Asset Management Tips For All Areas Of Your Life

Asset Management Tips For All Areas Of Your Life

Do you think that asset management only related to taking good care of your finance and property? Well, that's what most people think, and that's how they act in their privet lives.

But if you try to look at things from a deeper and more profound point of view, asset management is important to all the real assets in your life, and these are not necessarily financial and materialistic things.

Your non-material assets could be your time (work time as well as recreational time), your health, your relationships with other people, your skills and knowledge, your hobbies and more.

As you see, it's important to maintain balance and implement asset management to all the assets in your life. True assets provide dividends if managed properly, and this goes to materialistic and non-materialistic assets.

Now that we have established this important insight in to our lives, what can we do to manage out assets better and later enjoy the fruits of this careful grooming?

Let's take a look at a few examples of good asset management:

1. Managing your work time - if you will be managing your free time in a better, smarted way, you could be saving as much as 1-2 hours of work every day. This can translate to getting more done, or, having more free time. In this article I can't get into all the aspects of task management, so let's just talk about the greatest tip: Planning and prioritizing. You need to have a specific, written plan that details what you want to achieve in your work, including dates. That, you need to do daily prioritization of your tasks, so that all the more important tasks are completed in that day, and the less important are pushed away, maybe for tomorrow. This way you will always get the important things done. You'll be amazed at how much time people waste on doing not-important things. Do this and you are guaranteed to create at least 1 more hour a day.

2. Manage your free time - decide what you want to do in your free time and do it. Don't get caught in doing things you don't want to do, like spending time with people you don't like. Consider paying people to do the things you don't like doing like cooking, cleaning, walking the dog...

3. Make some time to plan ahead for all kind of projects you want to do that require good use of your assets. For example, if you want to re-decorate the house, you may find out that you have all the assets to do it on your - you may have a friend who knows about decorating and will be happy to help (you can help them with something else in return). You may be able to take a course in decoration or read a book about it with the extra time you got from managing your work time right.

4. Your finance - most people don't handle their financial affairs properly, and therefore loosing out. It could be a very wise move to sit down and analyze where your money is going to. If you do that for 3 months, you can see that in many cases you can save a few hundred bucks a month. That money can be used to pay debt, go on vacation, purchase an asset and more.

So it's clear that asset management is something that should be implemented to all the areas of your life and not just your assets and financial affairs. Clever asset management of all areas in your life will help you lead a better life all aroun

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What Real Estate Investors Need To Know About Property Management

Once you purchase a real estate rental property, you virtually become the CEO of your own small business. Sure, you feel good about becoming a landlord and owner of your own private money-maker, but unless it?s raw land, your work has just begun.

Now you must manage the property. As a real estate investor who has chosen the renting of apartments as a business, your goal now is to keep the units full, and at the highest rent per square foot possible.

So let?s consider the big picture of property management and look at some rental management basics every real estate investor should be aware of inside real estate investment.

1. Property condition. Getting the best tenants and commanding the highest rent starts with a sharp-looking building that has good curb appeal. Keep the structure, landscaping, common areas, and parking in good clean condition.
2. Tenant applications and screening. Require each potential tenant to complete an application, and then follow up to verify their employment, rental history, and credit and criminal history. Remember, it is always easier to get tenants into your building then it is to get tenants out of your building.
3. Emergency repairs. Be sure you have reputable maintenance personnel on-call to service emergency repairs. This may be your job or someone you hire, just be sure the tenant has a repair ?help line? they can call 24 hours a day when something must be fixed immediately.
4. Aggressive marketing of vacancies. Get the word out about an upcoming vacancy instantly. Use signage, advertise in the newspaper, or post it on the web.
5. Move-in/move-out coordination. Always plan to get a unit ?rent-ready? within a day or two after it becomes vacated. Even when you don?t have a new tenant in the wings, a clean unit ready to show a prospective tenant does help.
6. Keys and locks. It is always a good idea to change locks each time you have a turnover in tenants. This added security is good for you and your new tenant.
7. Learn the laws about eviction. Know what you must do to evict a deadbeat tenant even when you don?t think it is necessary.
8. Keep accurate books and records. Maintaining a good income and expense history is vital to your rental property business and the cornerstone to profitability.

