How Does an Apartment Building Owner Spend a Workday?

An apartment owner generally hires help to manage his apartment buildings, but if he is independent and only owns one or two buildings, he will do the work himself. He may still have a secretary to answer calls and accept rental payments, but the apartment building owner will do the bulk of the work.

Once the apartment building owner comes into the office, he will return any phone calls to renters. If a renter calls in or leaves a message regarding a broken item at the apartment, the owner will either schedule that apartment for repair or he will call a repair man if he cannot fix it himself (i.e. plumbing, air conditioning).

Once the administrative part of the job is completed, the apartment building owner will make his rounds, doing any repairs on his list. When he finishes with repairs---which can range in anything from torn linoleum to a clogged drain, he heads back to the office to check the logs for vacant apartments.

If there is a vacancy, the apartment building owner checks the apartment out prior to returning the renter's deposit. If the renter left the apartment in an acceptable manner, the apartment building owner mails a check to the renter for the deposit refund.

If the apartment is in shambles (beyond normal wear and tear) the apartment building owner keeps the deposit. He must then repair the apartment. He will repair holes in the walls, clean a dirty apartment, replace carpet, paint walls, replace doors and cabinets if needed and wash windows.

Once a vacant apartment is ready to be rented again, the apartment building owner will show the apartment to prospective tenants. When he decides on a tenant, he will sit with the tenant and complete the lease and any other paperwork he may require.

If the apartment building owner has employees, he must also prepare payroll and update employee benefits. He must also complete monthly financial documents, such as tax reports, rental reports and rental expenses.