October 12, 2026

TND Listings

What Should a Property Manager in Mumbai Actually Do? Nine Duties, Shown Through Our Live Cases

What a Mumbai property manager or agent should actually do, shown through TND's live cases: tenants, TDS, repairs, renewals, possession and NRI sales.

Managed apartment in Mumbai looked after by TND Listings

Every agent in Mumbai promises to "take care of everything". Very few show you what that means on a Tuesday afternoon when a geyser fails, a tenant stops paying, or a TDS certificate does not match the rent.

So instead of another list of promises, this post sets out the nine things a property manager or agent should actually do for an owner, and shows each one with a real case from our files. Every example below comes from the NRI Owners' Wall, where we publish cases as we close them, with names, societies and flat numbers removed.

1. Place the right tenant, not just any tenant

A good manager matches the flat to the tenant who will pay on time and stay. That often means a company lease, with the paperwork set up for an NRI owner from day one.

Live case, Lower Parel: NRI owners in the Gulf needed a tenant for a new tower flat. We placed a company tenant, set up the agreement with quarterly TDS for NRI owners, and follow up on rent and TDS certificates every quarter.

2. Keep the flat occupied between tenants

Vacancy is the biggest cost in residential rental. The test of a manager is what happens the day a tenant gives notice.

Powai: a tenant gave notice for mid-October. We booked the next tenant three weeks before move-out, aiming for zero empty days.
Kandivali East: an outgoing tenant blocked viewings and held back keys. Weekend open houses and an early booking meant the flat stood empty for just four days.

3. Handle renewals and registration before they lapse

An expired, unregistered agreement weakens the owner's position overnight. A manager should be tracking dates, not waiting for the tenant to raise it.

Live case, Parel: we flagged the expiry six weeks ahead, drafted a two-year renewal with an agreed yearly increase and an NRI TDS clause, registered it and filed police intimation. The tenant stayed.

4. Get the money and TDS right, line by line

For NRI owners, tenants deduct TDS at 31.2%, and mistakes here cost owners their tax credit. A manager should reconcile, not just collect.

BKC: the tenant's payment list and the owners' accountant disagreed. We reconciled two financial years against bank records and sent one balance both sides could check.
Parel: the tenant's TDS had been filed incorrectly, so the owners' credit did not match. The tenant's side filed a corrected return.
Parel: a society showed dues the owners were sure they had paid. The ledger showed a one-time share money and entrance fee, which was settled and receipted.

See TDS on rent paid to an NRI landlord and the NRI TDS on rent calculator.

Anyone can promise to take care of everything. A good manager shows you the case file.

5. Fix repairs fast, and explain every rupee

Repairs are where trust is won or lost. The owner should see what was done, by whom and at what price.

Malad West: an owner questioned a repair bill. We sent a line-by-line breakdown of the geyser, lock and service charges, and the work went ahead.
Kandivali East: a new tenant moved in to missing keys, a broken geyser, a sink leak and loose kitchen trolleys. One work order fixed it all, and the tenant stayed on.
Kanjurmarg East: recurring seepage, geyser and AC faults across two flats for an owner in Australia. Every ticket closed, with a written trail to the developer.
Andheri East: a monsoon leak with the owners out of town. The society complaint was signed remotely, and the developer's repair was done in about six weeks.

6. Act for you when you cannot be there

For an NRI owner, the manager is the person on the ground. That includes taking possession of a new flat.

Thane West: we took possession of a new 2BHK under a power of attorney in June and had it rented by the end of September.
Kandivali East: for a Gulf-based owner, we got the developer to fix snag-list defects, ran carpentry and electrical work, and booked a tenant about 12 weeks after key handover.

Our possession checklist for NRIs explains the process, and TND Care handles it.

7. Resolve disputes without a courtroom

Live case, Borivali East: a tenant fell behind on rent while the owner was abroad. Notice was served under the rent clause, an exit date agreed in writing and unpaid rent adjusted from the deposit by consent. The next tenant moved in about two weeks after handover, with no court case.

8. Sell without wasting the owner's time

Worli: a London-based owner sold two flats and had to sign in person. Every document was ready before he landed, and both sales were signed the same day.
Kanjurmarg East: a Singapore-based owner's elderly father held the power of attorney for two flats. Everything was prepared in advance, and the signing took about three hours.
Kandivali East: a tenanted flat was sold while the corporate tenant moved the same day into another flat we manage.
Kandivali East: a resale nearly stalled when the buyer's bank found an old, cancelled agreement. We assembled the cancellation papers and kept everyone on one timeline.

Beyond homes, we recently closed the lease of an entire building of over 1,00,000 sq ft for a long-standing pharma client. More on selling in selling Mumbai property as an NRI.

9. Give you a record, not just updates

A manager's work should be visible without a phone call. What we shipped in October:

Property visits on record (1 Oct): every site visit is logged against the property, with who came, whether through an agent, the purpose and any offer.
Inspections in one flow (4 Oct): inspections are set up, submitted from the app, synced and reviewed.
Sharper listings (4 Oct): marketing price, purpose, full details and broker-ready exports.
Coming next: a Single View button in the app this month, and a desktop dashboard with reports and per-property books in development.

TND app showing an NRI owner's Mumbai property dashboard — Track rent, inspections, visits and documents in the TND app.

A checklist for judging any agent

Ask your agent	What a good answer looks like
When did you last flag a renewal?	Weeks before expiry, in writing
How many days was my flat empty last time?	Days, not months
Does my TDS credit match my rent?	A reconciled statement
Can I see the repair bill line by line?	Yes, before the work goes ahead
Who visited my flat this month?	A visit log, not a guess

Frequently asked questions

What does a property manager do for an NRI owner in Mumbai?

Places and screens tenants, registers agreements, collects rent and checks TDS, handles repairs through vendors, takes possession or signs on the owner's behalf, resolves disputes and reports everything in writing.

How do I know if my agent is doing a good job?

Look at vacancy days, renewal timing, whether TDS credit matches rent received, and whether repair bills come itemised. A good agent can show records, not just updates.

Can a property manager handle a rent default without going to court?

Often, yes. In one of our cases, notice under the rent clause, a written exit date and a deposit adjustment by consent ended the default, and a new tenant moved in about two weeks later.

Where can I see TND's real cases?

On the NRI Owners' Wall, where we add anonymised cases as we close them and owners can post their own questions.