Property management demands a high level of flexibility and cost-efficiency. Real estate professionals constantly deal with various challenges—from emergency repairs to severe lease disputes—and even with a skilled full-time team, navigating these can still be difficult.
Temporary staffing can boost your company’s efficiency in the long run. By leveraging pre-vetted workers, your property management team can always have extra support in handling both planned and unexpected demands without the burden of overstaffing or excessive costs.
Read more: Hiring and Retaining Top Talent in Real Estate: Strategies for Success
The Cost of Inefficient Staffing in Property Management
Property management relies on a skilled and efficient team to run smoothly. If your leasing agents or maintenance personnel are inefficient, you don’t just risk disrupting your operations; you also jeopardize tenant satisfaction and even your revenue.
Over 62% of property managers consider operational inefficiencies as one of their top problems. What makes it difficult? They say they struggle with finding reliable vendors and freeing up their teams from time-consuming tasks.¹
When it comes to tenant satisfaction, 45% of renters who want to move out say that they’re looking for a better property manager.² Meanwhile, if your maintenance workers fail to resolve problems promptly, repair costs could escalate up to 30 times more than if addressed earlier.³
This highlights the importance of a cost-efficient team in property management—and temporary staffing can provide the support to enhance that efficiency and flexibility.
9 Long-Term Benefits of Temporary Staffing in Property Management
Once you add temporary hiring to your strategies, your property management team will improve permanently. These 9 advantages can get you through years of various real estate issues, from sudden tenant vacancies to the rush of move-ins during peak leasing seasons.
1. Flexible Staffing for Busy Seasons
Property management companies regularly face peak periods. The leasing season in summer brings a surge in inquiries, tours, lease signings, and move-ins, while the winter season usually demands more technician work to address heating system maintenance and weather-related repairs. The problem is once the busy periods die down, you’re left with an efficient yet overstaffed team.
Temporary staffing allows you to fill your team with qualified workers who can handle peak-season jobs. You can set the contract period based on your needs, whether it’s for a few days or a few months. So, once you return to your regular workload, you can let go of your temporary workers and scale back your staff.
2. Quick Response in Emergencies
Not all busy periods are predictable. From emergency plumbing repairs to sudden tenant vacancies, the real estate business is plagued with unpredictable problems that need immediate solutions. Your staff may be prepared for emergencies, but what happens when you’re already stretched too thin?
Temporary hires can quickly step into emergencies when your regular team is unavailable or overwhelmed. In fact, they can be onboarded and ready to work in a matter of hours, ensuring minimal disruption to your operations. For example, if your maintenance staff is occupied with ongoing construction work but an electrical outage occurs at one of your properties, a temporary electrician can step in immediately to assess the situation and perform necessary repairs.
3. Coverage During Downtime
Staff will inevitably need time off for vacations, illness, or role transitions. Sometimes, these breaks happen simultaneously, leaving gaps in coverage. If urgent tasks like building repairs are delayed, it can quickly lead to major tenant complaints.
To avoid severe downtime, you can get temporary employees to quickly take over the job. Staffing agencies can often deploy technicians on short notice, especially for critical issues like plumbing, electrical, or HVAC failures. This helps maintain smooth operations and keeps tenants satisfied, even during staffing shortages.
4. Reduced Overtime and Holiday Costs
Real estate companies often operate at full capacity, requiring employees to work overtime and even during holidays to meet tenant demands. Overtime pay typically costs 1.5 to 2 times the normal hourly rate. Meanwhile, holiday pay can be even more expensive, especially on public holidays.
Temp hiring can help you avoid these extra costs while delivering quality service. Temporary staff can cover extra shifts at a regular hourly rate without needing overtime pay or holiday premiums. This way, businesses can manage peak periods efficiently while controlling costs. Plus, you also avoid overburdening your full-time team.
