In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I’m joined by Gail Phillips, the retiring CEO of NARPM (National Association of Residential Property Managers), after more than 20 years of leadership.

We dig into how NARPM evolved from a few hundred members to the national force it is today - from the early “mom-and-pop” days and paper rent checks to COVID-era virtual everything.

Gail shares the real story behind NARPM’s antitrust saga, how fee models and tech reshaped the industry, and what she’s learned about leadership, delegation, and culture after decades in the trenches.

We also talk about why some local chapters thrive while others struggle, what the “haters” get wrong about NARPM, and her advice for the next generation of association leaders.

If you’re a property management operator or NARPM member, this episode is a must-listen.

• (00:00:00) - Intro
• (00:03:07) - Gail’s background and career
• (00:08:17) - The early day’s of NARPM conferences and the industry as a whole
• (00:16:30) - The state of conferences in the early days
• (00:18:23) - Sponsor - PropertyManagerWebsites.com
• (00:20:00) - Late 2000’s concerns and focuses
• (00:22:02) - How NARPM has evolved
• (00:27:47) - Success and Failure amongst different NARPM chapters
• (00:29:38) - Behaviors of great NARPM leaders
• (00:31:56) - Sponsor - SecondNature.com
• (00:33:27) - The state of the industry in 2025
• (00:36:01) - Antitrust philosophies
• (00:41:15) - FTC guidance for Trade Groups
• (00:47:53) - Effective membership drives
• (00:53:41) - What the haters get right about NARPM
• (00:59:14) - Thoughts for the incoming NARPM CEO
• (01:01:05) - Gail’s future

Learn more and connect with Gail here: 

• Gail on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gailphillips/
• Organization Management Group - https://www.managegroup.com/
• NARPM - https://www.narpm.org/

Learn more & connect with me here:

• ⁠Crane⁠, the private community for property management business owners.
• ⁠My Free PM Newsletter⁠
• ⁠RL Property Management⁠

In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I’m joined by DD Lee, former owner of Skyline Property Management, now Industry Liaison at PURE and President-Elect of NARPM National.

DD shares her path from managing 12 personal rentals to running a 500-door PM company with a 3,000-door HOA division, and what it was really like to sell that business to PURE. We get into the emotional side of selling (“detach” became her mantra), how HOA management differs from single-family, and what she’s focused on now as NARPM transitions into its “2.0” era.

If you’ve ever thought about selling your management company, navigating NARPM leadership, or just trying to scale without burning out, DD’s story will hit home.

Chatpers:

• (00:00:00) - Intro
• (00:01:39) - DD’s career and background
• (00:03:59) - Challenges and differences in property management
• (00:07:40) - HOA management
• (00:10:10) - NARPM involvement and designations
• (00:12:57) - Sponsor - PropertyManagement.com
• (00:14:53) - NARPM leadership and election process
• (00:17:18) - NARPM 2.0 and organizational changes
• (00:25:32) - Comparing small business to NARPM
• (00:30:50) - Continuing education and licensing challenges
• (00:32:14) - Sponsor - Rentvine
• (00:33:35) - The emotional journey of selling a property management company
• (00:38:26) - Detachment and transitioning after the sale
• (00:42:23) - Advice for selling your property management business
• (00:45:40) - Finding purpose post-sale
• (00:48:43) - Working with Pure and future plans
• (01:00:00) - Conclusion and final thoughts

Learn more and connect with DD here: 

• PURE Property Management - ⁠https://www.purepm.co/⁠
• DD on LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/ddlee-purepm/⁠

Learn more & connect with me here:

• ⁠Crane⁠, the private community for property management business owners.
• ⁠My Free PM Newsletter⁠
• ⁠RL Property Management⁠ 

PropertyManagement.com’s “Top 100” list is coming!

Apply before 11/30/2025 to get verified, build credibility, and win your market: https://propertymanagement.com/verification

In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I sit down with Matt Speer of PropertyManagement.com (yes, greatest domain ever) to unpack their “TrueMatch” score, or what Matt calls the “Carfax of property management.”

We talk about why credibility is the new currency, how AI search like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews are changing local lead flow, and what it takes to get your company verified without paying a dime. Matt also reveals new details on their Top 100 Property Managers campaign.

