What Does a Property Manager Do? (Duties, Costs, and When You Need One)
What a property manager does day to day, what's included in full-service management, what it costs, and how to tell if your rental needs one.
A property manager runs a rental property on the owner's behalf: they find and screen tenants, collect rent, handle maintenance and repairs, keep the property legally compliant, and report the numbers back to the owner. In short, they take over the day-to-day work of being a landlord so the owner doesn't have to answer the 9 p.m. phone call about a leaking water heater.
That's the one-sentence answer. The longer answer depends on the property, the city, and the contract, because "property management" can mean anything from rent collection only to a fully hands-off arrangement. This guide walks through the core duties, what's usually included, what it costs, and how to decide whether you need one. We'll use Detroit as the running example, since that's where we manage rental homes for owners and where the job has a few extra layers.
What does a property manager do day to day?
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics describes the role as showing properties to prospective tenants, collecting rent, inspecting buildings, arranging repairs, paying bills, handling complaints and lease violations, keeping financial records, and following fair housing law. For a residential rental, those duties group into five jobs.
1. Tenant placement
Filling a vacancy is the highest-stakes thing a manager does. It usually includes:
- Setting the asking rent based on comparable local rentals
- Listing the home, taking calls, and running showings
- Screening applicants (income, rental history, credit, and background checks) in a way that follows federal fair housing rules
- Drafting and signing the lease
- Collecting the security deposit and documenting the home's condition at move-in
A good placement saves you months of trouble later. A bad one can cost you lost rent, repairs, and court time.
2. Rent collection and tenant relations
Once a tenant moves in, the manager collects rent, enforces late fees as the lease allows, answers tenant questions, handles complaints, and manages renewals and move-outs. When a tenant stops paying, the manager follows the legal process, which in Michigan runs through the district court. (Our guide to the Michigan eviction process covers the steps.)
3. Maintenance and repairs
Tenants report problems to the manager, not to you. The manager decides what's urgent, sends a qualified contractor, checks the work, and pays the invoice from your account. Most also handle preventive work like furnace servicing and gutter cleaning, plus the turnover repairs between tenants.
4. Legal and city compliance
Landlords have to follow state landlord-tenant law, fair housing law, and local rental rules. A manager keeps you inside those lines: proper lease terms, security deposit handling (Michigan caps deposits at one and a half months' rent under MCL 554.602), required notices, and any local registration or inspection program. More on the Michigan deposit rules in our security deposit guide.
5. Accounting and reporting
The manager holds rent in a trust account, pays approved expenses, sends you your net proceeds, and gives you monthly statements plus year-end records for your taxes. If you own several properties, this alone can save hours every month.
What's included in property management (and what usually isn't)?
"Full-service" means the manager handles all five jobs above for a monthly fee, with a separate charge when they place a new tenant. Contracts vary, so here's the typical split:
| Usually included in the monthly fee | Usually billed separately |
|---|---|
| Rent collection and deposits | Tenant placement (leasing fee) |
| Tenant communication and complaints | Repair and renovation work itself |
| Coordinating maintenance requests | Eviction court costs and attorney fees |
| Monthly owner statements | Lease renewals (at some companies) |
| Routine notices and lease enforcement | City inspection and registration fees |
Before you sign anything, ask for the full fee list in writing. Two companies quoting the same percentage can end up very far apart once renewals, markups, and vacancy fees are added. Our breakdown of property management costs in Detroit walks through how to compare quotes line by line.
You can also see exactly what our full-service property management covers if you want a concrete example.
What does managing a Detroit rental involve?
The duties above apply anywhere. In Detroit, three of them take extra work.
City rental registration and inspections
Detroit requires rental owners to register the property and earn a certificate of compliance by passing a city inspection. The city's own page notes that only a small share of Detroit's estimated rental homes currently comply. A manager who works in Detroit should know how to register the property, schedule the inspection, fix whatever fails, and get the certificate issued. City compliance is part of our Detroit rental management, not an add-on. We cover the steps in our guide to Detroit rental registration and the certificate of compliance.
Older housing stock
Detroit's homes are old. An analysis summarized by SPUR notes that almost 90% of the city's housing was built before the 1978 lead paint ban. Older homes mean more furnace, plumbing, roof, and electrical calls, plus lead-safe work practices on painted surfaces. A Detroit manager needs reliable trades who know these houses, not just a phone number for a handyman.
Tenant placement in a neighborhood-by-neighborhood market
Rents and demand can change a lot from one Detroit neighborhood to the next, so pricing a vacancy takes local knowledge. Many Detroit owners also rent to tenants using housing vouchers, which adds its own inspections and paperwork. If that's part of your plan, read our Section 8 landlord guide for Detroit and our look at average rent in Detroit.
