Whale,
I own a rental and have thought about self managing but fear of getting bad tenants is the greatest reason I stay with a Rental Agent. As you would know a bad tenant can ruin a property. With the technology for contacting tenants and collecting rent I would say the ‘day to day’ management of a rental property is not difficult.
I realise that I can easily advertise in the local paper and ask prospective tenants for references, but, I am not confident about my ability to vet and select tenants. As you point out Rental Agents have access to a ‘banned tenants register’, how do you go selecting and vetting prospective tenants?