“Before this? I was a stay at home mom. I was a network engineer. I taught network engineering classes. I had a training consulting business. I was even a technical writer before that. I had one child in high school and two in middle school when I started here,” says Carol Miller, owner and principal broker of Lee Property Management.
Although Miller has held many titles throughout her life, since 2008 she has continued to operate her property management company, where she began working in 2003. Lee Property Management was founded by its previous owner, Charles Lee, and operated out of his house until 2008. Miller took over the company, working from her house in Yorktown. Two years ago, Miller finally found herself in Newport News.
Miller talks about her unique team. “We are a very remote staff,” she says. “There are 13 of us and only four of us work in the office full time. Everybody else works from home.” Such a small staff only operates well because Miller has promoted a very efficient system, as well as using software that allows her employees to work from home on their own time.
Although her staff is small, the company itself has been growing over the past 15 years. “When I started with Charles, we probably managed 50 properties. When I bought the business, we managed about 80. Now we manage about 185; it has really grown a lot,” she says with pride. Miller cites this growth to the marketplace, her talented staff and changing the company software to a cloud-based program.
Specialization is important to Miller’s company, which is why the business maintains full-service property management without selling real estate. Says Miller, “We do not list or sell real estate so therefore our staff is completely focused on providing quality customer service to our property owners and their tenants.”
Managing rental property of its clients ensures a smooth-running operation. Lee Property Management is especially focused on upscale properties, including homes, townhomes and condos; however, it also handles renovations to dress up the properties.
Miller strives to continue the company’s growth with plans to implement long-time goals. “I would love to find somebody who is interested in the business to pass it on. I would like to do the same thing for someone else that Charles Lee did for me, and slowly, gradually retire. I want the business to continue,” she says,
Perhaps the most unique aspect of Lee Property Management is that all 13 of its employees are female. “I think it is unique,” says Miller, “The fact that most of my staff are part-time people lends itself to a stay-at-home mom. The employees are given the ability to work from home with immense flexibility.” Miller says this rare opportunity allows these mothers to raise their children while they learn skills from how to manage property to understanding different software programs.
Miller is a proud mom of three, with her youngest a senior at Virginia Tech. While it is sad to have all of her children out of the house, she is looking forward to new beginnings. “We have plans to downsize our house, buy a sailboat and do a lot of traveling,” Miller says with a smile.
Lee Property Management looks forward to continuing to provide its consistent quality services to the Newport News area. “You get the joy of seeing the project come to light,” Miller says. “We do things the right way.”
TO THE POINT:
Lee Property Management
Address: 11847 Canon Blvd., Ste. 4, Newport News, VA 23606
Phone: 757-303-0323
Contact: Carol Miller, owner/principal broker
Website: www.lpmva.com
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