Yearly Furnace Maintenance offer from PM company

General Landlording & Rental Properties
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Yearly Furnace Maintenance offer from PM company

James Runkle
Rental Property Investor · Crestline, CA · Member since 2019 · 38 posts · 11 votes

Hello Bigger Pockets peeps.

PM company offering me this service. Not sure if I should go for it. I'd rather buy a bunch of filters and mail them to the tenant because that always seems to be the problem with HVAC.  The tenants neglect to change the filter and kill the motor.
What is your opinion?

Thanks in advance for any input.

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  • Peter TverdovBusiness Member
    Developer · New Brunswick, NJ · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    5y

    We own a property management company in New Jersey but don't really recommend that to our clients. If you have HVAC I DO recommend you get the expensive filters. We change those out yearly and never have a problem. The cheap ones you have to change practically monthly, it's not worth it.

    [email protected]732-289-3823
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  • Nathan GesnerBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes
    5y

    Many property managers are partnering with a filter-delivery service to automate delivery. It is easy for the property manager, it protects the furnace and reduces maintenance costs, and it simplifies replacement for the tenant so they can fulfill their responsibility. They even have a helpline that can walk tenants through the process if they are having difficulty.

    The problem is the cost. I believe it's usually around $10 per month. If you change your filters once every three months, that's $30 per filter change! A decent filter will cost less than $5.

    It's simple and easy, but it's expensive. It may save you some money on repairs, but it won't save you as much as they claim. $120 a month for filters is enough to pay an HVAC tech to service the furnace once a year.

    I've considered it as a manager, but I've decided to stick with my current process of requiring renters to change the filters and holding them responsible for repairs if they fail to comply.

    The DIY Landlord Book4.7248 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
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  • Drew SygitBusiness Member
    Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
    5y

    Everyone also ASSUMES the tenant will actually change the filter!

    In our experience the success rate is far less than 100%:(

    [email protected]248-209-6824
    Logical Property Management4.9458 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
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