Peter Lohmann's Newsletter - Issue #77

How My Property Management Company Did In 2023

It was a year full up wins and losses for RL Property Management, my residential PM company located in Columbus Ohio.

We started the year with 737 units under management, riding high.

As previously discussed in this newsletter, January was disastrous with several large clients leaving, totaling over 120 units — setting our door count back into the 500s, which was extremely disheartening.

Despite our efforts to turn things around, we still ended the year down on units, sitting at 636 on December 31st.

It wasn’t all bad news though - our client churn for 2023 was half that of 2022, revenue was up despite being down on units, and our net margin improved as well. Interestingly, we actually increased our client count from 233 to 260.

Above is a chart of our unit count across the entire history of the company (founded in 2013). The highlighted portion is 2023. You can see the steep drop right at the beginning of the year. PAINFUL.

But I love looking at this chart because it helps put everything in perspective. We have suffered large losses in the past, licked our wounds, and kept on going. In another couple years that turmoil will be a distant memory. If you’re struggling with growth or churn…. keep going.

(If you’re looking for a more detailed breakdown of what happened with our churn and what we did to fix it, watch this video.)

Crane Applications are Closed

Thanks to all who applied for the new private PM community, Crane! We had over 50 applications and are sorting through them now. You should hear from us shortly regarding your application status if you haven’t already. Please reach out to me if you have any questions.

Missed your chance? Join the waitlist to be the first to know when applications re-open later this year. Reply to this email with “add me” and I will put you on the list.

This week’s issue is sponsored by:

APM Help wants to remind you that the deadline for filing 1099s is just around the corner on January 31 (only 12 days left)!

If you need seamless e-filing, expert paper filing, or assistance with anything property/trust accounting or audit related? Look no further – we've got you covered!

APM Help powers the best local property managers across America.

Find out more and contact us here.

Last Call for the 20 Largest PM Companies

Here’s a sneak peak at the top 5 so far… if you didn’t already, submit your 1,000+ door company here.

I plan to publish the final list of twenty (here and on my website) within the next few weeks.

Industry News and Events

• Here is a PM company for sale in Wisconsin (1,358 units, 1.9M stated gross revenue).

• Here is a PM company for sale in Colorado (asking 750k).

• Tickets are on sale now for NARPM’s annual broker/owner conference. This is one the best events of the year and is on Amelia Island, FL in mid-April. Suggest picking up your tickets and hotel room now because both typically sell out.

• Amanda Orsen just announced the beta launch of Galleon. “Galleon is a completely open, no barriers-to-entry way to list your home at the price you would accept to sell it. No contracts, no days-on-market, no real estate agents, and we're ready to accept your listing.”

• I’m speaking at the PM Systems Conference next week. See you there?

• LeadFlowDepot continues to do a nice job with our google adwords marketing (I tried a bunch of PPC vendors before landing on them). Check ‘em out.

Closing Thought

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That’s all for this week! Have a great weekend. -Peter

P.S. Looking to reach 4,400+ property management company owners?

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