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What is a Leasing Manager?

The main function of Leasing Managers, as their title would suggest, is to oversee the leasing of multiple apartments, condos or houses. It is their job to make sure that each unit of housing is leased as quickly as possible, all leases are completed and filed appropriately and all properties meet a certain set of standards.

Leasing Managers typically report to a higher-level member of staff, such as a Property Manager, while simultaneously overseeing lower-level managers and assistants. They spend their time working both in and out of the office, since their job may frequently require them to visit properties and meet with tenants. According to findings published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, industry-wide demand for Property, Real Estate and Community Association Managers (which includes Leasing Managers) is increasing by a healthy 8 percent. This is expected to result in the opening of 25,300 new positions between 2014 and 2024.

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Leasing Manager Duties and Responsibilities

In order to make sure that units are occupied, tenants are happy and properties are safe, Leasing Managers perform a variety of important tasks. We analyzed a number of online job postings to identify these core Leasing Manager duties and responsibilities.

Advertise Vacant Housing

Since Leasing Managers will be expected to maintain a certain occupancy percentage, they will often need to help attract potential renters to vacant units. This can involve suggesting and implementing various methods of advertisement, such as seasonal discounts, local television commercials, flyers, signs and social media posts. Leasing Managers will be held responsible for making sure that such promotions draw in a minimum number of renters, and thus will often need to use aggressive marketing techniques.

Maintain Properties

The condition of a property is extremely vital to the success of a property management company or real estate agency, as well as tenant safety. For this reason, Leasing Managers need to coordinate regular property inspections, visit properties to verify that they’ve been properly repaired and respond to tenant complaints by arranging for an inspection as soon as possible. Additionally, Leasing Managers are required to take the aesthetic features of a property into consideration. This means that if there are any exterior or interior visual flaws, such as peeling paint, scuffed floors or cracked windows, it’s the job of the Leasing Manager to promptly fix the issue.

Meet Monetary Requirements

Maximizing profits doesn’t just involve making sure that all tenants pay their rent on time (although that is certainly critical). It also involves constantly reevaluating practices and expenditures in order to identify areas of waste, finding the most reliable contractors for the most reasonable cost and ensuring that any given budget is never exceeded. Leasing Managers are responsible for completing all of those duties, and must perform them with dedication and consistency.

Process Paperwork

An undeniable aspect of lease management is the sheer amount of paperwork it will generate. After all, each new tenant will need to fill out and sign a lease correctly in order to begin renting a unit in the first place. This is where Leasing Managers come in: it’s their job to make sure that each tenant understands the lease, that the information included in each lease is accurate and that completed leases are properly filed and recorded.

Leasing Manager Skills

Successful Leasing Managers are multitaskers, forward-thinkers and team leaders. They are able to conceptualize a big-picture idea just as easily as they’re able to deal with every day, nitty-gritty tasks. They’re not afraid to set aside their managerial work to help with administrative tasks, and they thrive on getting results and solving problems. In addition to these general skills and personal characteristics, employers are looking for Leasing Managers with the following skills.

Core skills: Based on our analysis of online job postings, employers are seeking Leasing Managers with the following core skills. If you want to become a Leasing Manager, be sure to master the following.

  • Excellent interpersonal skills
  • High level of organization
  • Ability to motivate others
  • Good sense of advertising and marketing strategies
  • Professional demeanor

Advanced skills While most employers don’t strictly require these skills, they are often listed as preferred. To get a leg up on the competition, focus on these.

  • National Apartment Association (NAA) certification as a leasing professional
  • Knowledge of Fair Housing Laws
  • Knowledge of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements

Tools of the trade Leasing Agents use a variety of tools in their day-to-day work. If you’d like to pursue a career as a Leasing Agent, it would be beneficial for you to become familiar with the following

  • Recent versions of Microsoft Office software suites
  • Telecommunications equipment
  • Standard office equipment, such as fax machines and business calculators
  • Digital property management systems such as Yardi and Yieldstar
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Leasing Manager Q & A

In order to provide you with valuable insider insights, we spoke with Denise Supplee, the co-founder of Spark Rental as well as a former Leasing Representative, Leasing Manager and Property Manager.