5. Sharper Focus on Priorities
Property management teams often juggle multiple responsibilities, from office-based clerical work to direct interaction with clients. While some smaller deliverables are essential, they can be time-consuming and resource-demanding. Minding tasks like answering calls or handling minor repairs can divert your team’s attention from more critical responsibilities, such as negotiating contracts or managing large-scale property projects.
Hiring temporary workers can help your team focus on your bigger priorities, especially during high-pressure situations. For instance, a project manager overseeing a renovation might still need to handle tenant calls and maintenance requests. A temp hire can take on these smaller tasks, allowing the manager to focus on the renovation’s progress.
6. On-Demand Specialists for Unique Projects
Specialized projects, like property upgrades, compliance audits, or legal complications, often require specific expertise that may not be available within your regular team. In these cases, temporary hiring allows you to bring in professionals with the specialized skills you need but only for the duration of the project.
For example, if you need to upgrade your property management software, a temporary cybersecurity expert can implement security protocols until the whole system is clear. Similarly, improving a whole building’s energy efficiency will need a LEED-certified HVAC engineer who can end the contract once everything is up to code.
7. Lower Recruitment Costs
To hire qualified full-time staff, you need to offer competitive salaries and benefits. Recruitment also involves spending time onboarding and training new employees. On the other hand, if you hire temporary workers, you can reduce the time and opportunity costs demanded by the complete hiring process. This is because temp hiring usually involves partnering with staffing firms that make the whole recruitment process easier.
These staffing agencies already screen their employees and provide skills training. Plus, they typically handle paperwork, payroll, and onboarding. Your role will only involve providing the necessary support. For instance, you can familiarize a temporary leasing agent with key details of your properties, such as current unit availability, amenities offered, and nearby local attractions.
8. Minimized Hiring Risks
Hiring mistakes often occur in the fast-paced world of real estate. Sudden surges of tenant demands may pressure you into filling positions while overlooking proper qualifications. A poor hire can lead to wasted training costs, disruption in operations, and lower team morale.
Temporary staffing helps mitigate these risks by giving you a trial period to assess workers without long-term commitment. Once a temp joins your staff, check their performance as long as your contract allows. If they prove to be a good fit, you can extend the deal or even offer them a permanent role. If not, you can replace them quickly with minimal expense.
9. A Flexible Talent Network
If you keep hiring temporary employees, you will eventually build a pool of professionals who are already familiar with your company. This is the best long-term benefit of hiring temp staff—having ever-ready workers who can instantly adjust to your company’s needs.
Over time, your regular temp workers will learn the best ways to collaborate with your teams, handle your clients, and manage your properties. This leads to seamless transitions when scaling up or responding to emergencies. Plus, you’ll have a set of qualified candidates to consider if you ever need to hire permanent employees in the future.
Ready to hire the best temp staff? Partner with The Liberty Group!
The best way to hire skilled and reliable temporary workers is by partnering with a top-notch staffing firm—The Liberty Group is here to help. From property managers and leasing agents to maintenance personnel, we offer the quality talent you need to boost your property management operations.
For over 45 years, we’ve built a reputation for providing excellent staffing services to multifamily and commercial real estate companies. Whether it’s temporary hires, executive searches, or full property management support, you can trust us to bring the best staffing solutions suited to your needs.
Contact us today to recruit top-tier professionals for your property management team!
References:
- Larson, Hansel. “A New Report from NAA Sponsored by AppFolio Reveals Top Challenges Facing Property Management Industry.” The Official AppFolio Blog, AppFolio, 14 Oct. 2021, www.appfolio.com/blog/top-challenges-property-management/.
- Holden, Stacy. “New Data Reveals How Property Managers Can Better Meet Their Residents’ Expectations.” The Official AppFolio Blog, AppFolio, 18 May 2023, www.appfolio.com/blog/2023-renter-preferences/.
- Millán, Naomi. “The Real Cost of Deferred Maintenance.” Facilitiesnet, Dec. 2016, www.facilitiesnet.com/maintenanceoperations/tip/The-Real-Cost-of-Deferred-Maintenance–38366.