There’s a fantasy lots of investors buy into at some point.
It goes like this:
“I’ll get a managing agent, and then it’s passive.”
And to be fair, compared to managing tenants yourself, a good agent can make life dramatically easier.
But “easier” and “passive” are not the same thing.
A managing agent can take work off your plate. They can’t take responsibility off it.
Because when something goes wrong, nobody writes to the agent saying, “Congratulations, you own this problem now.”
They write to you.
The job isn’t “find an agent”.
It’s “manage the agent”.
If you think an agent automatically means your investment is safe, you’re basically assuming someone you’ve just met cares about your asset as much as you do.
They don’t.
They might be decent. They might be professional. They might try hard.
But they are managing dozens, sometimes hundreds, of properties.
You have one property. Or five. Or ten.
The imbalance is obvious.
So the real game is this: pick the right agent, set clear expectations, and then keep an eye on things like a mildly suspicious adult.
Not paranoid. Just realistic.
The “cheap agent” isn’t cheap
This is where investors accidentally do something that looks like saving money but is actually the opposite.
They pick the cheapest agent.
Low fee. Big smile. Promises the earth.
Then the “extras” begin:
- renewal fees
- inventory mark-ups
- maintenance commissions
- call-out charges
- “admin” fees for things you assumed were included
Or worse, they don’t charge loads of extras… they’re just slow, hard to reach, and reactive rather than proactive.
The cost isn’t always financial.
Sometimes it’s the joy of discovering your tenant has been emailing about a leak for three weeks and nobody has responded.
And now it’s a ceiling issue.
Great.
A good agent should reduce hassle. If your agent increases hassle, you haven’t outsourced management — you’ve outsourced stress.
What a good agent actually does, and what you should check
A solid agent isn’t just someone who finds tenants.
They’re a supplier who protects your cash flow and reduces risk.
So you want to know:
- how they reference tenants, and what they count as acceptable
- how quickly they respond to issues, and what their escalation process is
- how maintenance is handled, including their contractors, pricing and approvals
- how rent chasing works, including when they act and how they communicate
- how often they inspect, and what they report back
If you don’t ask, you won’t know.
And if you don’t know, you can’t manage it.
The danger zone: “I assumed they’d handle that.”
So many portfolio problems start with that sentence.
Gas safety renewals missed. Inspections not done. Repairs delayed. Tenants unhappy. Voids longer than expected. Rent arrears that “only started recently” — meaning six weeks ago.
None of this makes you a bad investor.
It just means you’re learning the slightly irritating truth:
Systems beat assumptions.
If your agent is good, they’ll welcome systems.
If they get defensive, that’s useful information too.
You don’t need to be a control freak. You just need a dashboard.
This is what most investors actually need:
- a monthly statement that makes sense
- copies of inspection reports
- clear visibility on arrears
- a maintenance approval process
- a point of contact who replies without needing a blood sacrifice
You don’t need to micromanage.
But you do need to monitor.
Because it’s your property. Your mortgage. Your risk.
Tenant myths: don’t assume labels predict behaviour
While we’re here, a quick note on tenant selection, because it’s where lazy thinking creeps in.
Some investors assume “professional tenants” are automatically low hassle.
Sometimes they are.
Sometimes they’re high maintenance and quicker to escalate complaints formally. Not because they’re evil — just because they’re used to getting things sorted fast.
On the flip side, plenty of tenants on benefits are stable, long-term, and treat the property well.
The label doesn’t guarantee anything.
Good tenants are good. Bad tenants are bad.
Judge them by checks, behaviour, and evidence — not stereotypes.
The practical takeaway
Using an agent is still usually sensible. It can save time and reduce friction.
But don’t confuse “managed” with “sorted”.
The winning approach is boring:
- choose carefully
- agree expectations
- check performance
- don’t outsource responsibility
- and remember: assume no one — least of all your lender — is doing you any favours
This isn’t advice, obviously. Just the reality of property investing when you’re the one whose name is on the mortgage.
Here’s to successful property investing.
Peter Jones
Author, property investor and ex-Chartered Surveyor
PS. By the way, if you’d like a deeper dive into property investing based on the real-life experience of an investor who has built a substantial multi-property portfolio, my popular e-book, The Successful Property Investor’s Strategy Workshop, explains how I built my own portfolio from scratch and the principles that can help you do the same.
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