“Those who plan do better than those who do not plan, even though they rarely stick to their plan.” – Winston Churchill.
Managing a fix and flip or a rental property can be tough sometimes. Most importantly, it all comes down to communication and organization!!
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Plan the work, work the plan!
- There are some things in life where you can just “wing it”, but it’s always better to have a clear direction when dealing with an important project. Have a plan and follow the plan!
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Clear and Concise Deliverables
- To rehab, the house is a very general statement. Have a detailed scope of work, ie. Open this wall, paint that color, sell on this date, etc.
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Regular discussions with team
- Stay involved, and ask for updates. Go see the property at least once a week. You are the “Property Management”, you should always know what is going on. Don’t be the “Eh, I think that they are here with their work, but I’m not sure” type of project manager. Be the precise project manager who knows exactly what the project status is.
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Communication with anybody directly involved with the project
- Communication is the KEY! Regular meetings (daily startup, weekly follow-up, monthly summary)
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Task ownership by each person (Accountability)
- Everyone should be contributing to the project. Focus on strengths and remember that your team needs to be challenged
- Build your team and encourage accountability. Support each other with difficult tasks, encourage your team to brainstorm together, and ask for help sooner than later.
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Documentation
- Document your work so you can be more efficiently next time.
- Standard work keeps things consistent, but even that at times can be reviewed and made more efficient.
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Celebrate wins and document lessons learned
- Projects are tough, stressful, unpredictable, and very rarely go exactly to plan. Remember the small things like celebrating the little wins. Congratulate each other, thank each other, and be respectful. It’s ok to have differences, talk through them and be understanding…listen to each other.
- Everything that happens, happens for a reason. Document and make notes so you don’t repeat mistakes or you can react quicker the next time something similar happens.
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Show charts with numbers, timelines, and goals
- We are a visual team, we build our projects so we can show where we are to a baseline/goal we have set. There’s nothing more eye-opening than seeing you are ahead, on time, or behind. Keep everything organized!
If you are struggling with property management, let us know that we are more than happy to give you some pointers!