Here’s what we go deep on:

🔎 How the TrueMatch scoring model works by looking at performance, trust, experience, and verification

🤖 The AI search shift and why zero-click results are pulling away the “best property manager in [city]” leads that used to land on your site

✅ How verified profiles and owner survey data can help you close faster and keep more clients

🚫 Why PropertyManagement.com refuses to be a pay-to-play lead gen marketplace and what their actual monetization looks like

🌍 If you’re in multiple markets, how the system creates city-specific scores instead of lumping you under one grade.

Want your spot on the Top 100? Apply and get verified for free before 11/30/2025: https://propertymanagement.com/verification

Programming note: This is a mid-season sponsored podcast special with PropertyManagement.com. I accepted support to take a deeper look at their platform, but the conversation, opinions, and questions are my own.

⏱️ Chapters

• 00:00 – Intro
• 01:27 – What is PropertyManagement.com?
• 02:58 – The vision behind PropertyManagement.com
• 04:16 – Building trust in property management
• 08:01 – Navigating the AI search era
• 19:26 – Matt’s journey and industry insights
• 26:49 – Verified performance data
• 32:11 – Monetization strategy and AI search
• 37:35 – Top 100 property managers list
• 40:44 – Balancing integrity and business growth
• 44:49 – Handling large property management companies
• 49:10 – Credibility platform: A new category
• 51:37 – Conclusion and call to action

Resources for Property Managers & Real Estate Entrepreneurs

• Crane – Private PM Owner Community → Join a private network of property management owners and operators: https://joincrane.co/
• Free Weekly Newsletter → Property management insights, strategies, and industry updates direct to your inbox: https://peter.beehiiv.com/subscribe
• RL Property Management → Learn more about Peter’s company and services in Columbus, Ohio: https://rlpmg.com/

In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I sit down with Amy Hanson, national NARPM President and two-time property management founder.

Amy’s career started by accident in 1993, when she picked up a real estate license just to earn a few bonuses. Fast forward: she’s bought and sold two property management companies, navigated a non-compete by starting over in Dallas, and most recently sold to Berkshire Hathaway.

We talk through what it’s like to buy a brokerage without knowing the multiples, lessons learned from running two companies, and the transition from owner to corporate VP. Amy also opens up about her role leading NARPM during its “2.0” transformation: new bylaws, governance shifts, and the upcoming CEO handoff.

If you’re scaling a PM company, planning an exit, or curious about where NARPM is headed, you’ll get a ton from Amy’s story.

• (00:00) - Intro
• (01:56) - Amy’s background and career
• (11:15) - Lessons learned in running a management company
• (14:20) - Sponsor - LeadSimple
• (15:54) - The architecture behind Amy’s business
• (21:00) - Working for a PM company that you don’t own
• (28:55) - The one-year president term for NARPM
• (32:24) - Sponsor - Appfolio’s FutuRE Conference
• (33:57) - Amy’s major initiatives during her term & NARPM 2.0

Learn more and connect with Amy here: 

• Berkshire Hathaway PM services division - ⁠https://weknowtxpm.com/

Learn more & connect with me here:

• ⁠Crane⁠, the private community for property management business owners.
• ⁠My Free PM Newsletter⁠
• ⁠RL Property Management⁠ 

In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I sit down with my mom, Susan Lohmann, who spent nearly 50 years building a career in the horse business: running farms, teaching lessons, and judging competitions.

We talk about what it takes to manage barns (and difficult customers), the surprising parallels between horse boarding and property management, and what really happens when a client stops paying board (spoiler: yes, you can evict a horse).

If you care about small business lessons, negotiation tactics, or building a career around passion, you’ll enjoy this conversation.

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:04 – Susan’s background and career
• 06:32 – Dealing with difficult customers
• 12:13 – Sponsor – The Elevate Sales Kickoff Event
• 13:34 – Susan’s experiences as a woman working in business
• 20:04 – Firing customers
• 24:18 – Unethical behavior in the industry
• 29:59 – Learning the industry
• 33:28 – Sponsor – Nutiliti
• 34:53 – How the lack of technology affected industry collaboration
• 36:59 – The power of work ethic
• 39:50 – Restarting a business 3 times over
• 44:32 – Raising children while working from home
• 50:50 – Negotiation advice
• 55:06 – Passing on the entrepreneurial spirit to your kids
• 56:46 – Building niche skillsets and knowledge
• 1:00:30 – Advice for parents with kids wanting to get involved in horse riding.

