How these Property Management Inc. Franchisees Signed 200 New Properties During a Global Pandemic

Property management experts Erik Chapman and Lee Clouse have decades of combined experience in the industry. In their hometown of Indianapolis, they wanted to bring a unique, customer-focused service to property owners, so they joined forces with Property Management Inc. in 2019 to launch their own franchise location, Property Management Inc. Meridian. Since then, they have been able to build lasting, beneficial relationships with property owners in the city. Both Chapman and Clouse have extensive experience in the property management sector, and their leadership skills have led to the signing of 200 new properties during a global pandemic.

When Chapman and Clouse signed on to join Property Management Inc. and open the Meridian location, they were welcomed with extensive support as franchisees and the opportunity to grow the brand under its four pillars of services in residential, commercial, association and short-term rental property management.

How Two PMI Franchisees Found Success in the Industry

Chapman and Clouse each have plenty of experience in the rental management industry.

“I’ve been in property management for about nine years,” said Chapman. “I got my start as an assistant property manager for a small community and then jumped into a residential property management company.”

In his previous role, Chapman was finding luxury housing for professional athletes, securing places for them to live while they were in the city fulfilling their contracts or staying for short-term business dealings. The interactions and experiences from higher-end clientele triggered Chapman’s passion for residential property management and he knew he wanted to stay on that path.

“[In my previous role] I learned how you can be successful in a management company, and I was able to utilize my prior tools and experience,” Chapman added.

When Chapman discovered the opportunity with Property Management Inc., he was ready to take the next step and further hone his customer service and management skills.

Clouse has also been in the property management business for 25 years. “I split my time between association and condo management and multi-family management,” he said. “I’ve worked for companies, big and small, in various positions.”

It’s fair to say that Clouse and Chapman have exponentially progressed throughout their careers and bringing their own location of Property Management Inc. to Indianapolis was a logical next step in advancement.

The duo was in search of how to bring their property management expertise to Indianapolis and discover a brand that would help them find success as business owners. Clouse and Chapman first found out about the Property Management Inc. brand through a friend in the industry who is also a PMI franchisee, and when they were shown the tools offered to build their own brand, they knew it was time to jump on board.

“After we spent time at the corporate headquarters in Utah, we came back with a very aggressive growth goal,” said Chapman. “We knew we wanted to be running on all four pillars, and utilizing the business model of residential, commercial, association and short-term rental property management is how we ended up being able to grow so quickly.”

How Acquisitions Helped Property Management Inc. Thrive During The Pandemic

After a tumultuous two-year period since the initial onset of COVID-19, Clouse and Chapman said that they were able to make it through the pandemic and keep all employees on staff.

During the height of the pandemic, Clouse and Chapman added close to 200 doors in terms of acquisition, and strategic communication throughout the pandemic allowed them to keep those clients.

Clouse and Chapman knew that some of their clients were struggling to pay their own bills during the pandemic due to renters being out of work during shutdowns. To help alleviate the worries of the owners of the properties that Property Management Inc. manages, Chapman and Clouse were able to take off a percentage of the rent they collected.

“We were able to help out by giving back a percentage of the rent that we were collecting to help cover expenses and mortgage payments for property owners,” said Chapman. “Property owners were willing to work with us and we were proactive, rather than reactive, and that allowed us to have more of a positive image in our clients’ eyes for where they wanted to refer more business in the future.”

Chapman said that Property Management Inc. Meridian is looking at substantial growth in the multi-family market, and they’re looking at it as one of the key factors to their success in 2022.

“Last year, we started a ‘where do you want to be in 10 years’ conversation,” said Clouse. “Our 10 year goal is to be at $10 million in annual revenue and we are just about on target for where we need to be.”

The duo said they would like to grow in the residential market by at least 20% and on the association side by at least 20% as well. To help with the anticipated growth, Clouse said they will be bringing on additional employees, which will contribute to the local economy as well. Overall, Property Management Inc. Meridian is well-situated to grow internally with new hires and externally as it signs more property management agreements in the residential and association markets.

The startup costs for a Property Management Inc. franchise range from $53,225 to $190,050. The franchise fee ranges from $45,000 to $190,050. To learn more about franchising with Property Management Inc., visit https://propertymanagementincfranchise.com/.