Rental Restoration

*Posting this to a wider audience since it would be helpful for agents who have homes listed through the winter to remember to do some of these things for those properties!*

There are a lot of reasons why I created a company that works exclusively with professional property managers and landlords…  the biggest one is:  THEY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING… and <gasp> they are paying attention even when tenants aren’t! It’s no secret that even the best tenants don’t know how to take care of a house as well as an owner would hope.  For example, swapping out furnace filters to ensure a long life for a furnace isn’t really a priority– or sometimes even a thought!

I’m lucky to work with a lot of conscientious property managers who are very busily scheduling work to ready the properties in their portfolio for the winter.  What kind of work is coming in?

Gutters. Here in Seattle, having gutters that are free of obstructions and in good shape as we head into rainy season is paramount!

Furnace filters. Replacing a furnace is expensive!  Keeping up with clean furnace filters every three months (or less- depending on the type of filter and use level) and having the furnace serviced every two years will make it last longer.

Decks. As I said in my last post, decks need love after all the summer wear and tear!  Here in the PNW, transparent stains will barely make it a whole year before their water-resistance integrity really starts to fail.

Pressure washing. Any leftover debris or oils on the sidewalk and steps can cause hazardous conditions– at least here in Washington, it’s up to owners and PMs to limit the liabilities here!

Weatherstripping & caulking. Always a good service to provide whether the owner pays utilities or not!  In my own home, I wouldn’t turn on the heat this month until I had one of my guys go through and refresh the caulking and replace the weatherstripping (and I even had my attic access stairs re-insulated this year… must be the economy, but I’m hyper-wary of heating costs this winter!).

I’ve also helped two clients write letters to their tenants reminding them that it is the tenant’s responsibility to take necessary precautions to winterize their homes, what they need to do in the event of snow and ice, etc.

What else are you doing to get your portfolio ready for winter?

Eleanor