Any time you own property, there is property maintenance to be done. If the property you own is a rental property, it sometimes seems that there is always something that needs to be taken care of. If you live out of town or if these problems are beyond your ability, then you have to hire someone to take care of the problem.
You know that repeatedly calling for plumbers and electricians will very quickly begin to eat into your money making venture, but have you considered a property maintenance worker. You may have a skilled tenant that would be willing to trade his skills for rent-free living. If he saves you two or three service calls per month, he will have earned his keep.
Before hiring anyone, make sure that he or she has the necessary experience to take care of the units that you own. If you hire a person, but continually have to hire specialist for some of the tasks you will end up spending more money.
Make sure that the person you hire will be able to respond to the problems that arise in an appropriate amount of time. If there is a heating problem in the middle of winter, tenants expect maintenance to respond quickly. If you maintenance person cannot get there for hours, you will have some angry tenants. Once again, finding someone willing to live onsite can be a great advantage.
Of course, the workload will determine the pay or trade for housing arrangement that you make. If you only have one or two rental properties, then you will probably not need a full time maintenance worker. If you have a large apartment complex, you may have more work than one person can handle.
Be sure that any workers you hire are ethical. You do not want a maintenance worker walking away with your profits or giving you a bad reputation with the tenants. Ask for references and check with those references about the person’s personality and work ethic.
Your new hire needs to be able to keep up with the workload. The amount of work needed will depend on the number of properties you own as well as their condition. Well-maintained properties take less work than those that are run down.
Make sure that you are paying a reasonable rate for maintenance work. If it would be less expensive to hire plumbers and electricians when needed, you are paying too much for your maintenance worker. You do not want to pay a maintenance worker for part time work if he never has anything to do.
The maintenance worker can give you freedom to have your life back. If you get a good worker, then you can depend on him to meet the needs of tenants in an efficient and economical manner. This will mean that you will be able once again to enjoy those retirement years.
If you own your property, you will obviously know that property maintenance is not the simplest thing in the world, especially if you own more than one. This is why most landlords seek out professional commercial cleaning to help them keep their investments up to scratch and looking good.
No comments yet.