Property Management Careers Overview
A property manager takes care of the maintenance and management of a residential or commercial real estate property. The day-to-day tasks will differ depending on whether it’s residential or commercial property management but overall they are substantially similar.
Residential Property Managers take care of much of the everyday business regarding tenants. They extend, collect and process applications. They may also set and collect rents for a property.
What Does a Property Manager Do?
On the operations side, property managers are responsible for the general maintenance and emergency issues of the property and its grounds. This requires that they manage the operating budget and maintenance schedule of the property. These budgets and schedules often change by the season or year.
Another thing property managers do is find, negotiate with, and manage third party vendors. They oversee maintenance tasks and renovations to the property on a small and large scale.
Because of the level of involvement, residential property managers often have varying schedules and are often on-call much of the time.
What Makes a Good Property Manager?
Property managers have a basic understanding of construction and floorplans. They also have strong communication skills. Because of these, they are able to effectively work with construction professionals to ensure renovations and repair are done properly. They make long term decisions about the maintenance and care of a property.
How Is Residential Property Management Different From Commercial?
Commercial Property Management tends to be characterized by consistency in task and schedule. A large focus of this work is daily preventative maintenance on larger commercial properties. This consists of minor and major renovations and regularly scheduled maintenance.
Commercial renovations are significantly more complex than residential ones due to larger legal and engineering challenges. Commercial Property Managers need to have some level of architectural knowledge to successfully do their jobs. Because of this, Commercial Property Managers are considered more advanced than Residential Property Managers.
Interested in this career path? The next step is to get a Property Management certificate.
Property Management Courses
Property Management Certificate Course
No experience necessary
22.5 Hours
Learn the practical side of managing residential and commercial property: tenant relations and leasing, rent collection, maintenance, budgets and vendors, and New York landlord-tenant law. Licensed agents also earn 22.5 hours of elective CE.
Course is available online self-study only.
Residential Facility Manager (RFM)
No experience necessary
90 Hours
Train to run apartment buildings day to day across three 30-hour modules: Basic Building Systems, Facilities Management and Property Management. Plus and Elite packages include the Certified Leasing Professional (CLP) credential.
Course is available via Zoom only.
El H.
This recommendation is for Garry, one of the Property and Casualty Insurance Broker Pre-Licensing course instructors. He kept class interesting and fun and almost my whole class passed the exam the first time. He really seemed to care about his students and their comprehension of the material as opposed to just drilling the correct answers into us.
Jillian R.
At the time of writing this, I am about 75% done with my classes at REEDC and I am having such a great time that I felt compelled to write a review.
The instructor is very knowledgeable, funny and engaging. When you are there, you genuinely follow the material because it is taught so well.
Todd M.
I have just finished my course and exam here. I cannot say enough about this wonderful place! There is a great concern and devotion on the part of everyone there that your experience is positive and you are happy with your learning. Most impressive was the incredible effort put towards job placement, recruiting, and real world networking.
Jessie B.
The Property Casualty Insurance course was taught by Garry Smalley, a great instructor who engaged the class and made the whole experience worthwhile. Believe it or not, I remember laughing a few times in the class from some of the stories. I just got my license today! Passed on my first try, the course was more then enough if you are willing to study 1-2 hours a few nights a week
Paul L.
Just finished two weeks of classes, and I couldn’t be more pleased. The teacher, Greg is very impressive, having been in the field, and is a wealth of knowledge. He always has time to answer my many questions. I live in Brooklyn, and work in Manhattan, and if I don’t feel like coming into NY on weekends, I can go to their Brooklyn office, which works out well for me.
Susan M.
Which Course Is Right For You?
| Compare | PM Certificate22.5-hour course | Residential Facility Manager90-hour program |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 22.5 hours | 90 hours3 modules of 30 hours |
| Format | Online, self-paced | Live on Zoom |
| Price | $425 | $2,200 – $2,499 |
| Real estate CE credit | ✓22.5 elective hours | — |
| Extra credential | — | ✓Certified Leasing ProfessionalPlus & Elite packages |
| Best for | Agents adding a specialty, landlords, career-changers | Future building managers, supers moving into management |
Do You Need A License?
New York doesn't have a separate property manager license. But if you're paid to rent, lease or collect rent on someone else's property, the law treats that as real estate brokerage (Real Property Law §440).
Certificates teach the skills. A license is what lets you get paid to manage for others.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a license to be a property manager in New York?
There’s no standalone property manager license. But managing property for other owners for a fee (renting units, negotiating leases, collecting rent) requires a real estate salesperson license (working under a broker) or a broker license. Managing your own property, or working as a salaried employee of a single owner, generally doesn’t.
Which property management course should I take?
Choose the 22.5-hour Property Management Certificate if you want a flexible online introduction, or you’re a licensed agent who also wants elective CE credit. Choose the 90-hour Residential Facility Manager program if you plan to run apartment buildings day to day.
What's the difference between a Residential Facility Manager and a property manager?
A Residential Facility Manager focuses on running residential buildings: building systems, maintenance, vendors, tenants and compliance. “Property manager” is a broader term that also covers leasing, rent collection and the financial side, for anything from single rentals to large portfolios.
Do the courses count toward real estate continuing education?
The Property Management Certificate is approved for 22.5 hours of elective CE. It doesn’t cover the mandated renewal topics (fair housing, implicit bias, cultural competency and others), so you’ll still need those separately.
Is financial help available?
REEDC is an ACCESS-VR approved vendor, so eligible students may be able to use New York State vocational rehabilitation funding toward the RFM program. Contact us to check whether you qualify.