Property manager vs landlord: what's the difference?
The landlord owns the property. The property manager is hired by the landlord to run it.
| Landlord (owner) | Property manager | |
|---|---|---|
| Owns the property | Yes | No |
| Sets the big decisions (sell, renovate, budget) | Yes | Advises |
| Handles daily operations | Only if self-managing | Yes |
| Tenant's main point of contact | Only if self-managing | Yes |
| Legally responsible as owner | Yes | Acts as the owner's agent |
Hiring a manager doesn't remove your responsibilities as an owner. You still pay the property taxes (see our guide to Detroit property taxes for landlords), carry insurance, and fund repairs. The manager carries out the work and keeps you informed.
Does a property manager need a license in Michigan?
Generally, yes. Michigan's Occupational Code defines "property management" as leasing or renting the property of others for a fee, and includes people who do it as a vocation in the definition of a real estate broker (MCL 339.2501). In practice, that means a third-party manager should be, or work under, a licensed real estate broker. Owners managing their own property don't need one. Ask any company you interview for its broker license and look it up before you sign.
How much does a property manager cost?
Full-service residential management commonly runs about 8% to 12% of monthly rent, plus a tenant placement fee that often ranges from half a month to a full month of rent. Repairs are paid separately at cost or with a markup, depending on the company.
The detail that matters most is whether the percentage is charged on rent collected or rent scheduled. If it's on collected rent, you don't pay a management fee during a vacant or non-paying month. Our full Detroit property management cost guide covers every fee to ask about.
For reference, Great Lakes PMG charges 10% of the rent we actually collect (no management fee on vacant or non-paying units) and one month's rent to place a new tenant. Maintenance and renovation work is quoted separately for each job.
When do you need a property manager?
Not every owner needs one. A manager usually makes sense when:
- You live far away. Out-of-state owners can't walk a property, meet an inspector, or check a contractor's work. (Our guide to investing in Detroit from out of state covers this in depth.)
- Your time is worth more than the fee. If tenant calls, showings, and repair scheduling eat into your job or family time, 10% is often a good trade.
- You own several units. The work scales with every door, and so do the mistakes.
- The property needs compliance work. In a city with a rental inspection program, getting and keeping the certificate is a project in itself.
- You've had a bad tenant. A tighter screening process often pays for itself after one avoided eviction.
You might not need one if you live nearby, own one or two well-maintained homes, have reliable contractors, and actually enjoy the work. Some owners in that spot keep managing themselves but hand off repairs. If that's you, our property maintenance service for self-managing landlords handles the repair side without a management contract.
How Great Lakes PMG handles it
Great Lakes Property Management Group is a licensed Michigan real estate brokerage based in northwest Detroit, founded in 2006. Our team has 50+ years of combined experience and has completed more than 350 Detroit renovations, so we know what's behind the walls of these houses.
Our Detroit property management service covers tenant placement, rent collection, inspections, city compliance, repairs, and monthly owner statements. If you're still buying, our investment consulting helps out-of-state investors find and renovate properties before they're ready to rent. You can also see real numbers from properties we manage, or contact us to talk through your rental.
Frequently asked questions
What does a property manager do for a landlord?
A property manager handles the daily work of owning a rental: marketing and filling vacancies, screening tenants, collecting rent, coordinating repairs, following landlord-tenant and local rental laws, and sending the owner monthly statements. The owner keeps ownership and makes the big decisions.
What are the main responsibilities of a property manager?
The core responsibilities are tenant placement, rent collection, maintenance and repairs, legal and city compliance, and accounting. Full-service managers handle all five. Some companies offer only a subset, like leasing only.
Is a property manager the same as a landlord?
No. The landlord owns the property. The property manager is hired by the landlord to run it and acts as the owner's agent. The tenant usually deals with the manager day to day.
Do property managers need a license in Michigan?
Generally, yes. Michigan law treats managing rental property for others for a fee as real estate brokerage, so third-party managers should be licensed brokers or work under one. Owners managing their own rentals don't need a license.
How much do property managers charge?
Full-service management commonly runs about 8% to 12% of monthly rent, plus a placement fee of roughly half to one month's rent when a new tenant moves in. Ask whether the fee is charged on rent collected or rent scheduled.
Is it worth hiring a property manager?
It's usually worth it if you live far from the property, own several units, don't have time for tenant calls and repairs, or own in a city with a rental inspection program. If you live nearby and enjoy the work, self-managing with a reliable maintenance partner can work well.