Vacation rental maintenance goes beyond scrubbing floors and wiping counters to keep your property spotless between guests. It also extends to ensuring everything is working as it’s supposed to. After all, a well-maintained property not only delivers unparalleled guest experiences but also minimizes your operational costs in the long run while preserving the value of your investment.
In this article, we’re dishing out 8 property maintenance tips to keep your vacation rentals in top shape.
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8 property maintenance tips successful managers swear by
1. Create a property maintenance checklist
Building a vacation rental maintenance checklist to stay organized and ensure no part of your property ever gets overlooked tops our property maintenance tips list. You want to create a detailed checklist and divide it into weekly, monthly, seasonal and annual tasks.
Here’s what we recommend:
Weekly tasks
- Scrub the bathrooms, clean those floors, and sanitize high-touch surfaces and more to keep your property clean between guests.
- Replace consumable items to ensure your guests have everything they need, from toiletries and coffee pods to paper towels and dishwashing supplies.
- Test light switches, appliances, faucets, locks and other facilities to ensure they are working properly and replace what’s not.
- Take stock of all the amenities you have on your property, such as linen, towels, and cookware, to ensure everything is intact and replace what’s damaged.
Monthly tasks
- Take a look at your plumbing fixtures to see if there are signs of leaks or blockages.
- Test your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to see if they are working correctly, and replace batteries if needed.
- Check out your HVAC filters and clean or replace them to ensure your guests enjoy good air quality.
- Inspect grout lines in bathrooms and kitchens for stubborn dirt, gunk and grime and also be on the lookout for signs of damage.
Seasonal tasks
- Service your air conditioners right before summer and your heating systems before winter to get them guest-ready.
- Check for cracks, drafts, or gaps in windows and doors to improve insulation so your heating or cooling systems won’t have to work harder than they should.
- Give your gutters a deep clean to prevent blockages that may cause water damage.
- Take time to inspect your patios, pools and decks for signs of wear and tear and get them fixed if necessary.
Annual Tasks
- Schedule a professional roofing, plumbing and electrical system check for your property.
- Repaint high-traffic areas to keep your property looking fresh and clean.
- Give your carpets and upholstery a deep clean.
- Review your inventory, replace what’s damaged and upgrade outdated items.
2. Prioritize preventative maintenance
Our next property maintenance tip is staying ahead of repair with preventative vacation rental maintenance to prevent problems before they happen. What does this mean for you? You won’t have to worry about unexpected issues that make your property uninhabitable and cost an arm and leg to fix in the future.
Taking a proactive approach to property management maintenance will save you a lot of money and keep guests from encountering inconveniences. Here are some of the areas you should keep an eye on:
Plumbing systems
That slow drip, leaking faucet or patch of healthy grass in your lawn shouldn’t go ignored, and it can result in serious damage that will be expensive to fix. Regularly inspect under sinks, around the toilet and anywhere near water heaters for leaks and also check to ensure that water is draining correctly.
Appliances
Taking care of your appliances not only extends their lifespan but also ensures they are functioning at peak performance, lowering your energy bill in the long run. So, clean those refrigerator coils, make sure your dryer vents are in good condition, and descale that coffee machine when needed.
HVAC systems
Your heating, cooling and ventilation systems play a significant role in guest comfort. Therefore, you need to ensure they are working properly, especially since they are notorious for using more energy than they should if they are not functioning efficiently. Therefore, you should schedule bi-annual check-ups and services, especially right before peak season.
3. Perfect your turnover process
Getting your property guest-ready should go beyond surface-level cleaning. You need your property to look and feel like new for each guest when they step in.
Here’s a simple checklist you can follow to improve your turnover process:
Deep-clean
Guests always notice cleanliness first, and as a rule of thumb, you must ensure your property is spotless. Our pro property maintenance tip? Scrub every corner of your bathrooms and kitchens, vacuum under furniture, and ensure every mirror and glass surface is squeaky clean.
Dirty or poorly cleaned spaces can put guests off, even if the rest of your property is perfect. The last thing you need is a negative review.
Restock
There’s nothing worse than realizing that you’ve run out of toilet paper mid-trip, let alone realizing that there’s not enough dish soap to take care of the full sink. Therefore, ensuring that your property has enough necessities before each stay should be a priority for you.
