Handing over your property to a short-term property management firm is a worrisome undertaking. Will the management company take care of your property? Will they vet short-term renters effectively? What happens if something is damaged or broken?

All these questions and more, need to be answered before you choose the perfect property management firm to take care of a Dubai property you are likely highly invested in, both financially and emotionally.

In this post, we aim to explain to you some of the ways you can make sure that whichever property management firm you choose, you will be assured peace of mind.

Ensuring Dubai Legal Compliance

Any short-term property management company you are considering using, must be able to demonstrate to you that they are complying with all applicable laws and regulations in Dubai. Here is a bullet list of things you should consider checking.

• Ask for copies of relevant legal documents, such as:
  • Trade licence.
  • Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) licence.
  • Copies of permits for other properties they manage.
• Request to see some Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) receipts for fee payments made.
• Ask the firm to explain in detail, what the DTCM fee requirements are for your property.
• Request an itemised list of items that need to be added to the property in order to satisfy DET regulations.
• Ask them to tell you which is the latest version of the DET regulations. 

Check Out the Quality of the Firms Current Dubai Listings

A good litmus test before you contact a property management firm, is to check out their current property listings. Sloppy, poorly presented listings likely indicate a firm that doesn’t try its hardest. Once again, here is a quick bullet list for you to follow. Check examples of existing property listings on platforms such as Airbnb or booking.com and look at the following:

• Whether guest reviews are positive or negative.
• The quality of photos and images used to promote the properties.
• How detailed and accurate property descriptions are.
• Whether the property has large open gaps in the booking calendar.

If the firm you are considering using is maintaining an overall review score of 4.5 or over on Airbnb and 8.5 or over on booking.com, then this is a positive indication they are diligent and trustworthy.

Does the Dubai Management Firm Have a Proactive Booking Strategy?

Ask the company about how it manages periods with a low volume of bookings. Do they have a unique strategy in place for filling up empty blocks in the booking calendar?

Consider for a moment, that any short-term property management firm you choose, is not only responsible for taking care of your property, they will also have a direct impact on the income from your property.

Finding a company that has a clear process in place to ensure property booking rates are consistently high, should be a prime consideration. Look for a firm that has its own unique selling points, and puts innovative ideas into play.

Ask to See Documented Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

Every successful short-term property management company in Dubai, will have documented standard operating procedures that the company and its staff adhere to at all times. This ensures consistency across their entire service offering.

You can ask to see some of the documents that outline these SOPs. You might not be given access to all of them, as some may be considered unique to the company and they may not wish to share them publicly. But they should be willing to at least turn some samples over to you.

Can the Firm Provide a Dubai Rental Forecast?

An established and successful short-term property management company in Dubai, will have their finger on the pulse of local market trends. They will also have access to a history of analytical data to mine for actionable insights. This means that they should be able to give you at least a rough estimate of how your property will perform. Here is a bullet list of things you can check.

• Ask for a detailed rental forecast for your property, including the methodology used to produce this forecast.
• Check whether weighting has been applied to cover the initial first month of a new property listing.
• Make sure the firm tells you whether the forecast includes items such as utility charges, maintenance costs, or any other undisclosed fees.

Is the Firm Actually Good at Dubai Property Management?

Some property management firms work using the saturation approach. With many property listings, meaning that as long as some properties are booked, they will make enough revenue. This is far from ideal for the property owner though. Here are a few things to check to make sure that the firm cares deeply about each property it manages.

• Are there any negative reviews from guests?
• If there are negative reviews, does the firm respond to them, attempting to mitigate them, and give the guest closure?

Does the Firm Use Smart Pricing Based on Dubai Specific Data?

Short-term property rental requirements can fluctuate. Many things can have an impact on whether your property is seeing a decent volume of bookings or sitting empty. And of course, price is a major consideration here. 

You should make sure that the property management firm you choose in Dubai, uses data-driven tools to help them set the current market price for your property. This includes tools such as Airbnb smart pricing and Price Labs.

Can the Management Firm in Dubnai Provide Regular Reports?

Any reputable short-term property management company in Dubai, will regularly provide you with performance reports. Not just in relation to your own property, but the Dubai short-term rental market in general.

Those that don’t are likely not on top of their game, and lack the internal data they need to aggressively exploit the market.

Can the Firm Demonstrate Both Experience and Expertise?

The last thing to check, is that the property management firm has experience in managing other Dubai properties. Do they have plenty of well-presented Dubai property listings? Have these properties been booked at an acceptable volume?

Expertise is also a consideration. Does the company specialise in Dubai properties, or are they more broad spectrum? Those that operate with a narrow niche, will likely be more impactful in that location.

Choose the Right Short-Term Property Management Firm in Dubai First Time

Choosing the wrong management company will negatively impact your income, and become a major source of stress and worry. You need to get this right the first time.

Here at Holistic Homes, we hope that the tips and advice we have provided in this blog post will prevent you from making a mistake and choosing the wrong Dubai property management firm.

If you would like some personalised advice, related to your own property and your own needs, please feel free to reach out to us.