Kill It as a Leasing Consultant: 8 Time Management Strategies for Success

For a busy leasing consultant, the key to success is time management. If you can efficiently manage your time, you can improve your interactions with residents—and increase your closing ratio as well.

Here are eight time management strategies you should employ:

1. Hold flexible office hours. Designate a set time for office hours, and encourage residents to schedule appointments to discuss their concerns. When possible, ask the residents what they’d like to go over ahead of time, so you can prepare for any complaints and respond with an action plan. Include evening hours on occasion (weekly or monthly) to reach residents who aren’t available during the traditional business day. Your residents will appreciate your efficiency and consideration of their time, and they will be less likely to come storming into your office in anger.
2. Schedule difficult tasks for your most productive time of day. For example, some people handle complex mental tasks better in the morning when they feel fresh, then schedule property inspections and other out-of-office tasks for the afternoon when physical activity is a bonus. Others may find that the opposite is true. Find the balance that works best for you.
3. Set aside a specific time each day to read emails and return phone calls. Reviewing emails and phone messages in the morning will help you schedule your day, and you can delegate any leads or maintenance requests that were received when the office was closed.
4. Communicate regularly with staff. Use these check-ins to delegate responsibility, answer questions and disseminate important property information.
5. Compile daily, weekly and monthly to-do lists. Check the list throughout the day and update it as needed.
6. Use technology. Online calendars, group texting and electronic banking all can help improve efficiency and productivity.
7. Group similar tasks together. You’ll use less mental energy switching gears this way.
8. Give yourself a break. Sometimes emergencies happen and you can’t complete—or even start—your planned list of tasks. Incorporate today’s unfinished list into tomorrow’s and move forward. Also, make sure you schedule in some down time for yourself, even if that’s a just a few minutes of close-the-door quiet in order to rest and refocus.

Set yourself up for success

The most successful leasing consultants always remember to treat residents and prospective residents like people, not merely as a potential commission. Effective time management and genuine interpersonal skills will increase both your productivity and your job satisfaction. The position is demanding, but with the right strategies in place, you can succeed. If you can learn to manage your time and your residents efficiently, you can reduce your daily stress level and enjoy an enviable closing ratio.

Share This