Landlords and maintenance.
What Every Landlord Needs To Know About Maintenance
Being a landlord is more than just collecting rent checks at the end of every month. It’s a difficult job that requires certain skills, experience, and knowledge to succeed.
For starters, as a landlord, you need to know how to find and screen tenants, repair and maintain the property, collect rent, deal with a myriad of tenant issues, and even carry out an eviction when it becomes the only solution left.
That said, maintenance is arguably the most stressful and dreadful of them all. An appliance, for instance, at any point in time, could break requiring your immediate action. What’s even worse, you need to be always prepared, as maintenance issues can happen at any time whether at 2 pm or 2 am.
As a landlord, it goes without saying that how well you are able to manage maintenance issues can make or break your rental investment, warns House Match Property Management.
Fortunately, there are ways on how you can better equip yourself to manage tenant maintenance issues. And that’s what this blog is all about.
Importance of Regular Property Maintenance
Failure to maintain your rental property regularly can, and often will affect your bottom line in four major ways.
One, it can lead to the loss of tenants. High-quality tenants expect high-quality living. This type of tenant wants the best value for their hard-earned dollars and will, therefore, look for the most well-presented home.
In addition, they will expect the landlord to fix any issues promptly once they move in. If you fail to do so by ignoring multiple maintenance requests from them, then they will leave at the very first opportunity they get.
Two, failure to maintain your rental may also lead to loss of property value. This is rather obvious. Being an investment property, you will need to sell it at some point in time. When that time comes, building inspectors will identify your poor maintenance record and write a report accordingly.
Three, your tenant may be able to use the “repair and deduct”tactic. In many states, tenants can use this tactic to force a landlord to make necessary repairs by carrying out the repairs themselves and then deducting the appropriate costs from the rent.
And lastly, failure to maintain your property can also lead to lease terminations. Most states will also enable tenants to break a lease early (without incurring any repercussions) should the landlord fail to fix a serious maintenance issue.
Clearly, regular property maintenance provides plenty of benefits.
What are you specifically responsible for?
Although every property is different, there are certain things that fall under your maintenance spectrum. They include:
• Structural integrity system
• Proper functioning of included appliances
• Hot and cold water
• Heat and electric
• Pest removal
• Visible mold
• Any issue that impacts a tenant’s safety or health
It’s also worthwhile noting that some states may have additional laws.
How can landlords ensure their property is properly maintained?
It is inevitable that certain things will go wrong with your property and require you to coordinate the repairs with a licensed Handyman or contractor. Preventative maintenance, however, will help keep those issues to a minimum and limit the severity of the repairs.
Unfortunately, many landlords only wait until a problem surfaces and overlook the importance of taking preventative steps.
To properly maintain your property, you need to start from the first day they set foot in your property. Ensure your property is rent-ready from the word go. This serves as an incentive for your tenants to continue caring for the property.
Next, you will need to document the condition of the propertythrough a move-in checklist. This will help you prevent any issues when the time comes to return the tenant’s security deposit, as it will be your word against theirs.
Another way to limit maintenance issues is to perform regularinspections of the property. That is, when a tenant is first moving in, when seasons change, when driving by, and when they eventually move out.
Doing this will help you address issues early before they turn into major, potentially costly issues.
Landlord or Tenant – Who pays for Maintenance Issues?
There are two types of damage: excessive and normal wear and tear. Excessive property damage is one that occurs as a result of a tenant’s carelessness or negligence. Normal wear and tear, on the other hand, results from the normal decline in the condition of a property.
The following are some examples:
Excessive Property Damage (Your Tenant’s Responsibility to Fix)
Normal Wear & Tear (Your Responsibility to Fix)
Broken refrigerator shelf or dented front panels
Worn gaskets on refrigerator doors
Dryer that won’t turn at all because it’s been overloaded
Broken clothes dryer because the thermostat has given out
Mirrors caked with lipstick and makeup
Bathroom mirror beginning to “de-silver” (black spots)
Missing or broken blinds or curtains
Moderately dirty blinds or curtains
Understanding your responsibilities and taking proactive approaches will help ensure your property is always in tiptop condition.