"tenant routine inspection report"

[TheCamel]

So tell me, seriously, is this the tenant's job, or the PM's job ?

We got a notice of inspection, which is fair enough.. more than 30 days notice. Suits me.
It had an attached page:
Please check and leave this list on the kitchen benchL:

"are there any leaks under the sink"
"are there any leaks in the bathroom basins"
"are there any leaks from the shower"
"are there any leaks in or around toilet"
"are there any leaks from the HWS"
"are there any leaks from the roof onto the carpet"

are there any faults with this, or that. are there flyscreens missing ? have you changed batteries in the smoke alarm. do the smoke alarms work (we
won't even go into the fact that we don't have one...)


To me, it just seems like almost EVERYTHING on this list, would be the responsibility of the PM to check. I'd definitely expect mine to do so, and not send the tenant a list.
I mean, sure, it's stuff that we'd obviously notice, and tell the PM about anyway.. but most of it is stuff i'd tell them about immediately.. not wait for an inspection...?

 

[kaf]

Hi Camel

I can see where they are coming from, given that some faults are hard to pick up by an inspection (such as leaks after rain). But a simple: "please let us know if there are any leaks in bathroom etc. or other faults that you have noticed recently and mark them on the list below" and then give you the list would have been a better way to go (rather than you going through the list).

I think a lot of tenants think of inspections as a check on how they are treating the property (that's at least what I thought when I was renting), rather than an opportunity for preventive maintenance for the place.

We just have new tenants and one of them happens to work as a property manager. We now keep getting these lists of things to fix and intitally that annoyed me. But I can see that this is going to prevent long-term damage that would be much harder to fix (especially when it comes to water damage).

Just my thoughts

kaf

 

[TheCamel]

obviously though - if i noticed a water leak, i'd let them know..
I already told them about the toilet that constantly ran.. then fixed it myself.

I see and understand your point about the inability for routine checks to pick up some of that stuff, but alot of it is stuff they should be checking.
Like 'are any flyscreens missing"

****, look at the bloody windows yourself.

 

[cgw]

I questioned my PM about what she does when she does the inspections as I was concerned about water leaks, gutters, vents being cleaned. Her answer was, "We do what is on the inspection sheet" I checked the sheet, and it just had a heading Maintenance. So I wonder what do they do.
I have a friend who is a PM in WA and she said she physically checks all taps under sinks, running loo, grout and sealant around tiles, water marks, vents in exhaust fans etc, gutters, down pipes etc.
I have decided to use this as an Interview Question for new PMs, "How do you inspect the properties"
One of my IPs had a high water bill, the loo was running, the tennant did not mention it, and the PM missed it.

 

[firstmillion]

I have decided to use this as an Interview Question for new PMs, "How do you inspect the properties"

Good point. Try and get a sample inspection sheet from the PM. This would give you an idea how through the inspection would be.

Cheers

 

[Xenia]

Inspection report's should be a pm's responsibility but it looks like they are trying to pass the responsibility to you. Hope this is a side thing to the inspection they will do and are not relying totally on the tenant!

 

[TheCamel]

im hoping i'm there for the inspection, just so i can observe..

 

[twobobsworth]

I wonder if this is a libility issue. If you get flooded and the PM says how long has it been leaking, you reply ever since you moved in, maybe it then becomes your responsibility for repair.

 

[TheCamel]

A) if there was a leak I couldn't deal with, I would tell the agent straight away anyway. Anytime I mention anything to the agent, I email it, with receive and read receipts, and also cc it to myself and my partner..
so they can't say they enver got it.
I save all the receipts too

B) cause like i'd say "yea, it's been doing that for 3 months" .. "it just happened.."

 

[crest133]

What a great idea. It prompts the tenant to tell the PM if there is a problem, which enables the PM to fix anything quickly thereby reducing collateral damage and eliminating the possibility of later tenant claims of poor maintenance. It clearly demonstrates a good landlord attitude to looking after the tenant's comfort and the property maintenance, very handy in case of Tribunal disputes. Could've used that to great effect myself a few times. Wish I'd thought of it.
cheers
crest133