While many rental property owners have a reactive approach to property management, it’s crucial to recognize that this isn’t the ideal way to do things. To succeed as a real estate investor, you need to adopt a proactive mindset and identify issues before they can escalate. This will allow you to maintain the value of your investment, provide a positive experience to your tenants, and reduce the risk of costly repairs.
Why are proactive maintenance and repairs essential to rental properties?
Running a rental means having to stay on top of maintenance and repairs, for these specific reasons:
Reduce tenant turnover
The smallest issues with your rental property can cause frustration with your clients. This will mainly be due to two things: one, they expect you or your property management company to maintain the property; and two, don’t forget that, in most cases, they’re not allowed to do repairs themselves. In other words, they’re counting on you or your team to carry out the repairs.
By promptly responding to issues with the rental property, you can reduce inconvenience to your tenants and ensure their satisfaction. Furthermore, it shows them that you understand their needs and that you’re truly committed to their well-being. When the property is well-maintained, and when tenants feel safe, they’ll be less likely to move elsewhere.
Preserve your property’s value
As a real estate investor, you may be aware of how crucial it is to maintain—or even better, increase—your property’s value. Not only will this allow you to raise your rent over time, but it also ensures that you can sell your property at a competitive price in the future. The only way to do this is by carrying out preventive maintenance, repairs, and potential improvements if your budget permits. Through these strategies, you can secure your property’s long-term potential.
Prevent costly problems
It goes without saying, but when you constantly check your property, you can make sure that costly problems won’t come your way. Catching issues early on and actually dealing with them allows you to steer clear of costs, and gives you greater control of your investment. For example, if you were to repair your rental’s HVAC regularly, you or your tenants won’t have to worry about breakdowns during inconvenient times. Nipping problems in the bud is the best way to prevent bigger problems down the road.
Saves you money in the long run
Proactive maintenance isn’t free, but it certainly costs less than paying for extensive—not to mention, expensive—repairs that could’ve been avoided in the first place. Savvy investors put some money into maintenance—typically with the help of a property management firm—so they don’t have to spend a lot, allowing them to use their resources more wisely.
How can you practice proactive maintenance and repairs?
Here are a few ways to ensure that your property is properly maintained, allowing you to maintain its value:
Educate tenants about their responsibilities
The bulk of maintenance and repairs may be your responsibility, but there are some tasks that your tenants can take care of. This means that maintenance is shared between the two of you, even if you’ll be handling most of the work. After all, since you don’t reside there, it would be impossible for you to do certain tasks.
For example, tenants are often the ones who have to clean the bathroom as they have access to it. If they didn’t do this, their bathroom would be at risk of developing mold on the walls.
When tenants move in, it’s important to run them through the things you expect them to do. That way, you can ensure that you’re on the same page. You should also provide them with your or your property management company’s contact details for tasks that aren’t on their list of to-dos.
Maintain a maintenance checklist
It’s easy to overlook certain maintenance tasks, especially if you run more than one rental property. This makes it essential to create a maintenance checklist for your primary residence, which covers various tasks like checking the wall paint, replacing the filters on the HVAC, and more. A checklist can be a powerful tool, allowing you to track your work while providing you with the assurance that no critical tasks are missed.
Encourage communication with tenants
Your tenants are your eyes and ears, proving you with valuable information about your property that you otherwise wouldn’t be available to you. For example, if the basement is showing signs of water damage, there would be no way for you to know this unless your tenants bring it to your attention.
With that said, it’s crucial to remind your tenants that they can contact you at any time and that they should report seemingly minor issues. Show them that you want to create a collaborative culture where they feel comfortable informing you about their concerns. Provide them with your Florida property management firm’s contact information so they can notify you the moment they spot a potential issue.
Respond to maintenance and repairs promptly
Response time plays a crucial role in maintaining your property’s condition and value.
Let’s say your tenant informed you on Friday that there’s a leak in the sink. However, you waited until Sunday to deal with it. Unfortunately, by the time you visited the property to carry out repairs, it was too late—the water had already damaged the floors. What could’ve been an inexpensive fix has now become a costly repair.
The lesson here is clear: as soon as you become aware of a problem on your property, take immediate action. That way, you can avoid complications, maintain a safe environment for your tenants, and keep your repair costs to a minimum.
Conduct routine inspections
It’s necessary to conduct inspections as they provide you with the opportunity to check your property’s condition. Collaborate with your tenants, asking them when the most convenient time would be, and be sure to respect their privacy when you visit the property. Ideally, you should check your property every season as this is the least disruptive to your tenants’ daily routines.
Come prepared with a checklist to make sure you don’t overlook any detail. You should also consider having the tenant accompany you during the inspection, as they can help identify any property issues.
Hire professional property management to help with maintenance and repairs
As you can see, being proactive about maintenance and repairs is crucial to your rental property’s success. However, there is one issue: it tends to be a time-consuming task. If you lead a busy life, you may not be able to carry out your responsibilities yourself.
That’s where a property management company comes in. At Luxury Property Care, we have years’ worth of expertise when it comes to caring for rental properties. Through our wide range of services, you can free yourself from your typical to-dos, allowing you to focus on things that matter to you. Our goal is to maintain your home’s condition—in that way, we can guarantee long-term profits, and ensure that your property’s value rises for years to come.
For more information, call (561) 944 – 2992 or complete our contact form today.
