Rental property maintenance is a necessary evil for landlords. Whether you have a short or long-term rental, providing a thorough cleaning between tenants maintains the value of your property, while ensuring you meet the standards of the landlord and tenant act.
In this article, we offer a step-by-step guide on rental property maintenance from our professional maid services in Toronto to help you keep your tenants happy.
Step #1: Use a Move-in Checklist
It all starts at the move-in stage. To identify new issues that might occur during the tenant’s occupancy, it helps to have a move-in checklist you create together. This allows you to note things like carpet stains, damaged tiles in the bathroom or kitchen, floor damage, etc., that won’t necessarily interfere with the tenant’s enjoyment of the unit but also that you aren’t planning to fix.
The list ensures the tenants aren’t held responsible for the damage they didn’t cause and avoids disputes when they move out. It’s part of an effective maintenance plan, as it also identifies issues you can choose to repair to keep the unit in good shape.
Step #2: Conduct an Inspection
When leases won’t be renewed, inspect the unit with the current tenant, using your move-in checklist. If you see possible new damage, check the list and determine if the damage warrants the tenant losing their deposit. This also allows you to identify what would be considered normal wear and tear.
These are the items you might want to correct prior to showing the unit to potential new tenants, such as painting the walls, replacing the carpet, getting new appliances, replacing window screens, etc.
Step #3: Work With a Professional Maid Service in Toronto
Engaging a professional maid service specializing in apartment moves simplifies the move-out/move-in process. They will create a comprehensive task list to follow for tenant turnover. You can also inform them of your expected tenant turnover dates in advance so they can add those cleaning jobs to their schedule.
You can avoid the struggle of trying to get units clean between tenants and set a schedule and standard cleaning routine that ensures your units are always tenant-ready. Professional move-out maid services in Toronto should include the following:
Bathrooms
- Bathtub and shower enclosure
- Inside, outside, and behind toilets
- Lights, mirrors, sink, countertops
- Vacuuming the ceiling fan cover
- Light switches and door knobs
- Vacuuming and mopping floors
- Wiping vanity inside and out
Bedrooms
- Wiping switches and door knobs
- Vacuuming or mopping floors
Kitchen
- Cleaning inside and out the fridge, oven, and stove top
- Polishing the fridge front
- Cleaning the microwave inside and out
- Scrubbing the backsplash, countertops, and cupboard fronts
- Scrubbing the sink
- Wiping light switches and door knobs
- Vacuuming and mopping floors
- Wiping inside cabinets and drawers
Living and Dining Rooms
- Wiping switches and door knobs
- Vacuuming and/or mopping floors
Laundry Room
- Clearing air vent and lint trap
- Wiping down the washer and dryer
- Cleaning floors
Also, throughout the unit, all baseboards, windowsills/ledges, and walls will be wiped down and cleaned.
Step #4: Consider Hiring a Property Manager
This isn’t necessary for all landlords, but if you have more than one unit or a popular short-term unit with tight turnovers, a property manager might be worth the investment.
If your budget is tight, working with professional maid services in Toronto is a more affordable option, as the supervisor can manage the cleaning on your behalf.
Step #5: Share a Move-Out Cleaning Checklist With Tenants
Not all tenants understand exactly what cleaning responsibilities fall on their shoulders before they leave. It helps to share a move-out cleaning checklist with tenants so they understand what they have to do to meet the standards of the lease agreement.
You can recommend your maid service in Toronto to tenants who might not have time to deal with the cleaning. This kills two birds with one stone in the tenant turnover process.
Step #6: Keep Up With Tenant Maintenance Requests
It’s hard not to feel that some tenants are high-maintenance if they seem to have ongoing maintenance requests. However, considering each request and taking care of it in a timely manner is a good practice for landlords. First, it ensures you provide a safe and clean environment for tenants as per the landlord and tenant act, and second, it keeps your rental units in tip-top shape.
Little, yet time-consuming issues such as torn window screens, broken overhead lights, malfunctioning appliances, etc., all contribute to tenant comfort and the appearance and appeal of your units. By responding to such requests, you protect your investment, while reducing the effort required to get the unit up to standards for new tenants.
Step #7: Take the Deep Cleaning Route
Deep cleaning is the best way to prepare your units for the next tenants. Even if the tenants moving were extremely clean and careful with their move-out cleaning process, a deep cleaning ensures hard-to-reach places like baseboards, oven cleaning, fridge cleaning, window cleaning, etc. prepare the unit so it is move-in ready.
Deep cleaning routines include those additional steps that you should take to create a safe and welcoming environment free of mould spores, bacteria, grime, and allergens that accumulate and can’t be completely removed with a basic cleaning
Step #8: Arrange for Appliance Maintenance
Even if the appliances are in working order, it helps to arrange a routine service call for the stove, fridge, and washer and dryer. The technician will do a thorough check of all appliances, make repairs as required, and ensure the appliances are safe for use. It also ensures your warranties remain intact. If the unit is a house, it is crucial to have the HVAC system and water heater assessed and maintained.
Landlords have a legal responsibility to provide access to hot and cold water, electricity, heat, and fuel to tenants. If you have long-term tenants renewing the lease, it’s best to perform annual maintenance on all appliances to avoid costly appliance replacements. Annual maintenance also improves efficiency to save costs on energy, while reducing the risk of needing repairs or replacement when new tenants move in.
Contact the Cleaning Experts
Having a partner in cleaning makes the move-out/move-in process easier. At Maid4Condos, our move-out/move-in maid services in Toronto allow you to customize your cleaning process based on the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, and square footage.
We’ll provide an affordable quote for a thorough rental unit cleaning to help keep tenants happy and maintain the value of your property. Call Maid4Condos today at (647) 822-0601 or contact us here.
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