Maintain your Investment Property
When it comes to maintaining your investment property, it’s easy to overlook certain items when you’re not there every day. Regularly maintaining your investment property reduces major costs in the long term by taking preventative measures, eliminating known problems and staying informed of the property’s condition. A well-maintained investment property keeps tenants happy, and in some cases increases the property or rent value. It’s important to act on tenant maintenance requests right away and have either yourself or a professional attend inspections to look for early signs of problems that a property manager may not notice during their tight inspection schedule.
While every building has its own unique list of upkeep, common maintenance that should be performed on investment properties includes regular exterminations, checking for water damage or leaks, testing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, changing filters on the heating/air conditioning systems, and flushing the water heater twice yearly to prevent sediment and clogging. Stair rails, balconies and bathroom accessibility rails among other items should also be inspected to ensure tenant safety in the long term.
If you’re currently looking for your next investment, another way to achieve a well-maintained property is by purchasing one in that condition in the first place. A buyer’s agent can help find you a great investment property, and skip the houses in need of desperate TLC. However, no matter what you buy, regular maintenance is part of owning any property and the key to saving money on avoidable problems.
Most of the above list involves the inhabited area of your investment property, but that doesn’t mean the outside should be overlooked. You may not be able to see your gutter’s contents from below, but if left untouched, you could be left with irreversible damage to your investment property. Gutters protect your property by directing rainwater through a drainage system, and when leaves and debris gather in your gutter it can cause clogging and drainage issues. When your gutter becomes full of leaves it can’t complete its job effectively and you risk damage to your gutter, walls and building foundations. Sure, you can climb a ladder and scoop handfuls of leaves from your gutter on a regular basis, or pay someone to do it for you – but for especially leaf-prone gutters, you’ll find that it’s a never-ending task.
It’s also not uncommon for birds to arrive at a property and nest within the gutter and roof. So, while you plan to pest-proof your home, don’t forget to pest-proof your roof, too. Aside from the obvious noise and diseases birds carry, we all know you would rather that they simply nested somewhere else. Pest controllers can get rid of the birds; however, they can’t prevent birds from returning again.
Aussie Gutter Protection can help you with a gutter and bird proofing solution for your investment property through the installation of gutter guards as well as targeted covering, spikes and other defences in perching areas. Gutter guards create a barrier so leaves cannot fall into the gutter system, and they require less maintenance than manual leaf scooping. Birds cannot set up nest if there’s no cavity to create it, and when effective deterrence mechanisms are in place.
Aussie Gutter Protection uses high quality, Australian made Tapex gutter guards that come with a 10-15 & 20 year warranty. There are a range of available options for gutter proofing your property depending on your roof material, design, building type and your budget.
Contact us for a free quote today.
