Rental Restoration

We recently worked on a fully occupied multi-family building that had some pretty extensive mold growth present due to very poor ventilation.  The mold in these units was present in both bedrooms and both bathrooms of each unit and so our remediation efforts included removing drywall, treating studs and then replacing drywall in multiple areas.

In addition to the mold remediation, we were also doing other renovations in the building such as improving ventilation (!); painting the common areas; replacing security doors; improving lighting; replacing the garage door; doing a complete renovation of one unit and other activities that are pretty typical when properties change hands.

Although the project turned out well in terms of the quality of product we delivered, we had some communication and scheduling difficulties that cost everyone time and frustration.  Because we were going to be on-site for a few weeks, we tried to be more flexible with tenant schedules than perhaps we should have.

Since then, I’ve written some new communications policies and procedures for working on occupied multi-family buildings.  The objective of these policies are to a) always remain in compliance with landlord-tenant laws b) schedule work to maximize the use of workers’ time and decrease the number of return trips to individual units and c) make tenants more aware of the purpose, duration and scope of the project happening in their unit and the building.

Here are a few highlights:

1) Draft an outline of a communications plan for the project.  Include it in the bid and bill appropriately for the time it will take to execute the plan.  Owners and property managers should be willing to pay a reasonable amount of money for the time it takes to communicate with tenants- it’s the law afterall!

2) When the bid is accepted, work with the owner/agent to craft a letter that is appropriate to send to tenants making them aware of upcoming projects in the building.  Set expectations of how long things will take, what type of work is being done, and how their lives will be impacted during and improved after the project.

3) Create a master schedule for work to happen inside individual units and distribute it as soon as possible.  Tenants must give access with 48 hour notice in the State of Washington.  Make sure tenants know that unless there are extraordinary circumstances, this work cannot be rescheduled.

4) At the end of each day of work inside units, leave a note for tenants so that they know what work was performed that day and what work is necessary the following day.

These may seem like obvious steps, but it’s been my experience that communications planning is sort of a lost art with contractors.  I always tell my clients that pretty much anybody with a hammer and drill can do the work we do and that communication is what differentiates our company from other companies– and never is effective communication more important than with multi-phase remodeling projects in occupied multi-family properties!