Throwing in something thoughtful like a mini toothpaste, body lotion, bath soap and shampoo is always a nice surprise as it’s not uncommon for people to forget to pack them when going on a vacation.
Inspect
That wobbly chair or malfunctioning microwave could be one use away from becoming a minor inconvenience or serious disaster. Therefore, you should make it a habit to check for missing or damaged items in your property and ensure that all appliances are in good working order. The last thing you want is a bad review or, worse, a liability lawsuit due to an injury.
Touch up
Set the mood for your guests before they arrive to make them feel welcomed and excited about their stay the moment they walk in. It could be something as simple as opening the curtains to let natural light peak through, putting a fresh bouquet of flowers to give a fresh look or spraying a good air freshener to give them a memorable olfactory experience when they walk in.
4. Conduct seasonal maintenance
Different seasons come with different problems. Our next property maintenance tips is carrying out vacation rental maintenance tasks based on the season. For example, you would want to power-wash your decks, patios and driveways during the summer season and ensure your outdoor spaces look impeccable by planting seasonal flowers, trimming bushes and mulching beds. If you have a pool, take care of the filters, waterlines and poolside furniture to make it look inviting.
In the fall and winter months, you would need to winterize your outdoor plumbing and clear your gutters to prevent damage if it snows in your area. Stocking up on de-icing salt, snow shovels and other items will also be much appreciated by your guests.
5. Take care of your outdoor spaces
Curbside appeal matters, too, and neglecting your outdoor area can leave a bad impression on guests, even if the interior is immaculate. Here are a few things to add to your list of property maintenance tips to keep them looking pristine.
- Mow the lawn, trim hedges, and add fresh mulch to garden beds.
- Clean and inspect outdoor seating, tables, and umbrellas for wear or damage.
- Replace dim or broken bulbs to keep pathways and entryways well-lit.
- Clean your grills and fireplaces thoroughly and ensure they are in safe working condition.
6. Always be ready for emergency repairs
No matter how well you prepare, emergencies will happen, and in most cases, when you least expect them. Our expert property maintenance tips? Always be prepared to take care of them to ensure issues are resolved quickly and with minimal disruption to your guests.
- Have a roster of trusted local handymen, plumbers, and electricians who offer 24/7 services.
- Have an emergency toolkit with basic tools and supplies like wrenches, fuses, plumbing tape, and lightbulbs.
- Set aside an emergency repair fund to weather you when emergencies happen so you won’t have to strain your finances.
- Create a quick guide with clear steps for your guests to follow when common problems occur.
7. Leave inspections to the professionals
While going the DIY route can be tempting, it can only go so far. That is why you should invest in professional inspections on a regular basis to help you identify hidden issues while ensuring your property aligns with safety standards.
Here are four critical inspections to add to your list of property maintenance tips:
Roofing
Look out for leaks, loose shingles and other structural issues that may affect the integrity of your property.
Electrical
Ensure your wiring is up to code and can handle guest usage to prevent inconveniences or accidents.
Plumbing
Inspect pipes, water heaters, and drainage systems to ensure there’s nothing to worry about.
Pest control
Schedule pest inspections regularly to prevent infestations that may disrupt guest comfort.
8. Use technology to simplify maintenance
Staying on top of every aspect of property management maintenance that needs to be taken care of can be overwhelming, and it’s easy for some tasks to slip through the cracks. Our expert property maintenance tip? Invest in automation tools to make life easier.
Consider self-check-in solutions for Airbnb hosts to make it easier for guests, cleaners, inspectors and handymen to get access to your property. Leak detectors can also make it easy for you to catch potential water damage early in bathrooms and kitchens. For the safety and security of your assets, you may want to invest in security cameras to keep an eye on your outdoor spaces.
Another property maintenance tip is using property management software to make it easy to delegate maintenance tasks and check their progress so you never miss a thing. Pair these property maintenance tips with task management tools, a unified inbox to keep track of messages and revenue management tools to stay on top of your maintenance expenses and your business will run like a well-oiled machine.
To conclude
A lot goes into property management maintenance than just keeping your vacation rental property functional. As a property manager, you not only want to create a great environment for your guests while also preserving the value of your property.
Follow these property maintenance tips, and you’ll be well set to minimize the surprise of emergency repairs, keep your property in top condition and deliver phenomenal guest experiences, allowing you to secure those positive reviews.
