Do you need a Santa Fe property manager?

You need a property manager in Santa Fe if you live somewhere else, if you own more than one rental, or if you do not want to be the person a tenant calls when the boiler fails on a January night. If you live in town, own one unit, and are handy, you may not. Here is what a manager actually does, so you can decide.

What a property manager does

• Sets the rent. From current comparables, not from what the last tenant paid. Santa Fe rents vary a lot by neighborhood and by whether the unit is furnished, and under-pricing by a hundred dollars a month costs more than a management fee.
• Markets the unit and screens tenants. Listing, showings, applications, credit and background checks, references from prior landlords, income verification, and the fair-housing rules that govern all of it. Screening is where most landlord problems are prevented.
• Writes the lease and collects the rent. A New Mexico lease that complies with the state’s Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act, deposits handled the way the law requires, and rent collected on a schedule with late fees enforced consistently.
• Handles maintenance. Tenant requests go to the manager, who sends a licensed plumber, electrician, or roofer from a list of people they use every week. Emergencies get handled at night and on holidays. You approve anything over an agreed amount.
• Inspects. Move-in and move-out with photographs, and periodic checks during the tenancy. Canales clear, filters changed, no one living there who is not on the lease.
• Keeps the books. Monthly statements, year-end summaries for your tax return, and the security deposit in a trust account where the law says it belongs.
• Deals with the hard parts. Non-payment, lease violations, and, rarely, an eviction through the Santa Fe County courts. This is the part owners most want to hand off.

What it costs

Management companies in Santa Fe typically charge a percentage of collected rent each month, plus a leasing fee when a new tenant is placed. Ask for the full fee schedule in writing, including what they charge for maintenance coordination and renewals. A manager who pays for themselves does it by renting the unit faster, keeping good tenants longer, and preventing one bad tenancy.

When it pays for itself

You live out of town. Many Santa Fe rentals are owned by people in Texas, California, or Colorado. A vacant house, a frozen pipe, or a tenant dispute cannot be handled from a thousand miles away. This is the clearest case.

You own several units. Two or three rentals become a part-time job. The manager’s fee buys your weekends back and usually improves the numbers.

You do not want the phone calls. Some owners are good at this and enjoy it. Most find that the tenant relationship, the late-night calls, and the awkwardness of enforcing a lease are what they least want to do. Paying someone to be the professional in that relationship is reasonable.

When you probably do not

You live in Santa Fe, you own one unit, you have a plumber and an electrician you trust, and you are comfortable screening applicants and holding a deposit correctly. Plenty of local owners manage one rental well. If that is you, consider paying a manager for tenant placement only, and keep the rest.

What to ask a manager before you sign

• How many units do you manage, and how many people do it?
• What is your average vacancy between tenants?
• Who handles emergency calls at 2 a.m.?
• Can I see a sample lease and a sample monthly statement?
• How do you screen applicants, and what are your criteria?
• What do you charge, for everything?

Where we fit

Valdez & Associates has managed rentals in Santa Fe for decades alongside our sales business. If you are weighing whether to rent out a home you are leaving or thinking about buying a rental here, we will tell you honestly whether management makes sense for your situation. Details are on our property management page, or call us.