Having a preventive maintenance schedule for your rental property is essential for keeping tenants happy and maintaining profitability. Regular upkeep prevents minor issues from becoming costly repairs, keeps your property habitable, and maintains property value. By being proactive about maintenance rather than waiting until there’s a problem, you can minimize unexpected expenses.
Here’s how to create a maintenance plan that works.
- Hire a property manager
Working with a property manager will be the easiest solution for ongoing maintenance and is ideal if you’re short on time or own multiple rentals. A property manager will schedule and oversee all routine maintenance tasks to ensure your property stays in good shape and meets all legal requirements for habitability. They’ll handle emergency repairs and ensure all work performed complies with building codes.
If you’ve never worked with a property manager before, it’s best to hire someone with experience and delegate all your landlord duties to them. For instance, Green Residential, a Georgetown property management company in Texas, provides top-notch, full-service plans that allow investors to be hands-off when it comes to daily tasks.
Being a landlord can quickly become a full-time job, and when you try to do everything yourself, you’re more likely to overlook small needs that can snowball into bigger issues down the road.
- Create a comprehensive maintenance checklist
When you have a detailed checklist, it will serve as your roadmap for regular inspections and upkeep so you don’t have to worry about overlooking important tasks. Here’s how to create that list:
- Categorize tasks by frequency and season. Divide your maintenance tasks into daily, monthly, quarterly, and annual tasks to make it easy. If some tasks are seasonal, schedule them for the appropriate season. For example, if you need to inspect a fireplace or wood stove before winter, mark that task for early to late fall.
- Include all property areas. It’s easy to document tasks for main areas, but don’t forget about areas like your backyard, exterior buildings, your landscaping, and side yards.
- Use digital tools. Use an online tool to track task completion and schedule maintenance calls.
Having a list ensures you won’t accidentally overlook important tasks.
- Focus on seasonal maintenance
Time your maintenance tasks to be performed during the appropriate season. For instance, don’t wait for winter to start inspecting the roof for leaks because having a roof repair done in the rain or snow is challenging. Start your seasonal maintenance early by inspecting the roof for damage right after winter ends so you can make repairs if needed. This is also the best time to clean the gutters, service your HVAC system, and check for pest infestations.
When summer rolls around, start focusing on landscaping, check your exterior paint and siding, and make sure your air conditioning is working, whether you have central air or a window unit.
Fall is the best time to inspect heating systems, seal windows and doors, and clean the gutters.
During winter, make sure your pipes are well insulated, check for ice dams on the roof, and check for signs of moisture or mold getting into the building.
- Bake regular inspections into the lease
Routine inspections are crucial for maintaining your property and identifying issues early. Although it’s your legal right to inspect your property with proper notice, it helps to list regular inspections in your lease agreements. This way, tenants know ahead of time that they can expect you to perform maintenance every so often.
As a general rule, it’s best to perform inspections every six months. While many tenants will report issues promptly, sometimes they forget and/or don’t report everything.
- Never skip HVAC maintenance
HVAC systems are expensive, and if your tenants are using central heat or air frequently, you can’t afford to skip maintenance. It’s crucial to change the air filter every 1-3 months to maintain clean air and system efficiency. A clogged air filter can cause the unit to overheat, which can lead to costly breakdowns.
Schedule routine, annual HVAC inspections with a certified technician to keep your system running smoothly. If your thermostat runs on batteries, replace them as needed or ask your tenant to replace them on a set schedule. Most importantly, keep your air ducts clean. Don’t wait too long because too much build-up will create dirty air and circulate dust and allergens back into the home.
Proactive maintenance ensures long-term success
By creating and implementing a proactive maintenance plan, you’ll have happier tenants, reduce your overall expenses, and maintain profitability. Whether you manage everything yourself or hire a professional property manager, a structured approach to maintenance is the path to long-term success.
