It is your responsibility as a landlord to ensure that your property is safe and habitable. Good landlords are aware that they must do more to attract and retain good tenants. However, you don’t need to be a skilled plumber or carpenter to do this.

These strategies will help you maintain your property's integrity and prevent you from falling behind with repairs and maintenance.

Keep Records To Stay Organized

Your property's condition is ultimately your responsibility. This includes responding to tenant repairs, routine maintenance, and addressing tenant negligence. It is important to organize your life to be able to handle all of the expenses and tasks.

Create a record-keeping program. You can keep a folder, digital or physical, for each property and track it all. You can add a note to your routine maintenance and dates when installing new carpet, toilets, doors, or roofs. You can record the life expectancy of each item to help you plan for future repairs and replacements. A roof's lifespan is between 20 and 25 years. You will need a new roof soon if your 15-year-old roof is on your property.

Keep records of all communications and transactions between tenants and record each repair request. You should know the time you must respond to each request and what rights your tenant has if you fail to do so within that time frame.

Plan An Inspection

You should inspect your properties at a minimum once a year. You can prepare for the winter by inspecting your properties in spring and autumn. To ensure you have everything covered, use a checklist and keep it in your property folder. Ask a handyman to help you if you are unsure about what you should be checking. You should take lots of photos to keep track of the process and show any repairman if you have one. This should be in addition to your move-in and move-out inspections with your tenants.

You can anticipate major expenses such as deck replacement or new appliances by keeping track of your inspections.

Arrange Resources

Do not wait to have a problem with your rental. Make a list of people you can trust. You should have a handy person that you can call for any routine repairs that you can or don’t want to make. Consider hiring a full-time handy person if you own multiple properties. You can also hire a landscaper who will tend to your outdoor spaces regularly.

A trusted list of professionals can be established for other maintenance tasks that are less frequently required. Ask for recommendations from other property owners or join local rental housing associations. They are great resources for landlords. You can establish a working relationship and communicate with them about pricing, turnaround times, and other details.