If you are looking through the classified ads for a job, and you come across an ad for a "commercial property management" position, you may wonder what that is. Managing a property is very different from managing a group of people, but you may still be considered for the position if you have management experience. If you want to know more about the job duties and responsibilities associated with this type of job and a career in apartment complex management, the following information should help you decide if this kind of work is right for you.

Showing and Renting Apartments

A big part of this job requires that you have some real estate experience too, since you have to show potential tenants the apartments currently available in your complex. You have to be able to sell the apartments and their features to everyone who comes to look and then you have to draw up the paperwork for new tenants to sign. You also have to handle money in the form of first and last months' rent (usually), as well as any applicable security deposits.

Handling Rent Money and Security Deposits

There may be one or two other people working in the rental office of the apartment complex, but only if you are expected to manage numerous complexes on the same stretch of property. If your employer (usually the person or persons who own the properties whereon the complexes are built as well as the complexes themselves) hires you to to be the sole property manager, you will be the one handling the collection of rent money, security deposits, late fees and any applicable pet deposits (pet deposits are security deposits or extra rent money charged to tenants who want to keep a pet). You will also have to know how to create spreadsheets, enter income and withdrawals, and take money to the bank for your employer.

Cleaning and Maintaining the Properties and Apartment Complexes

Along with the office duties, you may be asked to mow the lawn, trim the hedges, remove snow and ice, pick up litter, schedule dumpster pick-ups, and even complete move-out cleanings of empty apartments. Sometimes property owners hire landscapers to manage the weekly outdoor tasks, but you may still be required to perform some or all of the indoor cleaning and maintenance as part of your job responsibilities. Be sure to ask your employer several questions about what is expected for the physical labor aspects of the job because if you have physical limitations, the job may not be right for you (even if you are fully capable of handling all of the office and rental duties). Contact a management firm, like Bradley Scott, Inc., for more information.