Is your property livable?

When you are managing a property, one thing you need to make sure is that the property is highly livable. Livability is important because it ensures your tenants of a healthy living condition.

Is your property livable? What are the key areas to look for when measuring livability?

Cleanliness

Your property should be professionally cleaned inside and out. Remove any trash within the parameter of the property. The exterior of the property should generally be in a good condition as well (no chipped paint work, mildew, et cetera). You also need to make sure that your landscaping is neat and free of any yard waste. As for the inside of the property, have a professional cleaning company to deep clean the carpet and wash all the windows. In short, you would want to make a good first impression for any potential tenants to whom you show the property.

Weatherproof

This asks the question: could the property withstand weather? Are all of the doors and windows well sealed? What about the roof, is there any leakage? Could the floors and walls keep wind and water out from the house?

Safety

It is a property manager or owner’s responsibility to make sure that the smoke detector in the property is working properly in the beginning of the lease, although it is the tenants’ responsibility to change the battery as needed.

Another thing is whether the house has proper locks on all outside doors? Once there is a tenant turnover, the property’s keys should also be changed for safety reason.

Also, does the house have any accident-prone spots like non-existing railing or trip hazards? You would need to repair these before showing the property.

Necessities

Is the property well equipped with modern necessities such as heating, electrical, running water and plumbing system, and do they run properly and meet code compliance? If the property comes with appliances, these should be clean and in a working order as well, ready for new tenants to move in.

Maintaining these things above will not only increase the livability of your property for your tenants to live in. Maintaining these things regularly will also save you from expensive repairs in the future.