Maintaining a property and especially multiple properties can be a headache, but it’s part of real estate investment. You don’t just buy the property, pretty it up and find tenants. Keeping your property well-maintained is just as important as any other task in the process. The tenant/customer has to know, before and after renting, that maintenance is an utmost concern and that any issue that arises will be resolved as thoroughly and quickly as possible.
Carod Properties would like for you to keep these key points in mind, in regards to building long-lasting relationship with your tenants:
- The first line of defense, is your Rental Lease language. As a legal defense and just pragmatism, your lease should outline a maintenance schedule, and advise everyone’s responsibility, property management/owners and the tenants. In addition, hold tenant accountable for what has been outlined as their responsibility. As the owner, you have the right to inspect your property. You can’t simply advise them and hope they are taking care of it. Taking that stance could leave you holding an expensive bag, for repairs, upon their exit.
- Prevention. Knowing what needs to be done and addressing it as a matter of routine before it becomes a costly and time consuming issue, is always “best practices”.
- Have a stated means by which a tenant reports maintenance issues, then maintain thorough records. Knowing how exactly to report an issue, knowing the response time to their concern, and a TAT once the issue has been evaluated gives peace of mind and instills a loyalty that will keep your rental occupied. Records also show if the tenant has done their due diligence when reporting issues, and how assign blame, if necessary.
- Limit tenant add-ons. You may run into a tenant that needs your rental long term. That’s great! Who doesn’t want the consistent income that this type of tenant would mean? However, be careful. This type of tenant may come to see the property as theirs and want to make little changes to make it home. The problem is that the changes are now a part of your property and may not be something that appeals to the next tenant, which presents you with the task of undoing their changes—adding to your flip time—and redoing your renovations. Most importantly, if they install anything that may need repair or maintenance, it needs to be emphatically stated that any repairs will be the express responsibility of the tenant, even if it is now a part of your property structure.
It’s not hard to build a rapport with tenants that will let them see your rental as a long term option. However, neglecting repairs and maintenance or not be expedient and attentive to their maintenance concerns is a surefire way to lose a tenant and develop a bad reputation in the rental community. Protect your investment by hiring dependable, knowledgeable maintenance staff; staying on top of routine maintenance; quickly and thoroughly addressing tenant concerns and making each of your properties a jewel in your box of investment real estate treasures.
