While owning a buy-to-let is the dream for many investors, there’s no denying that it requires a lot of work. A good company like Redland Property Services understands this well. Their expansion into property management demonstrates their commitment to comprehensive care for property owners, ensuring peace of mind and top-notch service across all aspects of property ownership, from maintenance to tenant management. The Property Buying Company reckons that there are loads of tasks to think about before a property goes on the market and when your tenants move in, the jobs don’t end. However, staying on top of maintenance is critical to keep your tenants happy and to ensure you don’t lose profits. Here’s a list of potential oversights you might be making as a landlord and how to resolve them.
Get an EPC
An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is a legal requirement and landlords need to provide their tenants with an up to date EPC when they move in. In 2008, it because law that landlords advertising their properties need to supply the EPC rating of the property within the advert, so if you don’t have one, you need to get one before the property is marketed to let. Each time you let the property to a new set of tenants, you need to ensure the EPC is updated, which will demonstrate the energy efficiency of the property. Not having this in place on the day they move in could make it harder to evict them in the future if you need to.
Have drains and gutters checked
A blocked drain or clogged guttering can cause significant issues for your tenants, which could come back to you as the owner of the property if it leads to damp or leaks. For that reason, it’s worth speaking to a local commercial drainage company to have them check the drains before a tenant moves in so you can be sure that everything is in order. Contact an emergency plumber if your clogged drains caused additional plumbing issues.
Guttering is an area of the home that can become neglected, but when gutters become clogged with leaves or twigs, they can overflow and cause damp to walls, so take the time to clear them periodically to prevent any issues in the future. Visit https://www.leafsoutgg.com/how-to-unclog-a-gutter-downspout-4-steps-to-follow if you want to learn how to unclog a gutter properly. You may also invest in gutter guards to keep your gutters protected and avoid damages.
Deep clean the property
While it’s a requirement for your tenants to clean the property when they move out, the standard might not be up to scratch, and it could impact your ability to get new tenants in quickly. It may sound like an obvious thing to check but making sure that the entire property is hygienic and cleaned properly can easily be overlooked if you’re keen to get tenants in-situ quickly. It’s a vital component of property management, particularly in the new normal, so invest in a local cleaning service to do a thorough sweep of the property. This will make sure that everything from bathrooms and floors to soft furnishings and kitchen appliances are cleaned thoroughly.
Check there’s ventilation
In addition to heating and air conditioning system, all habitable rooms of your property need to be ventilated directly to open air through windows. Where there’s not a window in place, you need to install mechanical ventilation. Automatic humidistat extractor fans are a worthwhile addition to kitchens and bathrooms to keep condensation to a minimum and maintain a hygienic living space for those who take on the property. You also need to ensure that any rooms containing an open flue gas heating appliance, and kitchens, bathrooms and toilets, have suitable permanent ventilation via an air brick or something similar.
Check your insurance
There are always things that can go wrong when you let out a property, so making sure you’re fully insured and that your insurance covers you for all costly matters will give you peace of mind should the worst happen. It’s not a legal requirement, but it could be a requirement of your buy-to-let mortgage if you have one, so it’s well worth checking if you don’t already have insurance in place.
Final thoughts
Investing in a buy-to-let property is an exciting prospect, but don’t be fooled into thinking it’s an easy way to make money. There are certainly benefits to owning a rental home, but there are also maintenance checks you need to carry out to make sure your property is safe and legally compliance before it goes on the market and tenants move in. From checking that pipe work and electrical wires are safe to clearing drains and gutters, checking ventilation and making sure that all rooms are hygienic and clean, these are some of the easy-to-miss tasks that need to be considered.
