Property Maintenance: How far do you go?

Question

So for the past two years I have been managing my family's handful of rental properties and have made the decision to open my own property management company. This is not my first company and I understand how important it is to provide value to your clients. I've researched heavily on how to maintain your property in order to avoid major repairs in the near future and came up with this long list of scheduled maintenance checklist.

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Inspect, and possibly change out HVAC filters

Clean kitchen sink disposal

Clean range hood filters

Inspect your fire extinguisher(s)

Test smoke/carbon monoxide detectors

Test garage door auto-reverse feature

Run water and flush toilets in unused spaces

Check water softener, add salt if needed

Give your house a deep clean

Vacuum your refrigerator coils

Test your water heater’s pressure relief valve

Replace batteries in smoke/carbon monoxide detectors

Check the exterior drainage

Clean out gutters

Inspect the exterior of your home

Get your air conditioning system ready for summer; consider servicing

Repair/replace damaged window screens

Clear dead plants/shrubs from the house

Check trees for interference with electric lines

Inspect roofing for damage, leaks, etc.

Test your electricity to the extent that you can

Tighten any handles, knobs, racks, etc.

Check all locks and deadbolts on your doors and windows

Check caulking around showers and bathtubs; repair as needed

Remove shower heads and clean sediment

Deep clean and inspect the basement

Check grout in bathrooms, kitchen, etc.; repair as needed

Inspect plumbing for leaks, clean aerators on faucets

Take care of any insect problems you may have

Clean and repair deck/patio as needed

Clean out window wells of debris

Check and clean dryer vent, other exhaust vents to exterior of home

Clean garage

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Do the landlords on this forum perform any of these tasks?

If so, do you believe it provides great benefit to the life of your property?

If not, do you feel it is unnecessary?

If a property manager were to show you all these methods of maintenance he has planned (quarterly, semiannually and annually) for your rental property, would you consider this as value or an expense?

Thank you in advance for your responses. Really appreciate what this forum provides.

Justin Stanfield · Answer

The foundation is the probably the single most important long-term feature of the house. Downspout should take water away from the foundation. A soils condition and the slope of your land dictate how far your gutters should extend. If you have sandy soil or a flat lot, you'll need to get the water farther from your house than you will if you have clay soil or a land that slopes away from the house. So anywhere from 10 feet to 50 feet, depending on the soil or lack thereof and slope of the land.  A property without gutters will run into trouble sooner or laters.

For the roof, a general inspection should be fine., particularly on the valley, chimneys, and penetrations.  But trees should be cut two feet away from the house (many people do not know this, but if the insurance adjuster sees trees near the roof, it's like an automatic negative)

If the property has AVC insurance, then more money should be put into saving for repairs.

Matthew Paul · Answer

Heres a more specific take on this

Inspect, and possibly change out HVAC filters        Just change them

Clean kitchen sink disposal                    Most rentals dont have them

Clean range hood filters                         Tenants  do that

Inspect your fire extinguisher(s)             Tenants property

Test smoke/carbon monoxide detectors        This is a good one

Test garage door auto-reverse feature        Tenant will call when it breaks , rarely happens

Run water and flush toilets in unused spaces    Never had this problem

Check water softener, add salt if needed          Tenant responsibility

Give your house a deep clean                             Tenant Responsibility

Vacuum your refrigerator coils                             Tenant responsibility

Test your water heater’s pressure relief valve      rarely fail

Replace batteries in smoke/carbon monoxide detectors    tenant responsibility

Check the exterior drainage                   Not a reoccuring problem

Clean out gutters         This is good

Inspect the exterior of your home    So is this

Get your air conditioning system ready for summer; consider     servicing       HVAC company does this

Repair/replace damaged window screens   Tenants will call

Clear dead plants/shrubs from the house               tenant responsibility

Check trees for interference with electric lines         powers company job

Inspect roofing for damage, leaks, etc.                    Good idea

Test your electricity to the extent that you can        Not necessary

Tighten any handles, knobs, racks, etc.                    Minor

Check all locks and deadbolts on your doors and windows       Done at turnover

Check caulking around showers and bathtubs; repair as needed      Not bad

Remove shower heads and clean sediment     Never had that problem

Deep clean and inspect the basement               Tenant does this

Check grout in bathrooms, kitchen, etc.; repair as needed      Done at turn over

Inspect plumbing for leaks, clean aerators on faucets               Done as necessary

Take care of any insect problems you may have                  Tenants responsibility

Clean and repair deck/patio as needed                                 Maybe

Clean out window wells of debris                                            tenants responsibility

Check and clean dryer vent, other exhaust vents to exterior of home      Tenants responsibility

Clean garage      Tenant

Rob Lane · Answer

Yes you do have to have realtor license to property manage for other people in Oklahoma.  I am my own maintenance man hence the name of the book and I had to create the checklist just to stay organized.  Not just on the maintenance but alarm codes, gate codes, air filter sizes, etc.  Its not nearly as detailed as yours but does cover the basics.  Its on Excel spreadsheet so if you guys want it I can post it?  I personally take care of all lawn care on all my properties which number 1 keeps me in great shape and number 2 keeps my eye on all my properties all the time to be proactive if any issues may occur.  If there are any issues with the property my tenants know that we will take care of them within a 24 hour period.  Its part of my advertising in my listings.

Arlan Potter · Answer

in my experience, property managers:

Find tenants

Do paperwork

Hire Maintenance men when necessary

Collect a small monthly fee

They do none of your list.  Their job is an accounting and fiduciary job. That's it.

Also in Oklahoma you have to be a Broker to be a property manager.

Kevin Hunter · Answer

@Gabe Amedee, I tend to agree with @Matthew Paul.  It doesn't seem like any of those tasks are over the top or too expensive to keep up.   I will say this.  As an owner of nine units, not nearly as many as a lot of folks on the website, but still a small amount, I would be thrilled if a property manager showed me a list of maintenance upkeep like this that he or she planned to utilize.  It will still be important for you to stay within the reasonable range of pricing, but that type of detail and thought would be extremely well received, certainly by me, and by most others, in my opinion.

Gabriel Amedee · Answer

@Matthew Paul I plan to stay at market price of most small property managers in my area.

@Kevin Hunter I'm very glad to hear your feedback. I believe in being the best at whatever it is you take on in life and would really appreciate any other insight you believe would provide more value than what is being given by property managers in your area.

@Arlan Potter I do understand these tasks are not typical for property managers but I felt (and correct me if I am wrong please) that these were tasks that myself and others would do if they were managing their own rental. I want my value to be that I do not treat your property like a number but like my own personal rental unit.

@Rob Lane The fact that you do something similar to your own properties makes me hope that doing all these tasks would lead property owners to believe I treat their property as they would, if not better.

Matthew Paul · Answer

All depends on the price . But most of what you mentioned are minimal .

Property Maintenance: How far do you go?

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