What does a property manager do?
Property managers are responsible for overseeing the real estate properties of their clients. They manage property rentals and leasing and ensure that the terms on these rentals are by what the owner is amenable to. Property managers act as the representative of their client during negotiations and deals. They also set rental prices and other finance-related items since they are familiar with how the market looks. Besides dealing with financial matters, they also manage administrative matters such as enforcing rules and policies, crafting reports, managing contractors, and drafting related documents.
Property manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real property manager resumes:
- Manage condominiums for individual investors; enforce lease requirements/community policies.
- Design and manage all company facebook accounts for residents and prospective residents regarding property information and general interest articles.
- Update resident and unit information utilizing property management software (OneSite )
- Maintain OSHA files, employee files, payroll files and staff PTO accruals.
- Record journal entries for accruals.
- Process applications and coordinate lease signing with new residents in YARDI.
- Assist in financial processes: daily invoice billing, recordkeeping, collection matters, monitoring maintenance accounts.
- Coordinate with draftsmen to prepare drafts of inventor drawings in addition to requesting formal drawings for filing with the USPTO.
- Supervise 4 employees, responsible for payroll, A/P, A/R, leasing, renewals, rental deposits and turnkey schedule.
- Accept rents and deposits from clients and prospective clients, post money in the MRI system, and ensure daily deposits.
- Implement formalized IP processes and procedures on focuse innovation and IP best practices to drive transformation in the corporate IP culture.
- Maintain accounts payable/accounts receivable/payroll using QuickBooks.
- Collect and verify information for HUD requirements.
- Input all leasing information into management software MRI system/programs.
- Facilitate property enhancement and maintain each account through QuickBooks.
Property manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 15% of Property Managers are proficient in Customer Service, Property Management, and Financial Reports. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Customer-service skills, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Property Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 15%
Increased the property residential services through implementation of activities, community outreach, college/ universities outreach, and superior customer service.
- Property Management, 14%
Managed apartment house complex or development for owners or property management firm: Showed prospective tenants apartments and explained occupancy terms.
- Financial Reports, 7%
Negotiated property sales contracts, managed building protection projects, scheduled maintenance of contracts, compiled information for financial reports.
- Real Estate, 6%
Coordinated corporate marketing efforts to utilize further online and published commercial real estate media to increase advertising exposure of the property.
- Yardi, 6%
Performed functions within Rent Roll and YARDI programs for administrative, financial analysis, and reporting purposes.
- Resident Retention, 3%
Supervised the day-to-day operations of multiple apartment properties, including leasing, marketing, resident retention, maintenance and sub-contractor management.
Common skills that a property manager uses to do their job include "customer service," "property management," and "financial reports." You can find details on the most important property manager responsibilities below.
Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a property manager to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "property, real estate, and community association managers must understand contracts and must be able to clearly explain the materials and answer questions raised by residents, board members, or service providers." Additionally, a property manager resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "manage collections of hoa dues, vendor contracts, homeowner communication, website and covenants. "
Customer-service skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling property manager duties is customer-service skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "property, real estate, and community association managers must provide excellent support to keep existing clients and expand their business with new ones." According to a property manager resume, here's how property managers can utilize customer-service skills in their job responsibilities: "managed assigned residential properties to ensure customer satisfaction requirements of the ownership and tenants. "
Interpersonal skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of property managers is interpersonal skills. This skill is critical to many everyday property manager duties, as "property, real estate, and community association managers interact with different types of people every day." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "managed four student apartments find tenants, ensure the leases are upheld and respond to any tenant issues necessitates excellent interpersonal skills"
Listening skills. For certain property manager responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "listening skills." The day-to-day duties of a property manager rely on this skill, as "property, real estate, and community association managers pay attention to residents and proprietors in order to understand and meet their needs." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what property managers do: "verified that all customer complaints were handled promptly and appropriately communicated effectively with owners, residents and on-site associates. "
Organizational skills. Another crucial skill for a property manager to carry out their responsibilities is "organizational skills." A big part of what property managers relies on this skill, since "property, real estate, and community association managers must be able to plan, coordinate, and direct multiple contractors at the same time, often for multiple properties." How this skill relates to property manager duties can be seen in an example from a property manager resume snippet: "manage and maintain residential properties compile and revise tenant applications, collect rental dues, and manage organizational budget. "
