Why Proactive Rental Property Maintenance Can Save You Money and Headaches
Posted on: 28 June 2021
Generally speaking, there are two types of property managers when it comes to maintenance issues: proactive and reactive. A proactive property manager realizes that routine maintenance and fixing minor problems can be less expensive in the long term, whereas reactive managers wait until something breaks down before calling the repairman. The reactive approach can let minor issues grow into major problems and even damage your relationship with your tenants. Here's why being a proactive property manager is the smart choice.
Why You Need a Proactive Property Management Team
As a rental property owner, you need to provide a home that's safe and livable for your tenants. You need a property manager or management team that plans for the expected and unexpected maintenance tasks that come with a rental property. With proactive maintenance, tenants will be happier and less likely to leave. Tenants are valuable assets and turnover is very expensive for an owner.
In addition, by having a proactive property management team that keeps up with routine maintenance of systems such as roof and heating systems, you'll have fewer unexpected repairs. Unfortunately, some unexpected repairs are inevitable, but a proactive manager will likely have a list of pre-contracted, proven repair contractors so that work will be done satisfactorily, quickly, and for a pre-negotiated price
Routine Maintenance
Regular maintenance tasks are often overlooked or postponed because of money or timing issues. However, those neglected routine maintenance tasks will often come back to haunt you. To avoid problems, a good property manager will
- Conduct property inspections at least once a year, as well as when tenants move out, to check for signs of problems before they become major.
- Take care of tasks such as painting, weatherproofing, gutter cleaning, and changing furnace filters, which will protect your investment property from potential damage.
Property Improvements
When tenants move out from your rental property, it's a good time to consider property improvements that will appeal to new tenants. It's important for your property management team to understand which improvements produce a good return on investment (ROI). The following items are good investments:
- Interior and exterior paint
- New flooring
- Bathroom and kitchen updates
By using a high-quality, proactive property management team, you can reduce the threat of major or unexpected repairs. You can rest easy that the team will protect your investment through regular inspections and proactive maintenance to keep minor issues from becoming major problems that can drain your rental property profits.
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