Property Management Inc. (PMI), the leading property management franchise that purchases across the four pillars of residential, commercial, association and vacation real estate, experienced a strong spring and continues to grow throughout this summer. In March and April alone, the brand awarded 22 new franchises.
One of those was with Wendy Yuill, a franchisee in Lafayette, Indiana who has been in the property management business for more than two decades.
“I have gained 25 more doors since joining as a franchisee,” said Yuill, who officially opened with Property Management Inc. in May. “I’m now at 69 doors but want to add another 125 by the end of the year. I know that sounds like an ambitious goal, but I’m determined to get there.”
Yuill has good reason to believe she can reach her goals—even if she came into the property management field by chance 22 years ago.
In 1997, Yuill was working at a bank when it was downsized. “They let several of us go at lunch, right after the holidays,” she recalled. “I’m a single mom and I didn’t get any child support. I didn’t know what to do—so I went and got a newspaper.”
Yuill found a job listing for leasing consultants at a company called WH Long. She went to the office to apply in person and was interviewed on the spot. She got the job. “I was like, ‘I don’t know what this is, but I can do it,’” she said. “I was really excited. I must have caught on really quickly because I was promoted to assistant manager within six months.”
Within her first five years, Yuill got her first property to manage on her own with a small mom- and-pop company. She then bounced between a few companies as she gained experience in the industry, managing bigger and bigger properties as she went. “I’ve managed apartments, single-family homes, retail storefronts, mobile home parks—a slew of different things,” she said.
Yuill, who is also a broker, found PMI several months ago while researching property management solutions. “I could have started my own company, but I wanted to have all the systems in place,” she said. “I have been doing this for a long time, but not all of the processes on the back end.”
PMI provided Yuill with all the proven systems and technology that made branching out on her own smooth and easy. “With PMI, it was all there—I just had to get everything set up,” she said. “If you build a strong foundation, you can build anything on top of it. I was worried that if I was doing this all on my own, what if I missed a piece and didn’t realize it until down the road when things started to crumble?”
Now a few months into the process, Yuill is glad she went with PMI. “There have been several instances where I go, ‘I would not have set that up—and it would have been a problem!’” she said.
Her conversations with the leadership team, including director of franchise development Dan Berry and president Steve Hart, are really what sold her on the franchise. “After having several conversations with Dan, Steve Hart personally contacted me and I had a couple of meetings with him,” she said. “They seemed very knowledgeable about their product, enthusiastic and very supportive. All the franchisees I spoke with also talked about how great it was.
Yuill recently completed her franchisee training with PMI in Utah. As a new franchisee, Yuill is particularly excited about all the technology made available and affordable to her through PMI, including Tenant Turner, an online platform that automatically corresponds with tenants who express interest in a property.
“It asks them some qualifying questions, then sets up appointments. It saves so much time and energy,” she explained. “Before I had this set up, I got 157 email inquiries about a property in its first two days. I had to physically respond to each one. At that point, I immediately signed up for Tenant Turner. I was like, ‘Where was this months ago?’”
Long-term, Yuill’s goal is to grow by 150 to 200 doors per year. “It’s awesome because I can focus on my own vision,” she said. “I think my owners are happier since I’ve converted, and I know I am. I enjoy what I do. If anyone is thinking about partnering with PMI, I would highly recommend doing it.”
Startup costs for Property Management Inc. range from $21,250 to $106,800, with a franchise fee of $15,000 to $62,900. To learn more about franchising with Property Management Inc., visit https://propertymanagementincfranchise.com/