Owning an investment property can be rewarding, but it comes with its fair share of responsibilities. One of the most critical aspects of property ownership is maintenance. Regular maintenance not only preserves the value of your investment but also keeps tenants happy and reduces long-term costs. Here’s why maintenance is important and some key areas to focus on.
Why Maintenance Matters
Protects Property Value: Regular maintenance helps prevent small issues from turning into costly repairs. Maintaining your property helps to retain value over time, making it more attractive to potential buyers or tenants.
Attracts Quality Tenants: A property in good condition is more appealing to prospective tenants. Quality tenants are likely to pay more for a well-kept home and often opt to stay longer, reducing turnover and vacancy rates.
Reduces Operating Costs: Preventive maintenance can save money in the long run. By addressing issues early, you can avoid the high costs associated with emergency repairs and replacements. There is nothing worse than a toilet that stops working on a Sunday and having to pay for an after-hours plumber!
Enhances Tenant Satisfaction: A well-maintained property provides a comfortable living environment. Happy tenants are more likely to renew their tenancies and look after your property themselves if you invest in maintaining it for them.
Key Areas of Maintenance
Routine Inspections: Aspire conducts routine inspections every 12 weeks to identify issues early. We look for signs of wear and tear and moisture problems and note any other things that need attention. It’s important that you carry out any recommended maintenance – this spending is also tax deductible.
Heat Pumps: Regularly service heating and cooling systems to ensure they operate efficiently. Change filters and schedule professional check-ups at least once a year. Having a fully functional heat source in the main living area is a compliance requirement. Getting your heat pump annually serviced will extend its useful life and ensure any warranty is maintained. If your heat pump fails, you have to replace it to comply with the RTA. We can arrange this on your behalf with our maintenance team.
Plumbing: We check for leaks and drips in visible pipes, taps, and toilets. We encourage tenants to clean drains regularly. It’s important to get any leaking taps and pipes fixed promptly.
Exterior Maintenance: Keep the property’s exterior in good shape by cleaning gutters, landscaping, and checking for cracks in the foundation. Ensure the roof is in good condition and the paint is not peeling. Keep your property clean.
Exterior Timber: You should ensure that the paint is well maintained across all of your property, particularly if you have it on wooden window frames and doors. The paint is part of the building’s waterproof envelope, and any flaking paint will allow water to penetrate the timber, leaving you with costly timber repairs.
How Can Aspire Help?
At Aspire we don’t add our management fee to maintenance bills. Because of this, we aren’t incentivised to carry out maintenance, so you can rest assured that any maintenance we inform you about actually needs to be done. We also have an in-house maintenance team, which gives us oversight to ensure that jobs are completed to a high standard, as we are very interested in maintaining our customer relationships. Our maintenance team also has over ten years of experience.
We use Tapi, an online platform, to communicate with tenants, contractors, and clients about maintenance jobs. We place QR codes in every rental property to make it easy for tenants to let us know when maintenance is needed. We assess each request and get the owner’s approval before commencing a job quoted above the agreed “maintenance spend without approval” amount.
Flooding Risk Mitigation.
Part of our service is ensuring that adequate and proactive property maintenance is carried out at your property – this includes annual gutter cleaning services.
Most house insurance policies require you to maintain your home, and after the flooding event last year, insurance companies declined claims if the gutters were blocked or showed a lack of adequate maintenance.
Tower Insurance specifically mentions gutter cleaning on its website as part of what is required to keep your insurance coverage valid:
“Blocked gutters can lead to blocked pipes, rainwater leaking into your ceiling and flooding, making a wet winter even more miserable. Cleaning your gutters regularly will also help prevent rusting and extend their life.
Most house insurance policies require you to maintain your home – cleaning your gutters falls into this category. Imagine blocked gutters causing major damage, and then having your claim declined.” – Tower insurance. (https://www.tower.co.nz/discover/clean-your-gutters/)
Annual gutter cleaning is recommended as a minimum, and this is our schedule unless you have already agreed to a more frequent cycle.
Cost:
One-storey properties = $240+GST
Two-storey properties = $295+GST.
Our Gutters and Housewashing team conducts these works and provides before-and-after photos that we pass on to you.
Housewashing.
How often do you wash your car? I bet it’s more often than your house, but your rental property is likely worth 20 times more! We suggest a house wash every one to three years to keep it clean, protect the surfaces, and clear cobwebs and debris.
Prices:
1 Storey 3 bedroom $349+GST
1 Storey 3+ bedroom $389+GST
2 Storey 3 bedroom $399+GST
2 Storey 3+ bedroom $469+GST
Maintaining your investment property is not just about preserving its value; it’s about providing your tenants with a safe, comfortable, and attractive living environment. By prioritising regular maintenance, you can enhance tenant satisfaction, reduce costs, and ensure compliance with regulations.
Contact your property manager today to arrange any maintenance jobs you’d like done!
