Hi I manage all my properties myself. I used to have managers but when I moved back to Sydney I took it over – 5-7 houses and flats. Some of my properties I also bought and they came to me with great tenants and I never needed any management.

I actually dont manage much.
All my outgoings I automatically put into my online banking's "sceduled payments", like strata, council, water and insurance
Rent comes in.
every 6 months I check to see the payments haven;t been missed. Never had a problem.

I send tenants gifts at the end of the year. I tell them it's their place and they can call me any time with any worries. About once a year each property will need a toilet repair, or will ask for $500 to paint or something – no worries.

We both enjoy a relationship of trust and respect and it's important to me to be ethical and fair, which I don't believe real estate agents or property managers are very good at. So for me it's cheaper – but more importantly for me, it's more ethical.