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What to Look Out for During a Preventative Maintenance Walkthrough of Your Rental Property

San Diego landlords are often asking me about what they should look for when they’re conducting periodic walk-throughs at their investment property. Today, we’re offering some tips and advice.

Property Management San Diego: Review Your Documentation

First, acclimate yourself to the property before you do a walk through. Re-read your lease and make sure you know what it includes. Remember the names of your tenants. Check to see if you can expect to find any pets at the property. Look through the initial condition photos you took prior to the tenant taking possession of the home. Check other condition statements as well.

Investing in San Diego: Know Your Tenants and Pets

When your tenants give you access to enter the property, remember which tenants are on your lease. If someone lets you in who you don’t recognize, it may indicate there’s a guest staying at the property, or an unauthorized tenant has moved in. Take note of who is there.

You also want to check for any evidence of unauthorized pets. If there is not a pet listed on the lease, and you see scratching on the back of walls or doors, or you notice pet feces in the yard or food and water bowls scattered around, these things may indicate there’s an unauthorized pet at the property.

San Diego Investment Property: Safety Issues

Next, check your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms. Look under the sinks at your angle stops and supply lines. You should do this in the bathrooms and the kitchen. Check to make sure that everything is operating effectively. Note any corrosion or signs of swelling at the supply lines. This might indicate a potential leak, which you’ll want to take care of immediately. Track any preventative maintenance items that need attention.

Finally, go on the record and ask your tenant if there are any maintenance issues they have not reported. Sometimes, tenants fear getting a rental increase when they report maintenance, so they delay doing it. Ask your tenant. It’s a sign of good faith, and it shows you’re invested in the property and in your tenant’s satisfaction.

If you have any questions about your San Diego rental property or you need help with San Diego property management, please contact us at Good Life Property Management. We manage single family homes, condos, and small apartment complexes.

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Steve Welty

CEO at Good Life Property Management DRE #01744610

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Tagged landlord tips

Hi, I’m Adam Manly, Business Development Manager here at Good Life Property Management. We manage single-family homes, condos, and small apartment complexes in the Greater San Diego area. I wanted to talk to everyone today about a topic I’m getting some questions about from prospective homeowners and that is what do I look out for when I’m doing a periodic walkthrough of my investment property. So I wanted to touch a little bit on that today. My first recommendation to all the landlords out there is going to be to just reacclimate yourself with the property prior to doing the walkthrough. So re-read through your lease, make sure you know the names of the tenants as they appear on your lease. Do they have any pets that appear on the lease? Make a note of that. Also a good idea is to re-look through any initial condition photos you may have taken prior to the tenant taking possession or any initial condition statement that you may have. The next thing I would do is when your tenants grant you access to the property, if you have certain tenants that appear on your lease and another tenant has granted you access to the property, that may be an indication of a guest or a potential unauthorized tenant who may be living at the property, so something also good to take note of there. I would also check to see if there is any evidence of an unauthorized pet living at the property. So if a pet didn’t appear on the lease and you are seeing some evidence of maybe scratching on the back side of doors or window sills or maybe some pet feces in the front or backyard, or maybe even food or water bowls that are kind of scattered throughout the property, that may be an indication of an unauthorized pet living at the property. So the next thing I would do is check your smoke alarms, your carbon monoxide alarms, check under your sinks for your angle stops and supply lines at your bathroom and kitchen. And doing this will also grant you access to the entire property, which is going to be very beneficial to you when you’re doing your walkthrough. So make sure your smoke alarms are operating effectively, your carbon monoxide alarms are operating properly. Make note of any corrosion at your angle stops or any signs of swelling at your supply lines. This may be an indication of a potential leak. So also a good preventative maintenance measure to take care of, make a note of, when you’re doing your walkthrough. And the last item that I would recommend doing is go on the record and ask your tenant if they have any maintenance issues that they may not have reported to you. And the reason for this is sometimes tenants have a fear of getting a rental increase for reporting a maintenance issue. So it’s definitely good to ask your tenant that. It also shows a sign of good faith that you as the landlord are invested in the well-being of the tenant. So something else I would also recommend doing is to go on the record and ask your tenant that. And those are my recommendations for things to check when you’re doing your periodic walkthroughs. If we could ever assist you with anything here at Good Life Property Management, I invite you to contact us below. Thank you.