Problem-solving skills. While "problem-solving skills" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to property manager responsibilities. Much of what a property manager does relies on this skill, seeing as "property, real estate, and community association managers must be able to mediate disputes or legal issues between different groups of people, such as residents and board members." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of property managers: "solved budget constraints by successfully negotiating vendor contracts. "
The three companies that hire the most property managers are:
- Avenue5 Residential70 property managers jobs
- Pwc50 property managers jobs
- The John Stewart Company40 property managers jobs
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Compare different property managers
Property manager vs. Assistant director, communications
An assistant communications director is responsible for managing the communicative operations across the company, handling the dissemination of information among employees, and releasing management announcements to media platforms. Assistant communications directors draft project techniques and strategies, as well as monitoring social media contents and press releases. They also identify business opportunities by analyzing recent trends that would generate more revenue resources and increase the company's profits. An assistant communications director must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in assessing business information to prevent miscommunications and negative publications.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a property manager are more likely to require skills like "real estate," "payroll," "cam," and "property inspections." On the other hand, a job as an assistant director, communications requires skills like "professional development," "alumni," "photoshop," and "graphic design." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Assistant directors, communications really shine in the government industry with an average salary of $65,113. Comparatively, property managers tend to make the most money in the professional industry with an average salary of $50,963.The education levels that assistant directors, communications earn slightly differ from property managers. In particular, assistant directors, communications are 8.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a property manager. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Property manager vs. Leasing consultant
A Leasing Consultant specializes in helping property owners secure tenants for their rental properties. Most of the responsibilities include coordinating with landlords to find suitable occupants, posting rental notices and advertisements on various platforms, and monitor the quality of every rental property. Furthermore, Leasing Consultants must ensure that the tenants will be able to uphold the leasing agreements by screening potential applications through particular requirements, evaluating and verifying the applicant's documentation, and negotiating the contract terms.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real property manager resumes. While property manager responsibilities can utilize skills like "financial reports," "real estate," "resident relations," and "payroll," leasing consultants use skills like "data entry," "product knowledge," "phone calls," and "apartment homes."
On average, leasing consultants earn a lower salary than property managers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, leasing consultants earn the most pay in the finance industry with an average salary of $33,561. Whereas property managers have higher pay in the professional industry, with an average salary of $50,963.leasing consultants earn similar levels of education than property managers in general. They're 2.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Property manager vs. Leasing agent
A leasing agent primarily works to assist and represent property owners when finding and managing tenants. They are in charge of advertising and promoting the properties in different areas or platforms, developing marketing strategies, coordinating with applicants, gathering their requirements, verifying the applicants' paperwork and references, and negotiating leasing terms. Moreover, a leasing agent also acts as the landlord because they serve as the tenants' point of contact regarding issues and concerns, conduct property inspections, and manage the properties' maintenance operations, coordinating with the owners regularly.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a property manager is likely to be skilled in "financial reports," "real estate," "resident relations," and "payroll," while a typical leasing agent is skilled in "apartment homes," "process applications," "property tours," and "vacant apartments."
Leasing agents make a very good living in the retail industry with an average annual salary of $36,389. On the other hand, property managers are paid the highest salary in the professional industry, with average annual pay of $50,963.leasing agents typically earn similar educational levels compared to property managers. Specifically, they're 2.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Property manager vs. Assistant site manager
An assistant site manager works in construction areas where their role is to assist site managers in overseeing construction operations, ensuring procedures adhere to deadlines and budgets. Their responsibilities often include maintaining employee records, arranging schedules, coordinating with managers and engineers, relaying instructions to workers, conducting inspections, liaising with suppliers, and purchasing materials according to standards and project requirements. Moreover, an assistant site manager must maintain an active communication line with site managers, providing them with regular reports for an efficient workflow.
Types of property manager
Updated January 8, 2025
