How to Verify That Property Repair Requests Are Legitimate
Protecting your investments requires constant vigilance. When you own rental homes, that involves carefully screening tenants, monitoring expenses, and keeping tabs on your property management team. Reviewing repair requests and expenses is only natural. But how can you confirm that each repair request is legitimate, necessary, and handled in the best way possible?
Verifying property repair requests is a natural part of monitoring your rental homes. Here are the practical steps you can take to ensure each repair is valid and correct.
Follow Up With Your Property Manager
When you see a repair request that you want to verify, the first step is to get in touch with your property manager. It’s always fine to ask for context on a repair request or a reported repair expense. Your property manager can provide context for the situation, the original problem, and why the repair was necessary.
They can share information on the contractors hired for the repair, their findings after an inspection, and the repair itself. If this aligns with your knowledge of the property, you may feel more confident about the situation or seek further verification that will align with the property manager’s report.
Communicate with the Tenant
You can also check in with the tenant. Ask them about their recent repair request and what seems to be the problem. You can get the full story of their issue, from the first signs of trouble to their decision to request a repair. Hearing from the tenant can help you confirm that the issue is real and how it developed from their perspective. Tenants don’t have anything to gain from false repair requests, and they often appreciate it when their landlord takes the time to learn about any problems they’ve had with the house.
Ask for Evidence of the Work Done
The next step you can take is to request evidence of the work done. There are several ways to verify that contractors worked on the issue, provided a report, and completed an invoice in alignment with their own business procedures. The contractors provide a third party verification that there was a legitimate problem, they worked on that problem, and then provided a standard invoice.
You can ask to see the inspection report or to be forwarded any email communications with the contractor. You can also get in touch directly to ask about the recent work they did or are scheduled to do on your property.
Understand the Issue and Repair History
The better you understand each property, the easier you can verify repair requests. Some of your houses will have old appliances that are more likely to need repairs. Some may have old plumbing that is prone to clogs or leaks. Each home has its own maintenance requirements and patterns. For some properties, you may already have a clear view of their maintenance needs. Newer acquisitions may be less familiar, and you can benefit from looking over the inspection reports and the growing pattern of maintenance requirements for each house.
Get the Big Picture with Statement Reviews
Another way to verify property repair requests is to routinely review your property management statements. This can help you get the big picture regarding patterns, expenses, and what is reasonable. It can give you a view of the typical rate of repairs for one property or for your portfolio of properties. It can help you estimate reasonable expenses over a year or five years rather than assessing one repair at a time.
It can still be useful to verify individual repairs, especially if the request was unexpected or if you are concerned about the maintenance of each home. However, getting a clear view of what is normal can help ease your concerns each time a repair request appears on your property management statements.
Stay Connected to Your Properties with Leaf Management
At Leaf Management, we help property owners enjoy full understanding of each property we manage, including maintenance patterns and verification of repair requests. If you want to keep your thumb on the pulse of your investment portfolio and enjoy clarity regarding each expense, we will ensure you stay in the loop while enjoying the convenience and efficiency of professional property management. Contact us today to learn more.