Keeping your rental property in good condition is a year-round effort. Cleaning, painting, and mowing the lawn are tasks that need to be done regularly.
You might have to perform seasonal maintenance tasks such as insulating the hot water pipes or checking the roof, gutters, and downspouts for damage or debris after storms. Plus, emergency maintenance can be necessary at any point.
To effectively make use of your time and resources, it’s essential to know what constitutes a maintenance emergency and what can wait for another day.
For instance, a leaking faucet might not be an emergency, but it shouldn’t be left unattended for long. Keep reading to learn how to best deal with necessary repairs and how to tell which ones are emergencies.
What Constitutes an Emergency?
A maintenance emergency is an issue that, if left unattended, could cause injury, pose a health or safety threat to your tenants, or cause significant property damage.
Examples that constitute an emergency include broken water lines, frozen pipes, flooding, fires, gas leaks, electrical issues, break-ins, and carbon monoxide detection.
Other issues, such as broken no air conditioning or no heat, can only constitute emergencies in certain circumstances, such as extreme temperatures. Especially for new long-distance landlords, understanding what is an emergency can be difficult.
Other maintenance problems don’t necessarily constitute an emergency. For instance, if a tenant informs you of an appliance malfunction or a minor leak, let them know that the problem is not an emergency and that you’ll tend to it during normal business hours.
How to Effectively Tackle Emergency Maintenance
The way you handle maintenance requests from tenants can affect the relationship you’ve built with them. Renters who feel like their concerns are heard and attended to promptly are more likely to stay in your rental for longer and this will create an ideal landlord-tenant relationship.
Here are some tips to help you handle rental property emergency maintenance more effectively:
Be Available to Your Tenants
Emergencies can happen at any time of the day. So, it’s important that your tenants know how to reach you in the case of an emergency. To keep your property protected, it’s best to provide renters with your contact information from the start.
Additionally, you can provide them with instructions on how to act in case of an emergency.
Keep Emergency Services on Speed Dial
In case of emergencies such as fire or gas leaks, you or your tenants will need to contact emergency services immediately. Additionally, it’s important that you know who to contact to deal with the issue as soon as possible. Keep a list of trusted vendors you can contact at any time to deal with emergencies.
Maintain Open Communication
Emergencies are not only stressful for you as a landlord, but also for your tenants. That’s why it’s important to keep them informed at every step. Let them know the cause of the issue, as well as when it is scheduled to be repaired.
Remaining consistent and honest with your tenants can help you avoid misunderstandings or disputes.
In addition, communicate regular inspections with your tenants. This will help you avoid maintenance problems as well as keep track of the property.
Stay Calm
Rental property emergencies can be very stressful for landlords. While you may feel frustrated, startled, or even upset about the situation, it’s best to remain professional.
Keeping a cool head will let you assess the situation and take the next steps more efficiently. Staying calm will also show your tenants that they can trust you.
Document Everything
As a landlord, you should keep records of every maintenance request that comes up. Emergencies are not an exception to this rule. Given that most emergency maintenance requests start with a phone call, you’ll have to take extra measures to keep records.
As soon as you can, write down everything regarding the emergency, from the initial conversation you had with your tenant. Additionally, it’s a good idea to follow up with the tenant in writing, whether it’s by sending them an email or a simple text.
This will ensure you’re both on the same page and can help avoid any misunderstandings.
Contact a Trusted Vendor
When it comes to repairs, you need to remember that your rental property is an investment. So, it’s best to work with reliable and trusted contractors. Shop around to find the best vendor near you and work towards establishing a good work relationship with them so that you can rely on their services in case of an emergency.
When looking for potential vendors, make sure to pay close attention to the following:
Reputation
You can make use of online tools to find reliable vendors. Pay close attention to reviews from contractors who’ve worked in rental properties in the past as well as reviews from their previous clients.
Insurance Coverage
Ensure that the company you work with has proper general liability and worker’s compensation insurance. If they don’t, you might end up losing a lot of money on legal, medical, or damages in case of an accident.
Cost of Repairs
As a landlord, you don’t want to cut corners when it comes to repairs. A cheap vendor can end up costing you a lot of money in the long run. Shop around to find a contractor that adjusts to your budget and that will get the work done timely and correctly.
Timeline
When you own a rental, you need to deal with repairs as quickly as possible. Hiring a contractor that performs maintenance slowly can cause you to lose your tenants, whereas a quick contractor will keep your tenants happy.
That’s why it’s important to ask vendors for an estimated completion date and check in with them constantly to ensure their work is completed on time.
Bottom Line
As a landlord, it’s your responsibility to be prepared for rental property emergencies. A big part of this is knowing what counts as an emergency and what can wait for regular business hours. In cases such as fires, floods, or gas leaks, it’s critical for you to act immediately.
With our tips, you now know how to best deal with emergency maintenance issues!
Are you looking for an experienced property management company to help you handle maintenance requests? Work with New Jersey’s premier commercial property management company.
At Lone Eagle Management, we’ll ensure that your property is in good condition all year round and that your tenants’ concerns are always heard. Contact us today to learn more about our services!