Many real estate investors simply turn their properties over to professional management companies. The advantage being that it relieves the real estate investor of the time and stress of having to deal with tenants and repairs, and puts matters like late rents into the hands of experts.

On the other hand, a professional management company is not free. Moreover, in cases where the property is small enough for owner management, the cost of outside fees for professional property management might not be justifiable.

You must decide whether you want to hire out the management out or to do it yourself. The important thing is not to neglect a sound plan for property management. Otherwise you could find that owning and becoming CEO of your rental property business can quickly become more unpleasant than profitable.

James R Kobzeff is an active real estate broker and developer of ProAPOD Real Estate Investment Software - Rental property analysis at your fingertips! Free real estate investing tips are available at ProAPOD's real estate investing blog

Costa Del Sol Property Management

Now that you have purchased a villa or apartment on the Costa del Sol, Spain, you now face another decision: property management or finding a company to look after your property. Whether your villa is in Fuengirola, Mijas Costa, Benalmadena or Marbella, you need to be sure that the property management company will provide you with all the services you require such as maintenance, cleaning, property administration, holiday rental services, building and refurbishment.

Multi Property Services - gives owners of Costal del Sol property who are interested in letting out their villa or letting out their apartment the confidence and piece of mind in knowing that they can gain the financial rewards of short- or long-term rentals while protecting their property and interest. Here are some tips for you if you are looking for a company in Fuengirola, Mijas Costa, Benalmadena or Marbella to manage your property or letting your villa or apartment.

Property inspections - the company you select should check your property on a weekly basis. Inspections should include a check of all plumbing, baths, toilets and making sure all showers are off and all other fixtures are in working order. It should also include an inspection of electrical outlets and small appliances, again to ensure that they are in perfect working order.

Outdoor inspections – includes the checking of lawns, gardens, and the pool for any damage. The rental property management company should make sure that the sprinkler systems and pool filters are working. The company should also regularly inspect for any pests or vermin.

Property administration - The rental property management company will ensure that utility payments, taxes, and other bills are paid in a timely manner. They should also provide you with a monthly report.

Property inventory - the property management company will go through the property with you, making a thorough property inventory and using that as the basis for checking the apartment or villa after guests have departed.

Cleaning services - Prior to the arrival of guests, the rental property management company should arrange to have your villa or apartment cleaned and prepared for letting. Some companies may, for an extra fee, also offer a greet and meet service for guests.

Mail pick-up – Any mail should be picked up from the property and forwarded on to the owner.

When you do find the right rental property management company, then owning a property in Fuengirola, Mijas Costa, Benalmadena or Marbella will be both a personally and financially rewarding experience. To learn more about subjects like costa del sol property management please visit the web site at: http://www.multipropertyservices.com

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Property Management Company - Hiring One

Hiring a property management company is a great idea if you have even a small apartment building. Having someone taking care of all the small details of a rental property means you'll have more time to find the next good investment. Also, trying to do it all yourself is the surest way to make your real estate investment experience a bitter one. To find a good property manager, ask the following questions.

1. Other properties they manage? It's best if they have rental properties that are similar to yours. You can also drive by their other properties to see how they are maintained.

2. The fee? They vary around the country from as low as 4% of gross rents for larger buildings, to as high as 12% for single family homes. Be sure the fee is clearly stated and understood.

3. Extra costs? Are showings extra? Do evictions cost extra (beyond the legal fees)? Any other extras?

4. Who actually handles your property? It's best if one person handles your building all the time, and has some experience. Get their name.

5. How and when is the fee collected? Will you be billed, or will it be deducted from your account directly? Monthly? Quarterly?

6. Type of advertising? Exactly how will they advertise the units and what will it typically cost you?

7. Time and cost to prepare units? What's the typical cleaning fee on a vacancy, and how long will it normally be before it's rented out again?

8. Type of accounting? Which types of reports do they send, and how often? How are accounts set up?

9. Their hours of operation? What are their business hours, and who takes weekend calls?

10. What needs owner approval? What dollar amount needs your authorization, and is this negotiable?

You should ask other questions, based on your particular needs and the particular property. Be sure to ask everything up front, and you'll have fewer misunderstandings, and a good manager. Real estate investing and being a landlord is a lot less stressful with a good property management company.

Steve Gillman has invested in real estate for years. To learn more, get a free real estate investing course, and see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com.