Connect with Susan

Learn more & connect with me here:

• ⁠Crane⁠⁠, the private community for property management business owners.
• ⁠⁠My Free PM Newsletter⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠RL Property Management⁠⁠ 

In this episode, I sit down with Tollie Brown, Principal at Mainsail Partners and board member at Rentvine.

We talk about why Mainsail, a $4B growth equity firm, invested $74M into Rentvine, and what that means for property managers. Tollie breaks down the differences between venture capital, private equity, and growth equity, and why those distinctions matter when choosing software.

We also cover what makes PropTech appealing to investors, why trust matters as much as features, and how AI, integrations, and consolidation are shaping the future of property management software.

• (00:00:00) - Intro
• (00:01:32) - Tollie’s background and career
• (00:02:36) - Mainsail’s investment in Rentvine
• (00:07:03) - The importance of a technical co-founder when investing in SaaS companies
• (00:08:38) - Mainsail & growth equity firms
• (00:11:51) - What customers can expect from companies that take growth equity
• (00:14:38) - What makes PM interesting to growth equity firms
• (00:16:12) - Sponsor - RentEngine
• (00:18:09) - Why Rentvine was so interesting to Mainsail
• (00:23:25) - Risks and downsides for the PM industry
• (00:25:48) - What causes PMs to switch software providers?
• (00:32:32) - Founder reception to growth equity
• (00:35:01) - Sponsor - Crane
• (00:36:25) - Predictions for the industry
• (00:39:50) - The pressure on vendors to do more and charge less with technology
• (00:43:41) - Integration vs. consolidation
• (00:46:44) - The future of Mainsail
• (00:49:04) - Advice for folks getting into the equity side of business
• (00:51:27) - Get in touch

Learn more and connect with Tollie here: 

• ⁠Mainsail Partners⁠
• ⁠Tollie on LinkedIn⁠

Learn more & connect with me here:

• Crane⁠, the private community for property management business owners.
• ⁠My Free PM Newsletter⁠
• ⁠RL Property Management⁠ 
  

In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I sit down with Valeria (“Val”) Urcuyo - VP of Operations at Appliance Repair Professionals, a nationwide appliance repair company serving property managers in 40+ states.

Based in Nicaragua, Val runs the business remotely, coordinating hundreds of subcontractors and thousands of repair jobs each month. We talk about how she makes this model work without a U.S. office, the shortage of appliance techs, and why some vendors inflate diagnostic fees. Val also shares how her team vets technicians, the repair-vs-replace math, and her candid take on appliance obsolescence.

On leadership, Val explains how she earned the trust of the company’s owners, lessons from her mom’s Taco Bell career, and the hard calls that come with scaling a business nationwide.

If you’re in property management and juggling vendor relationships, repair costs, or company culture, Val’s story is packed with takeaways.

Episode Chapters

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:03 – Val’s background and company overview
• 04:22 – Running a U.S. company from Nicaragua
• 09:20 – Challenges and strategies in appliance repair
• 16:46 – Sponsor: Utility Profit
• 18:21 – Expanding services and industry insights
• 22:01 – Pricing models and property management
• 35:41 – Factors influencing repair decisions
• 36:40 – Customer communication and empowerment
• 39:01 – Sponsor: Crane
• 40:29 – Planned obsolescence in appliances
• 43:38 – Val’s journey and leadership insights
• 52:38 – Scaling challenges and lessons
• 1:03:46 – Team building and company culture
• 1:06:24 – Conclusion and contact info

Learn more and connect with Valeria here: 

• Valeria on LinkedIn
• The Appliance Repair Professionals

Learn more & connect with me here:

• ⁠⁠Crane⁠⁠, the private community for property management business owners.
• ⁠My Free PM Newsletter⁠⁠
• RL Property Management⁠⁠ 
  

In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I’m joined by Joni Wolfswinkel - owner of two Real Property Management franchises (2,300+ doors) and founder of True Work Logistics, a global talent placement agency.

