A commonly overlooked aspect of property and tenancy management is the need to conduct routine inspections throughout a tenancy. No matter the situation!
Why You Need TO Conduct A Mid-Term Rental Inspection NOW!
Mid-Term Rental Inspections Save You MONEY, TIME, and STRESS!
This responsibility you, as a landlord hold, is beneficial for both you and tenant.
You’ll get opportunities to visit your asset, to ensure it’s being looked after in all aspects as you’d look after your own home.
If for any reason there are any issues found on your visit, it’ll allow you to record it correctly, and look to address it efficiently. A much better solution than the alternative of it being left unreported, potentially worsening!
Use the opportunity of the mid-term rental inspection to have a conversation with the tenants to air out any concerns, and to educate them on correct etiquette so that there are no further issues further into their tenancy.
On the other hand, it’s a good opportunity for tenants to make you aware of potential issues with the property first-hand, you’ll be visiting in person to get a clear view of their raised concerns.
Gaining Access For A Mid-Term Rental Inspection
Gaining access for a mid-term rental inspection is similar to any other reason why you’d need to visit, follow the same procedure to stay within the tenant’s legal right to quiet enjoyment.
Make contact with your tenants to make them aware of your request to visit with at least 24 hours’ notice prior to your proposed visit.
You can make your request verbally but always look to reinforce it with written confirmation (email or posted letter) following your conversation with them. This will leave no doubt that the message has been sent across clearly, including the time and date for the intended visit.
Your mid-term rental inspection visit doesn’t needed to be accompanied, if the tenant is busy and satisfied for you to visit and do the process alone that’s fine too! If you manage the property you’ll likely have a copy of the key anyway…
But again, get confirmation of this approval in writing so there is no dispute or confusion relating to your visit.
In the unlikely instance, your tenant refuses your visit, try to be as accommodating as possible as it may be a simple fix to reschedule when they don’t have work or family commitments.
If the refusal to visit persists, you may need to consider what other factors may be at play for them to continuously say no… Do what you can to seek out that they haven’t got anything to hide, whether innocent or even criminal…
What’s involved in a Mid-term Rental Inspection, and how long should it take?
A mid-term rental inspection is very similar to a check-in rental inspection, you should have conducted one at the start of their tenancy.
In case you’re not already well-versed in this, take note of the following on the foundation of what your report should look like…
- Property address – Ensure the property address is correct and matching with exactly what it says on the tenancy agreement.
- Tenant name – Ensure the tenants’ names are correct and matching with their tenancy and ID documents.
- Embedded photographs – Photographs are taken of all aspects of the property that you have a financial interest in, take pictures of all areas, not just areas that you consider of concern.
- Description – For the areas of concern, in particular, make notes to describe the area of damage, measurements if necessary, and a description of the nature of the damage or issue.
- Date and time stamps – Having pictures and the entire document time and date stamped leaves no room for a dispute of when issues were found or asked to be rectified.
- Safety Alarm Testing – Technically a tenant’s responsibility, but whilst you’re at the property check smoke, heat, and carbon monoxide detectors as the duty of care to ensure they all work correctly without fault.
- Signed by the Lead Tenant – Get it signed by the lead tenant at the bare minimum for acknowledgement of the report, its shown condition, and your visit.
Cost Vs benefit of a Mid-term Rental Inspection
Taking time out to visit and conduct your report could take you anywhere up to an hour, depending on how thorough a report you produce, how long it takes to have conversations with the tenant, and the size of the property you’re inspecting.
Time is valuable, we know that.
But the importance of knowing the current standing of your property should be the first and foremost priority in your mind.
For example, if there is a leak in the guttering, knowing about it first-hand and getting it arranged to be fixed will be of importance to you.
However, if it’s left in disrepair for even a few days in a rainy reason (which is all the time in the UK), that rainwater can make its way into the soffits and fascia, and start to degrade the brickwork and plaster.
See the difference?
What could potentially be a simple fix for someone with a ladder, could result in further structural damage, with a possible back-to-brick rebuild, replaster, decorating etc.
This rule applies to many other areas that are susceptible to degradation, keep this in mind and inspect your asset 3-4 times a year!
What else?
Visit your property and conduct a mid-term rental inspection frequently, by working it around your own lifestyle or work commitments.
As I mentioned above, the worst thing to come of it is that you’ll lose some of your free time, the best to come out of it is that you’ll be ensuring your £xxx,000 property is being looked after well and you’ve not got a cause for concern!
But at the end of the day, you’ll conduct a Mid-term Rental Inspection and have peace of mind afterwards!
Abbey Property can help with all aspects to do with property management, and that includes mid-term inspections, as well as check-in and check-out inventories. Get in touch with one of our property experts to discuss where we can assist you!
