Peter Lohmann's Newsletter - Issue #163

Tasks at Scale

In property management, which I like to call “Tasks At Scale”, systems must be created to handle an extremely high volume of tasks.

The best way I’ve found to handle this is something called a Task Map. It’s literally a list of every single task at your company, when it needs to be done, who does, and (optional) a link to instructions on how to do it. Ours is in Notion and it looks like this:

When pondering everything that has to be done at your business, keep in mind there are three distinct types of tasks:

1. Event-driven tasks: When some triggering event occurs, do something (aka “As Needed). You can identify this category of task easily: something will appear in front of your face and stay there until you do it. For example, say a resident emails you with a question about their lease. Easy! This category can be thought of as “interrupt-driven” in computer engineering parlance. Something will interrupt your workflow and say “Hi! I’m a thing that needs to be done!”

2. Recurring tasks: Every so often, do something. For example, you may need to change your furnace filter quarterly. Or handle owner disbursements on the 10th of each month. Handle these tasks with repeating calendar events or simple task management apps that allow you to schedule recurring to-do items. You need a system to check in on them at predicable times.

3. Exception-based tasks: When an action does NOT happen, do something. This is the most insidious and overlooked category of tasks. For example, if a customer does NOT pay an invoice, you will need to escalate the request for payment at some point. Proper handling of these tasks will place you and your company well ahead of the competition. Computer programmers use the term “exception” to describe an error code for an unexpected situation, which is analogous to this problem. When I send an email that requires escalation if I don’t receive a response, I tag the email with “Requires Followup” and check on this list of emails once a week or so.

If you want your business to stop relying so heavily on you (or someone else in your company), start by creating a basic task map. Then every time someone asks you to do something (or how to do something), insist that it be added to the task map first. You’ll quickly build up a huge, valuable list that makes it easy to start delegating things (just re-assign the task to someone else in the task map, tell them, and show them how to do it).

Creating this task map was the first step in reclaiming my time freedom as a business owner. Now I take a full month away from RL Property Management every year, and come back to a bigger, better company each time.

20 Years at NARPM: What Gail Phillips Saw That Most of Us Missed

For most of us, NARPM is part of the backdrop of this industry: conferences, financial benchmarks, steady hand on policy and education... the list goes on. But few people have seen as much of its inner workings as Gail Phillips, retiring CEO after two decades at the helm.

In this week’s episode, Gail and I explore the evolution of NARPM and property management, from traditional paper rent checks and PROMAS software to the COVID-era shift to e-signatures and self-showings. She shares the inside story of the FTC antitrust consent decree (what happened, what it changed, and why that fee disclaimer still exists) and explains why some NARPM chapters thrive while others fade (spoiler: it usually comes down to succession and delegation).

We also get into how a small Mohegan Sun conference in 2020 kept the lights on, the infamous “pig in a bedroom” assistance-animal case, and why Zillow’s grip on renter eyeballs still worries me.

If you care about how our industry got here (and where it’s headed), this one’s well worth a listen.

(You can also listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify)

New Property Management Companies For Sale This Week

• Here’s a PM company for sale in Kissimmee, FL (asking $260k, 18 units)

• Here’s a HOA management company for sale in Austin, TX (asking $950k)

• Here’s a PM portfolio for sale in Minnesota (asking $800k)

• Here’s a PM company for sale in Orange County, CA (asking $1.9M)

• Here’s a PM company for sale in Fontana, CA (asking $350k)

This section is sponsored by CallRail. If you’re not tracking which ads or listings drive your calls, you’re guessing. CallRail helps property managers see exactly what’s working - and now their 24/7 AI voice assistant answers calls you’d otherwise miss, even after hours. Check them out.

Industry News & Events

• Michigan lawmakers are trying to ban credit scores from being used during the rental application process. Told you this was coming.

• Renter application fraud has gotten so bad in Atlanta that it made the front page of the WSJ. Read that article if you want to be angry this morning.

• Specialized Property Management recently sold to Rhome, bringing Rhome’s total units under management to ~45k. That would have put them at #1 on the Top 20 Largest Property Management Companies 2025 list, had they submitted for inclusion.

• RentEngine is releasing their Q3 leasing report on Wednesday. Highly recommended. Register here so you get a copy of the report (even if you miss the webinar). They also announced RentEngine AI this week at NARPM National. It looks insanely awesome, and I’ve already instructed my team at RL Property Management to turn it on ASAP.

• Buildium just released their annual 2026 Property Management Industry Report. This is always worth a glance, but I find it focuses on renter preferences and property manager opinions, which are frankly pretty boring and irrelevant to me. I’m much more interested in landlord/owner perspectives, since they are my clients. If only there were a report focused on that demographic, hmm…

Closing Thought

A few quick things before you go…

• Last week’s issue went to 20,264 readers (67.0% opened, 4.8% clicked)

• The most popular link was Second Nature’s New Resident Experience Platform (156 clicks)

• Interested in sponsoring this newsletter? Sold out. Will open Q1 soon.

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The content of this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. I may have consulting agreements with, or financial interests in, companies mentioned in this newsletter. Additionally, some of the links included in this newsletter are affiliate links, meaning I may earn a commission if you make a purchase through these links. Always perform your own due diligence before making any financial or business decisions.