Episode Chapters:

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:22 – Joni’s background & career in property management
• 07:30 – Launching a global talent placement agency
• 13:26 – Overcoming business plateaus
• 15:10 – Property management goals
• 16:02 – Sponsor: Crane
• 17:27 – Acquisition strategies in PM
• 18:26 – On the PM conference circuit
• 19:36 – Industry observations over the past year
• 23:38 – Owning & running a plumbing company
• 27:00 – Personal vision & goals beyond business
• 28:47 – The reality of working with your spouse
• 31:30 – Sponsor: AppFolio
• 33:10 – Content creation & branding
• 40:36 – Where Joni’s focus is today
• 47:38 – Teaching kids about wealth

Joni walks us through her journey from knocking on pre-foreclosure doors to scaling multiple businesses. We dig into the plateaus every PM entrepreneur hits, what it takes to break through 500–1,000 doors, and why acquisitions often beat organic growth. She also shares lessons from running a plumbing company (spoiler: never again), the reality of working with your spouse, and how she’s shifted focus toward family, vision, and building generational wealth.

If you’re a property management operator or entrepreneur thinking about scaling, hiring globally, or balancing work with family, you’ll find Joni’s story both practical and inspiring.

Learn more & connect with me here:

• ⁠Crane⁠, the private community for property management business owners.
• ⁠My Free PM Newsletter⁠
• ⁠RL Property Management⁠ 

Learn more and connect with Joni here: 

• Website: True Work Logistics - True Work Logistics
• Joni’s Podcast: Inside the Wolf's Den Podcast | Episodes
• Facebook- Joni M Wolfswinkel
• Instagram: Jonimwolf
• Linkedin: Joni Wolfswinkel
  

In this episode of Peter Lohmann’s Podcast, I’m joined by Ginny Wood, former COO at LeadSimple and an experienced fractional COO who has guided multiple high-growth businesses through transformation and scaling.

Ginny shares her career journey from early days as a programmer to becoming a trusted operational leader in PropTech and beyond. We explore how she approaches stepping into companies mid-stream, the importance of building a culture of speed, and what leaders should know about property manager blind spots. Ginny also opens up about taking a mid-career sabbatical, turning off the inner critic, and how EOS continues to shape business leadership today.

If you’re a property management entrepreneur, real estate operator, or business owner looking to find the right #2 or explore fractional COO options, this conversation delivers practical insights and inspiration.

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:17 – Ginny’s background and career
• 11:39 – Where to start as a fractional COO
• 16:36 – Sponsor: Julian Calvo (watch this)
• 18:05 – Inspiring a culture of speed
• 26:54 – Taking a mid-career sabbatical
• 32:43 – Knowing when it’s time to move on
• 36:51 – Sponsor: Crane
• 38:15 – Property manager blind spots
• 44:01 – Feedback and hard conversations
• 52:33 – Turning off your inner critic
• 57:33 – EOS
• 1:00:58 – How to find a great #2
• 1:05:11 – Fractional COO options for property management companies

Contact Ginny:

• Ginny on LinkedIn
• Hoffman Institute
• The Rise of the COO – Harvard Business Review

Contact Peter:

• Crane – Private PM Owner Community
• Free PM Newsletter
• RL Property Management

Deb Newell has worked with some of the largest property management operators in the U.S., helping them streamline operations, scale sustainably, and prepare for mergers, acquisitions, and exits. With over two decades of experience, Deb shares how she helps real estate businesses focus on people, process, and technology to achieve growth and long-term success.

In this conversation with Peter Lohmann, Deb opens up about her career journey, the why behind business ownership, and how companies can get ready to sell (or scale) without making common structural mistakes. She also shares wild stories from the consulting world and dives into how mindset and leadership shape a business’s trajectory.

👉 If you’re a property management entrepreneur, real estate investor, or business owner planning for growth or sale, this episode delivers actionable insights from one of the industry’s top consultants.

joincrane.co | Free PM Newsletter | RL Property Management
🔗 Connect with Deb Newell

LinkedIn | Real-Time Consulting Services