Here’s something most landlords don’t realize when they pick up the phone to call a property management company: we’re interviewing you just as much as you’re interviewing us.
I own a property management company here in Philadelphia, and I want to be upfront — I want certain clients. When the right kind of owner calls me, I want that business. I’ll be genuinely disappointed if they don’t sign on. So this isn’t me saying property managers don’t want your business. That would be a foolish thing to say. But there’s a reality in this industry that most rental property owners aren’t aware of, and it’s worth talking about.
The Quiet Practice of Firing Bad Owners
I’m part of mastermind groups with property management companies all over the world, including right here in Philadelphia. And believe it or not, a lot of these companies will automatically fire a certain percentage of their worst-performing owners every quarter.
It’s the 80/20 rule. 20% of the properties are causing 80% of the headaches — and it’s almost always because of the owner’s mindset, not the property itself. So these companies will look at who’s the most difficult, most energy-consumptive owner, and terminate the relationship. It’s a common practice.
My company doesn’t operate that way. We’re not going to fire a property just because it’s going through a rough stretch. We’ve had properties literally catch fire, and yes, that creates a massive workload — coordinating with insurance, overseeing the rebuild, walking the owner through every step — and we’re not getting paid extra for any of it. If it’s not the owner’s fault, we’re not firing you. But that’s a choice I make. Plenty of good companies don’t.
The Red Flag That Will Get You Rejected
Here’s the one thing that will get you immediately disqualified by almost any reputable property management company: walking in with the assumption that we’re going to steal from you.
If an owner says something like, “How do I know you’re not creating fake work orders?” or “How do I know you’re not stealing from me?” — that’s a hard stop. Not because we’re offended. It’s a business decision.
Let me tell you the story that drove this home for me.
The Scotch Tape Microwave
We took on a property in the Passyunk area. The owner had moved out and turned it into a rental. When I inspected it, I missed something — the microwave handle was broken, and the owner had literally taped it back on with two small pieces of Scotch tape. Good enough to fool an inspection. Good enough to get a tenant to move in.
Of course, the tenant moves in, opens the microwave, and ends up holding the door in their hand. Anything in a rental unit has to work unless the lease specifically says otherwise. That’s not just common sense — it’s the legal standard. (I’m not an attorney, this isn’t legal advice, but you get it.)
So we reach out to the owners. They agree to buy a new microwave — fine. We order it, get it delivered, send them the invoice. Then the owner’s wife responds: “I believe you paid for it. I believe it was delivered. But how do I know you didn’t just go pick it back up from the property?”
That was it. I had to fire that owner on the spot.
Why We Can’t Work With Suspicious Owners
Here’s my honest theory: if you’re the kind of person who thinks it’s okay to Scotch tape a microwave handle to dupe a tenant, you probably assume everyone else is doing the same thing to you. You think the world operates the way you operate.
And it’s exhausting to work with that mindset. We’re giving you monthly statements. We’re giving you before-and-after photos of every repair. We’re documenting everything. If that’s not enough, we’re not going to spend our days trying to convince you we’re not crooks.
This actually ties into something I’ve written about before — making intellectual rather than emotional decisions as a rental property owner. Suspicion is an emotional position, not an analytical one.
The Cycle of Suck
In my industry, we call this the cycle of suck. Bad owners create unhappy tenants. Unhappy tenants leave one-star reviews. One-star reviews mean the only owners willing to sign on are the bad ones. And around and around it goes.
Think about the tenant in that microwave story. It’s move-in day. They’re excited about their new space. They go to use the microwave and it falls apart in their hand. Now they’re not just disappointed — they realize someone on the landlord side intentionally tried to pull one over on them. And they’ve just signed a year-long lease with these people.
We have a fiduciary responsibility to the owner, so we can’t tell the tenant, “Yeah, the owner’s a jerk, sorry.” We have to take the hit. And those tenants would be totally justified in leaving us a one-star review.
What Good Owners Actually Look Like
My best clients don’t assume the worst of us. When something breaks, we send the photos. We get it fixed. We send photos of the repair. That’s the relationship. They trust the documentation we provide because we provide a lot of it.
Asking smart questions is great. Asking for more photos is fine. Wanting clarity on the scope of a repair is fine. Experienced rental owners know what questions to ask a property management company and how to ask them. The line gets crossed when the questions are rooted in the assumption that we’re criminals.
And while we’re on the subject — trying to nickel-and-dime the cheapest management fee is another signal that the relationship is going to be difficult. The best property managers in your market have options. They’re choosing who they work with.
The Bottom Line
In Philadelphia, there are only a handful of property management companies you actually want to do business with. Google reviews are the best place to start — we’re the number one top-reviewed property management company in Philadelphia, and in my opinion that means when you go below us, you’re getting a worse company. That’s just logic.
So here are the two things to remember:
- The property management company probably wants you. If you’re a reasonable owner with a decent property, they’re going to be disappointed if they don’t close the deal.
- You’re also being interviewed. Don’t say anything in that first call that signals you’re going to be a nightmare — because you don’t want to get bounced down to the lower-tier companies.
Approach the conversation with the assumption that it goes both ways. That’s where good long-term relationships start.
I’m just a humble Philadelphia property management company owner doing my very best to answer your rental property investing questions. As always, happy rental property investing.
