In our 10 years in Property Management there have always been issues with maintenance and here explain some of the reasons why.

On a typical day, a Property Manager will receive at least 3-5 maintenance reports from Tenants, depending on the size of their business. With all the other things that a Property Manager must manage the key component here is to have a strict policy in place when it comes to maintenance.

So usually the tenants will more than likely make contact with the Property Manager by way of a phone call to report maintenance, here is where the first problem lies.

Issue 1, lack of reporting in a timely manner, lack of detail as to the problem, miscommunication as to what the tenant is saying and what the Property Manager is hearing. Best to always lodge or receive any maintenance requests in writing. If it’s urgent by all means get it over the phone, however, in writing should follow automatically.

Issue 2, The Property Manager doesn’t ask the right questions to decipher the problem. A good Property Manager should know there needs to be a series of questions asked e.g. when did the problem occur, what is the explanation of the issue. E.g. where is the water coming from, where is the water leaking, what does it look like, what is the volume of water, this is just one example of many different scenarios. Your Property Manager should also be asking for things like how can you be contacted, do you give permission to access the property by the agency keys, are you happy to be contacted by the tradesperson directly. A standard maintenance form should always be available and provided to tenants with standard questions listed, this gives tenants the opportunity to better ascertain the issue and provide access arrangements all recorded in writing. Once received in writing via letter, email or fax the Property Manager should peruse the document and contact the tenant for any further clarifications. This is often where problems occur. Wrong diagnosis of the problem, lack of information, not access arrangements and so on. Often it can be a much easier problem to solve than first anticipated, contact details wrong, no access arrangements or even the wrong tradesperson can be sent on a wrong diagnosis. E.g. electrician sent instead of plumber etc.

Issue 3, Property Manager can’t get hold of the owner. As an owner it’s always good to give your property Manager the authority to get things done on your behalf up to a certain amount say $300 in the event you can’t be contacted, this will then allow for things to be fixed up quickly without further damage or possible compensation to the tenant, it’s always good to quiz your Property Manager about how they handle maintenance and what their level of knowledge is on different topics. This can be a double-edged sword though so tread carefully. It’s great to empower your Property manager to do things for you, however, it’s not so great to empower one that doesn’t know what they are doing.

Issue 4, Tradespeople. In Property Management it’s hard to find good Tradespeople that will look after you. You want good service, prompt, reliable and reasonable rates and most importantly a tradie that is going to do the right thing and not rip you off. That’s a hard task for Property Managers all on its own. This is always being scrutinized by your Property Manager to ensure they get the best tradies available. Slack tradies that don’t get to jobs or say they are going to do something and they don’t are everywhere. I’ve experienced this time and time again over my career, tradies that fail to act in a timely manner, tradies that over charge and their lack of communication skills is less desirable making the Property Managers job that much harder with unreliable contractors. Some even throw their Property Managers under the bus to save their own skin. Good tradespeople are hard to find and when you find them keep them, treat them like gold.

There are so many more issues that arise in this process, which leads to massive problems with maintenance. It’s important that you and your Property Manager (whether you’re a property owner or tenant) have a clear understanding of maintenance policies and processes and how it’s handled from start to finish. Then there is no confusion. Strict guidelines equal happy clients and happy Property Managers all round.

If you want to know more about our maintenance policy and how we can manage your investment property contact us today for a confidential discussion.

Fran & Jo xo