Never Miss A Beat With Our Annual Apartment Inspection Checklist
As a property manager, you’ve got a lot to deal with. Unfortunately, in between apartment maintenance and lease renewals, annual inspections can take up the bulk of this time – and be a significant stressor.
One way to simplify the inspection process is to adopt an annual apartment inspection checklist. Not only will it save you time and prevent added stress, but it’ll help you hit all your marks.
If you’re not sure where to start, use this guide. We’ll walk you through the annual inspection process and key points to consider when creating yours.
Why Are Yearly Rental Property Inspections Important?
Annual property inspections benefit residents and property managers, and here’s why.
Prevent Serious Problems
One of the most effective maintenance tips for any property manager is to practice prevention. With apartments, that means regular inspections aimed at preventing minor issues from turning into big problems. Preventative inspections will save time and money and keep your residents safe.
Ensure Residents Follow The Rules
As a property manager, you’ll inevitably come across residents that don’t have your apartment’s best interest in mind. However, if a resident signs a lease, they are bound by the rental care stipulations.
By regularly inspecting your apartments, you can ensure that your residents are maintaining the apartment and following the lease tenant care guidelines.
If they aren’t, you can talk to them about their obligations and fix the problems before they become unmanageable.
Improve Communication With Residents
Communication might not seem important in the resident-property manager relationship, but it is, and it’s often overlooked.
Having easy and open communication with your residents will put both parties at ease. They’ll feel more comfortable sharing issues that could affect your apartment and its value. And because they know you, they’ll have more incentive to follow their lease maintenance agreements.
Regular inspections lead to easy communication.
Maintain The Property’s Value
Annual inspections will keep your property from falling into disrepair. Minor issues are quickly caught and fixed, and regular maintenance will preserve your property’s appeal.
All of this translates into a higher property value. Your apartments will be ready to sell immediately, and no one will bat an eye at you charging a premium. You also won’t have to deal with additional pre-sale repair costs because you’ve maintained the property through regular inspections.
Retain Residents
You’ll only naturally retain residents if you regularly inspect and maintain your apartment. Residents won’t want to leave an apartment that looks good and functions well or a property manager that takes their maintenance and repairs seriously.
With a high property value, regularly maintained building, and excellent reputation, you can also charge more for your apartments.
Save Money In The Long Term
Practicing preventative maintenance can feel costly in the beginning. If you’re paying for a minor repair here and there, it might feel like a lot compared to property managers that don’t take inspections and prevention seriously.
However, all these small expenses don’t compare to the cost of letting small property issues fester into big ones.
For example, the cost of immediately fixing a broken bathroom fan is negligible. But if the fan is left broken, you’ll have to deal with mold, repainting, those initial repairs you avoided, and cleaning service fees.
Resident satisfaction will drop, and you might even have to deal with doctors’ fees for the effects of the moldy air.
As you can imagine, annual inspections and a quick response time will save you money by avoiding issues that devolve into expensive problems.
8 Best Practices For An Annual Apartment Inspection Checklist
Now that you know why annual apartment inspections are necessary, let’s consider what to add to your inspection checklist.
We recommend always creating a checklist. It’s a simple but effective way to brainstorm inspection items and remember everything you need to inspect. Below are a few essentials to add to your annual apartment inspection checklist.
1. Pest Control
Pest control can take two forms. The first is looking for any pest that has taken residence in your property, like fleas, bed bugs, cockroaches, etc. Inspect for these issues and call in the relevant pest control to sort it out before it becomes an infestation.
Secondly, look for pets. While pets aren’t pests, they can bring pests into your apartment. If you have a lease clause stating residents can’t have pets, inspections will help you determine if they adhere to this clause.
2. Damp And Mold
Check for any mold or damp accumulation in bathrooms. This is especially important in apartments that aren’t as well-ventilated as they should be.
Water accumulation in ceilings can also cause structural issues, so look for any water behind or between the paint layers. While at it, ensure the bathroom fans are working.
3. Plumbing Issues
It’s always important to check for water leaks or any plumbing issues.
Inspect the water heating systems and clear the bathroom and kitchen drains with a drain cleaner or by flushing them. Check and tighten all pipe fittings and ensure no taps have slow leaks.
4. Flooring
Check the flooring in the apartment, and inspect for issues relevant to the floor material. For example, you must inspect carpets for pest infestations and mold. Also, check hardwood floors for dehydration, etc.
5. Detection Systems & Alarms
Regularly test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and any security systems. This is a crucial step, as detectors and alarms are directly linked to your resident’s safety. Negligence in this area can cause a lot of trouble for you.
Before you test your detection systems, contact the respective companies, ask them about test protocols, and warn them that you are doing inspections so they don’t send out responders.
6. Emergency Equipment
Like the detectors, you must inspect emergency equipment to ensure they work when your residents need them. Inspect fire extinguishers, emergency exits, fire escape ladders, etc., and replace any items that are giving even a hint of a problem.
7. Appliances
If you installed appliances for your residents, use inspections to ensure they are in working condition. It’s also an excellent time to see if the appliances are being cared for and if your residents follow the lease agreement stipulations.
8. Fenestrations
Fenestrations refer to all the openings in your apartment, most notably windows and doorways. Inspect them for any unusual damage, ensure all the locks are working, and check for any security issues that could put your residents at risk.
Say Goodbye To Paperwork And Hello To RentCheck!
Use this guide to create a comprehensive annual apartment inspection checklist. It’ll help you prevent serious issues, save money, maintain property value, and build a good relationship with your residents.
To simplify the inspection process even more, partner with RentCheck. We’re a property inspection platform that aims to standardize inspections, save time and money, and empower residents to perform their own inspections. With resident-led inspections, property managers save valuable time and money.
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