.