How Landlords can reduce maintenance
Maintenance costs can significantly reduce a landlord's profit margin, and I have witnessed several landlords suffer from it.
It is often landlords that have adopted a policy of 'just give it a coat of paint' suffer from bad tenants, void periods, compensating tenants for periods without heating, claims against them from tenants for damage to property or persons etc. It's just not worth it.
One main thing to consider when looking at the start of your property management journey is the likelihood of potential maintenance.
Older more individual properties can often generate more capital appreciation over the years for landlords but they can conversely however can cost you dearly in maintenance if not managed correctly at the start.
With new energy efficiency regulations coming in for properties, any that are not up to certain energy ratings will need considerable investment. Also, be aware of modern properties that have been butchered by DIY enthusiasts. These can cost a fortune and be a complete can of worms. Thorough examinations and safety /building checks should be done to know exactly what you are taking on.
But if you've already got your property, what can you do? I've always found that the landlords who took on a property and embarked on a thorough refurbishment at the outset made much more profit in the long run, as they were not forever tormented by the M word.
Get it all done at the outset; find out what is wrong or is going to go wrong at the beginning when the property is empty.
Letting property is a business, and due care and attention is required during the
set-up to get it off to the right start. If you can't afford the refurbishment, then buy a newer or smaller property.
So my advice here is to buy only what you can afford to do up properly, seek advice on works and get them done before you let a tenant near the place. Repairs can add up to being so much more expensive than a complete replacement in the end.
They can also lead to tenants moving out due to being sick and tired
of faults at the property, leading to a continual turnaround of tenants and excessive voids/ /letting fees. Prevention is always better than cure!
