He used long sweeps and swept from the bottom up.

You can screen tenants, place ads, etc.You may not sweep the floor, cut the grass, tighten screws or any other activity that directly affects the property.The arrangement you're describing is a slippery slope.

Now, it wouldn't surprise me if some careless bank teller might let them make a withdrawal, but that's the reason to sweep it to another account on a regular basis.

For tasks that are not "interesting" from a property improvement point of view, like daily sweeping of the premises, cleaning the laundry room, doing management tasks - I use timesheets.

At most banks you can make the account a deposit only account and sweep the funds to another account.

This is a fourplex so there is just a laundry room with a washer and dryer but the tenants seem to always leave their empty bottle laying around.I was thinking of having one of the tenants, if they agree, to sweep the front on a weekly basis and also make sure the laundry room is clean for a $50 rent reduction.

Typically I would paint first then do the floors, you can always sweep and dust off dry paint.

It's sweeping statements like this that miss the point that landlord/tenant laws vary massively by state.

Some advisors will tell you that tasks like mowing the lawn or sweeping a floor is permissible, but I would stay away from any maintenance.Collecting rent, screening tenants, hiring contractors, etc. are widely considered permissible as ministerial duties.

or "Did you sweep the construction site today?"