Property manager stopped paying

[mike.green]

Hi,

In the last few months my property manager (which manages two of my positively geared properties) is paying me less and less every month, and the time periods between payments grow constantly, so that now I need to add my money just to cover the mortgages. Emails and phone calls don't help. I'm an out-of town investor, and can't just pop into their office to resolve the matter on site. Unfortunately I can't even cancel my contract with the agency immediately, as I have a 3-month notice for termination (silly, I know, but these were my first investment ventures...). They now owe me thousands of dollars...

What are my options? Who can I turn to and what is the best and quickest way to get my money back?

Appreciate your help,
Mike

[WGN ex-property manager]

If they are late paying then they are either in trouble financially, or really disorganised.

Take the properties back immediately , and tell them to go to hell if they try to invoke the 3 month clause. Write to the tenants directly, informing them that you are managing the properties and rent should be paid into your account with immidiate effect. If you don't have the tenant's details, get a new PM asap, give him written authority to manage your properties, and write to the old PM cancelling your contract with immediate effect.

Find another local PM with a good reputation to run your affairs for you, and deal with the aftermath with the old PM's once you have your income stream back under control.

[TheLiberalLeft]

What does "ph calls and emails don't help" mean? Are they not taking your calls? If they are, what is their reason for late payment? Have you got verbally angry at them? If not, why not? Robin's advice above is good.

[Tan]

Where are the properties?

[WGN ex-property manager]

If you need any leverage over them you could offer to name and shame them here on Property Talk. That might get you paid ahead of other, passive landlords who are not hassling them.

[mike.green]

What does "ph calls and emails don't help" mean? Are they not taking your calls? If they are, what is their reason for late payment? Have you got verbally angry at them? If not, why not? Robin's advice above is good.

Calls are answered by an employee that says she doesn't deal with accounts. Person that is supposed to handle accounts is never in the office, has call service that takes messages and he never gets back to you. It's a small and obscure agency, and yes - most probably ridden with financial problems. When talking to them I am not verbally obusive, but do let them understand how frustrated I am.

[TheLiberalLeft]

Phone up on a different line and pose as a new LL looking for someone to manage your swathe of properties. Ask to meet with the guy, as you like to know who you're dealing with. Then hit him with your real questions. Then hit him.

[Dean@Massiveaction]

Where are they??

[eri]

pm it around

[Tan]

If it's thousands, it might pay to pay a lawyer to visit them on your behalf.

[sparxNZ]

Yes please do tell - who is this PM?

Read your agreement with them as it probably states the terms by which they deposit rent payments into your account.
They have obviously not kept to the terms which constitutes breach of contract to me (I'm no lawyer though).

Write a letter to them stating that you consider the contract null and void citing the afore mentioned reason and go visit your tenants personally to get the rent redirected then deal with the fallout later.

Bearing in mind that this is costing you hundreds of dollars every week it would probably be well worth the cost to go and get advice from your lawyer first.

Cheers
Matt

[Keys]

OK then.


Where..........

Are..........

They??????????

[Tan]

Are they registered REINZ or how it is described now? You can you through the real estate institue to punish them & have more chance of getting your $.

[Rosco]

Please at least let us know where.

If they are Waikato based, let me know and I might be able to help. I had a property manager that wasn't paying and Paul from flat fee (superdad) went around and collected money (from my memory of a few years ago).

Plus Paul now looks after our properties and is fantastic!

Ross

[WGN ex-property manager]

There are enough good PM's here on Property Talk who can help you sort this out.

If it's in Christchurch talk to Keys, if it's in Nelson talk to Glenn, if it's in Wellington we can help.

Its' a really bad sign if a PM isn't forwarding the rent on time. If they are in financial strife (or just blatantly planning to defraud their customers) then every rent payment the goes from tenants to them is one you may never see. First priority is to get your income stream coming through a PM you trust (ie safeguard the future). Then you can go after them to sort out the past, and they have no leverage against you as they aren't holding ever increasing lumps of your cash.