ARTICLES
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Expanding Your Business?By Pierre Mouchette | Real Property Experts LLC
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Small asset landlords, as your business grows you will face the inevitable question all budding investors face. When is the right time to hire more staff? Who should you hire, an employee or an independent contractor?
To help you answer these challenging questions, we have put together an assessment checklist. So, let’s get started.
When is a good time to hire more help?
Most investors start small, most likely as a solo venture. Business is exciting, challenging, and requires ‘knowledge’ in additional fields (aka wearing a multitude of hats). Then, slowly you start to grow. As your holdings increase, you attract and obtain more investments, and then you realize that something must give if your portfolio is going to flourish.
The following are tell-tale signs that it’s time to hire more help so your business can meet demands:
Hire an employee or an independent contractor?
Having decided you need additional help; the next question is whether you hire an employee or an independent contractor. The following are considerations for both, but ultimately it comes down to you and your business requirements. Here are a few questions to consider:
Do I need someone on-site or remote?
Location is an essential factor to consider. If your work must be done on-site, then you may have to hire an employee. That is because most independent contractors work remotely. Of course, there are exceptions, but that is the general rule.
To help you answer these challenging questions, we have put together an assessment checklist. So, let’s get started.
When is a good time to hire more help?
Most investors start small, most likely as a solo venture. Business is exciting, challenging, and requires ‘knowledge’ in additional fields (aka wearing a multitude of hats). Then, slowly you start to grow. As your holdings increase, you attract and obtain more investments, and then you realize that something must give if your portfolio is going to flourish.
The following are tell-tale signs that it’s time to hire more help so your business can meet demands:
- You need an extra pair of hands to fulfill tasks.
- You need help with administration tasks.
- You need to save time and improve efficiency.
- You are turning down new commitments.
- Your service levels are plummeting.
- You are expanding your service offerings so you will need to hire additional staff with new skills.
Hire an employee or an independent contractor?
Having decided you need additional help; the next question is whether you hire an employee or an independent contractor. The following are considerations for both, but ultimately it comes down to you and your business requirements. Here are a few questions to consider:
- Do you need someone on a long-term or short-term basis? - in running an investment business, you might decide it is better to ‘employ’ a new team member to work across all your holdings. In doing so, the time you invest to train them will be an asset to the business. This of course applies to both full-time and part-time employees.
- Alternatively, you might be considering or bidding on a few new projects and want them under contract and control. In that case, hiring an experienced independent contractor who can work autonomously for the short-term is likely preferable.
- Alternatively, you might be considering or bidding on a few new projects and want them under contract and control. In that case, hiring an experienced independent contractor who can work autonomously for the short-term is likely preferable.
- Do you need to supervise the work, or can it be delegated? - some tasks can be delegated to independent contractors without requiring constant supervision.
- For example, as a small asset landlord, you might want to outsource your administrative tasks to a Management Company (MC) or a Virtual Assistant (VA). Or you might want to hire Independent Contractors (ICs) to work on set projects following guidelines that you have set up in your Operations Procedure.
- On the other hand, a Management role might be better suited to a full-time employee, who is an intrinsic part of the team.
Do I need someone on-site or remote?
Location is an essential factor to consider. If your work must be done on-site, then you may have to hire an employee. That is because most independent contractors work remotely. Of course, there are exceptions, but that is the general rule.
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RPE Category (Digital Digest)
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REAL ESTATE | RESIDENTIAL SMALL ASSET INVESTOR | Management
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PUBLISHED:
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March 10, 2021
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