02/15/2018
Landlord and Tenant Relations – Tip #12
I’ve worked for over 18 years now in Apartment/ Rental maintenance and I would like to share some of my quirks and some ideas to help keep the Landlord and Tenant relation healthy, as well it should be.
For the Tenants out there, I want to share that us Landlords are not wizards or mind readers – I know that’s funny- but I am serious. We don’t know that the toilet constantly runs, or fridge makes a weird bell banging sound when it shuts off, or that gutter overflows right in front of your door when it rains – unless you tell us. As a landlord I personally appreciate phone calls instead of texts or emails cause I get notified right away and I can let you know of my soonest possible chance to make it over there to address the problem(s). I realize not everyone can do this. But if you must use text or email, please request an acknowledgement text or email, that way you know that we are aware of your requests. If we don’t respond, assume we didn’t receive it and please try again.
Also, and this really important, when do you call please be specific as possible. No we don’t want to know about how Uncle Bob came over during a family cookout and afterwards the toilet doesn’t work. That is the most unhelpful thing – please no stories. Let me give an example. “Hello, this is Mrs. Smith from 555 High Spire Ave., apartment 2b. My toilet in the ‘hall bath’ is occasionally filling by itself and no one was using it. It’s not all the time but once in a while. Please let me know what your earliest convenience is to look at it. My number is (???) 555 – 1234. Thank you”. Ok, we are informed of location of property, location of issue in question, and a brief detailed description of what it is or is not doing (giving a sound description always helps), and giving us the ability to contact you if we need more information and to notify of scheduling. These are the things we need to know as maintenance/ Landlords. Though the stories are sometimes interesting, unless relevant to the situation, I advise against them.
Another thing is to keep the afterhours emergency contact # on your fridge or programed in your phone. During a pipe burst or other true emergency sometimes having to look for the number can be the most stressful thing in the world and of course speed is essential to stopping or correcting an emergency. If it’s a 911 emergency, obviously call them first, but please don’t forget to call us right afterward. Sometimes maintenance needs to assist the 911 crew to gain access to shut offs and notifying other residents in the building to evacuate, etc. The sooner we know, the sooner we can be there.
Ok, Landlord/ Managers, here are a few ideas to help assist with keeping up with maintenance requests and avoiding unnecessary aggravation – for you and the Tenant. The best thing is to keep an open communication rapport going at all times. If the tenant feels he/ she can talk to you and believes you really care about their concerns/ your property, they will be more apt to notify you of any issues. Of course you’re not required to listen to their life story, but show them by answering their phone calls and/ or returning them in a timely manner and addressing the maintenance issues promptly gives assurance that things are being taken care of.
One of the services we offer our tenants is a free generic pest control service (Roughly $75.00 every three months) by one our local certified pest control companies. The whole thing is twofold however, although the service its self is a nice perk, it gives us a chance to keep an eye on the properties from the inside as well. I’m not being nosy, however I will notice the signs of maintenance issues right away that either the resident didn’t realize was an issue or a maintenance concern. The cool thing I usually hear after finding a potential issue and fixing it, is that the resident is really appreciative of the attention and care I give to their home.
Note: If you don’t visit or walk in and around your properties every 3 months you are really asking for trouble in the long run.
Note: Make up fridge magnets with the daytime contact number as well as the afterhours/ emergency contact info in bold, easy to read font.
Ok, for my wrapping up comment:
Tenants -the property is not yours, it’s the landlords/ Landlords – It’s your house, but it their home.
May blessing be bestowed to all,
-Brandon B. Breneman
Breneman & Klinedinst Realty Mgt.
