Property management in San Jose and throughout California has evolved tremendously over the last decade, and it continues to do so. This is due to a shifting market, a diverse pool of tenants looking for homes, and some changes in supply and demand. 

We’re also working with a number of tenant protections, laws that make managing your own home somewhat risky, and a rental landscape that includes high rental prices and heightened tenant demands. 

If you’re not already working with a property manager, this is a good time to start. It’s the best way to protect your investment, avoid legal mistakes, and ensure that you’re earning as much as possible with your rentals. 

We’re often asked about the current state of property management in California, and we want to share some thoughts on what it means to manage properties professionally in our market, and how things continue to evolve. 

Impacts of the Sales Market on the California Rental Market 

The sales market has been all over the place these last few years. For a while, there was a huge push to sell. Buyers could not make offers fast enough, and anyone who had a home to sell considered doing it. This drove up home prices, leading to a peak and then settling. 

It’s still a wildly expensive market in California when we’re talking about sales. And, that has had an impact on the rental market. It’s created a situation where we have more tenants than we did before. People who might have bought a home are continuing to rent, instead. That’s due to the high housing prices and the rising interest rates which have made mortgages incredibly expensive. 

Having more prospective tenants in the market has created a higher demand for well-maintained rental homes in good locations. Rents are higher and vacancy rates are lower. 

Focus on Legal Compliance 

When it comes to complying with the state, local, and federal laws in California, property management has taken a leading role. We are the professionals who are paying attention to the laws and the way they’ve changed. We’re talking with owners about what new legislation might mean for them. We’re helping new investors navigate rent control and just-cause eviction. We’re making sure your lease agreements include all the necessary language. 

Property managers in the current California rental market must focus on compliance and enforcement when it comes to:

• California’s habitability standards
• State and federal fair housing laws
• Rent control for properties covered by state and local laws
• Just cause eviction and no-cause eviction 
• Security deposit laws, including what you can collect and how you must return the money
• New legislation around emotional support animals and organic waste recycling

There are a lot of complexities in the legal landscape in California. Renting out a property without the help of property managers who understand these laws and apply them to the leasing, management, and maintenance of your property is simply risky. You could be setting yourself up for a legal dispute around why you withheld money from a security deposit or a fair housing claim which could cost you thousands of dollars. 

Let your property manager take the lead on all legal requirements and regulations. 

Working with Investors to Understand the Market 

More than ever before, property managers in California are stepping up to do more than lease and manage investment properties. We’re working with investors to make better decisions that lead to fewer expenses and more profit. 

This is a huge value and something you should expect from your management partner. 

We can fix toilets. We can find tenants. 

We can also work with you to identify good opportunities when you’re ready to grow your portfolio and acquire a new investment property. We can walk you through a 1031 exchange when you’re ready to sell a property but don’t want to exit the market entirely. We can talk to you about what types of improvements might help your rental property appeal to better tenants and earn more rent. 

Property managers are doing a lot more to help investors be better investors. 

Leveraging New Technology for Better Management