What are some of the core duties performed by a Leasing Manager?

While a Leasing Manager, my duties were leading the effort in renting the apartments. I supervised and worked alongside the leasing personnel with showing apartments, providing information and applications to interested parties, receiving applications and deposits, processing applications and conducting credit checks, sending approval and denial letters and arranging for lease signings and move-in. I also handled maintenance requests and many other management related duties.

What challenges does a Leasing Manager face?

  1. Maintaining a good occupancy.
  2. Resident complaints.
  3. Maintenance issues not being handled quickly and efficiently.
  4. Major breakdowns of essential services such as HVAC, electrical, etc.
  5. Depending on the location, neighborhood issues such as car thefts, break-in, etc.

What skills do Leasing Managers use most?

Besides the ability to interact with prospects, it is a good idea to read a lease and get a good feeling for the various terminology and what it means such as subleasing, mitigation of damages and the like. Know the state and local real estate laws pertaining to property management. You will use them! Familiarize yourself with the Fair Housing Laws. It can’t hurt to know a bit about the mechanics of an apartment so when a maintenance call comes in, you can ask the correct questions in order to prioritize. The ability to multi-task in an organized fashion is key. Additionally, there are many different courses and seminar that can be taken. I took a course back in the 80’s on successful renting that taught me useful things that I [still] use today. Little tricks like using the proper words such as resident and community instead of tenant and complex. There is much to know from how to conduct a proper background screening and what to look for to when to begin eviction.

What should someone consider before becoming a Leasing Manager?

Some of the things one should consider before embarking as a Leasing Manager is that patience is essential. Keeping a cool head under stress is absolutely necessary. I was frequently on-call.

What type of person is successful in this job?

I was successful because I looked at everything as a challenge to overcome. For instance, I had a property that was mistreated, the tenants were fed up, the maintenance team was overwhelmed and there was a bad reputation as a result. Through some customer dedication, attentiveness to requests and throwing parties and events, I was able to build a better rapport between management and residents. As a result our huge vacancy narrowed and the community also began to look at the property in a better light.

What do you find to be the most rewarding about being a Leasing Manager?

One of the most rewarding is seeing the smile on someone’s face when they are approved. It is a good feeling to help someone find their place to live. That is a big deal.

Leasing Manager Salary

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual salary for Property, Real Estate and Community Association Managers (which includes Leasing Managers) is $55,380 per year. Leasing Managers in the tenth percentile earn $28,490 per year, while those in the 90th percentile earn $123,790 per year. Leasing Managers in New York, Virginia and Massachusetts make the highest median annual wage in the United States, earning $89,200, $77,900 and $74,700 per year, respectively.

Leasing Manager Resources

We put together this list of resources to help you continue exploring your career as a Leasing Manager. Whether you’re looking for blogs or books, you’re sure to find something below.

On the Web
Spark Blog

Published by Spark Rental, an online automated system for landlords, this blog contains a vast array of tips, tricks and techniques for Leasing Managers and other real estate professionals.

LeasingCafe.com

Created specifically for leasing professionals, this website is jampacked with articles, industry news, webinars, career openings and a calendar of events.

Buildium Blog

This frequently updated blog features articles on nearly every aspect of property management, from tips for filling out tax forms to educational anecdotes.

On LinkedIn
Property Management Insider

With more than 26,000 members, this group is a great place to learn about industry trends, network with fellow professionals and share ideas.

Apartments Professionals Network

This group of over 13,000 is geared specifically towards leasing professionals who manage multifamily housing rentals.

Lease Administration

As the most niche group on this list, Lease Administration is focused on enabling networking between Leasing Administrators, which includes Leasing Managers.

Books
The 7 Secrets to Successful Apartment Leasing

This book contains advice on how to fill vacancies, find great renters and communicate effectively.

The Book on Managing Rental Properties

Although this book is aimed towards landlords, the majority of its content is applicable to Leasing Managers as well. Covers tenant screening processes, important rental lease provisions and more.

Ogilvy on Advertising

This bestselling book can be an indispensable resource for Leasing Managers. If you ever find yourself stumped by marketing and advertising strategies, this book can help.

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