Essential property maintenance
Keeping your property in a good condition helps your house keep its value and reduces the amount of costly repairs you’ll need to do. It also gives your tenant a safe, habitable living environment – which they’re entitled to by law. Here are our top tips for maintaining your property:
- Invest time and money. You need to dedicate enough time to keeping your property in good condition and be prepared to pay for its upkeep (it’ll save you expensive repair bills in the long run). It’s a good idea to put aside three months’ rent to cover emergencies, or if your tenants leave. If you own an old property then don’t forget it’s more likely to need more in the way of maintenance.
- Shop around. There’s never any point cutting corners and paying less for a shoddy job. But you can get plenty of quotes from reputable tradespeople so you’re getting the most cost-effective job.
- Build relationships. You’re likely to work with the same tradespeople time after time, so try to keep your professional relationship friendly and productive. Try to build up a few contacts, so you have someone to fall back on if your regular person can’t handle the job.
- Act quickly. Don’t be tempted to let a problem fester in order to save money. It won’t go away and will just end up costing you more.
- Service regularly. Boilers and cookers need frequent servicing to keep them safe – and reduce the chances of anything going wrong.
- Carry out inspections. You need to inspect your property regularly. Tenants don’t always know how to carry out even basic maintenance on a property, and often won’t tell you about problems until they leave. Regular checks will give you a good idea about the state of your property.
If you have any questions regarding property refurbishment and maintenance, please contact Pelin Martin on 0208 994 7327 – pm@bluecrystallondon.co.uk – www.bluecrystallondon.co.uk
