As we progress through our Blog series, “So, You Want to be a Landlord?,” we turn our attention to what many consider the worst part of Property Management: dealing with emergency maintenance issues.
These include the stereotypical call at 2 a.m. to report two feet of water in a basement. These calls may also include something as simple as no heat, or a devastating scenario involving fire or major wind damage.
Whatever the case, it’s important to have a firm plan in place to handle any and all of these issues. What’s even more important is to have a solid list of Vendors to call when a crisis strikes.
Like most professional Property Management Companies, our firm offers 24/7 phone support. Without that type of coverage, your property could suffer irreparable damage that could have been prevented if the right Vendor was dispatched in a timely manner.
Given that time is of the essence, we dispatch resources immediately upon receiving a legitimate emergency call, authorize any and all required repairs, and inform our Owners as soon as possible.
For example, let’s say a furnace stops working and is deemed beyond repair during a time of year when temperatures are very low. In order to protect both the property and the Tenant, we authorize the replacement immediately. We aren’t doing our job if we allow the issue to linger, gather multiple quotes and endanger both the Tenant and our Owner’s property.
Again, employing the right Vendor makes all the difference. While after-hour response typically costs more, the long-term benefit of handling the issue immediately can oftentimes save our Owners thousands of dollars in the long-run.
Check out Part 5: The Pros (no cons) of Preventative Maintenance.
