How to choose a property manager in Wellington.

Here's the uncomfortable truth of our industry: residential property management in New Zealand is not licensed or regulated. There is no minimum qualification, no mandatory training, no required insurance. Anyone can call themselves a property manager tomorrow. That makes your selection process the only real quality control — so make it a good one.

1. Check for voluntary accountability

Since the law doesn't demand standards, the professionals opt into them. Look for REINZ membership and accreditation, individual qualifications (NZ Certificate in Residential Property Management, Level 4), a licence under the Real Estate Agents Act 2008, and professional indemnity insurance — and ask for the cover amount. A company that has voluntarily submitted to standards nobody forced on them is telling you something.

2. Demand the full fee schedule in writing

The headline percentage is the start of the conversation, not the end. Letting fees, advertising charges, inspection fees, compliance fees, Tribunal costs — get every number in writing before you sign, then compare the true annual cost with our fees calculator. And read the Authority to Act before signing: check the fee-review clause and the notice period especially.

3. Ask where your money sleeps

Your rent should sit in an audited trust account, separate from the company's own funds, paid out to you on a stated schedule with an itemised monthly statement. Ask directly: "Is your trust account independently audited, and by whom?" Hesitation is an answer.

4. Test the technology claim

Everyone says "we use the latest technology." Ask to see it: Can you log in and see your property's rent, maintenance and inspections in real time — or do you get a PDF once a month? Can tenants log maintenance with photos from their phone? Live visibility isn't a luxury; it's the difference between managing your investment and hoping about it.

5. Interrogate the letting process

Ask three numbers: average days from listing to signed tenancy, how many channels they advertise on, and what their tenant screening actually includes (identity, credit, references, income verification — all four, or fewer?). Then ask who makes the final tenant decision. The correct answer is: you do.

6. Ask what happens when things go wrong

Arrears process, step by step. Tribunal representation — included or extra? After-hours emergencies — who answers? A manager's quality shows at 9pm on a Friday with water coming through a ceiling, not at the sales meeting.

7. Read reviews for patterns, not scores

Ignore the star average; read the one-star reviews and look for repeats. One angry review is noise. The same complaint five times — usually communication — is the company's actual operating culture.

The short version

Qualifications they didn't have to get. Fees with nothing left in the shadows. An audited trust account. Technology you can log into. A letting process with numbers attached. And a straight answer to every one of these questions. That's the checklist — and we're happy to be measured against every line of it. Start with a free appraisal, or if you're with someone else and the checklist isn't going well, switching is easier than you think.