How to get your property back in MINT CONDITION!

Ever had a property left in a RIGHT STATE? Don’t get me wrong we don’t have perfect tenants, but it’s an absolute nightmare when...

Ever had a property left in a RIGHT STATE?

Don’t get me wrong we don’t have perfect tenants, but it’s an absolute nightmare when your tenant leaves your property in a mess and then claims the property was perfect when they moved in – sound familiar?

When we started as a landlord we used to have this all the time, as long as the tenant was paying the rent we’d think everything was going swimmingly? What’s the problem the rent’s rolling in so why worry?

The issue is what happens when the tenant moves out – those walls will need repainting because they didn’t tell you about their smoking, the kitchen units have been chewed to bits by a dog you didn’t know about or the kids have simply used your walls to do their art project on…

To stop this from happening you need to start like you mean to go on:

1. An inventory is key, you need to know the original condition of your property, with photo’s to back it up. How else can you reference any issues with your tenant?
2. Periodically visit the property to make sure it’s kept in good order – highlight any problems and even revisit.
3. We recommend visiting six monthly in the first year then annually afterwards to SAVE TIME & MONEY! Once the tenants’ are settled there’s no need to keep visiting them if everything is running smoothly.
4. If the tenant wants to leave you need a two-step approach – About two weeks before the last day of the tenancy do an initial visit to outline what work is required for the tenant to get their deposit back.
5. This makes the tenant fully aware of what work is required and also with plenty of time to rectify any issues.
6. Do a final visit breaking down any deductions from the deposit referencing back to your initial inventory.

We find this approach means properties come back in better condition, wouldn’t that be nice? And also if there are issues with returning the deposit and deducting monies, the tenant is fully aware of any problems and have had time to resolve them.

Chris, our senior property manager recently did a move-out at a property and it came back in a beautiful condition, to find out how he did it – see the video below: