Owner Rental Preparation
Rental Preparation: When is your property ready to rent?
Your property needs to meet some basic criteria in order to become a rental.
It must be safe, fully functional and clean.
Rental Preparation: When is your property ready to rent?
Owner rental preparation is vital to attracting and keeping good tenants. Contact Hands On Homes to find out more about our incredible property management services that set us apart. Reasonable management fee, affordable contractors, highest rental rates, excellent lease that puts the onus on the tenants, pet rent to bring in more income, annual rent increase to keep up with inflation and tax increases, inspections to make sure the home is well-maintained, fair security deposit handling, fast turnovers to limit vacancy. Offering full or partial management packages, we can meet your specific property management needs. Other companies may promise the moon, but the more properties a manager has, the worse the service. Some managers have over 200 properties in their portfolio! Property management is a high-stress job resulting in high turnover rates. Don’t pay someone to get their experience at your expense! Find out more about our team and how we will help you manage your home the way we would manage our own. We will gladly provide references from our happy clients. If you have further questions about owner rental preparation, contact us!
Safety First
Windows and doors must be in good working order as every home must have at least two exits. Make sure all locks work.
Smoke detectors on each level of the home including the basement is the standard in NOVA per the fire marshal. Make sure they are not expired (if it's yellow, replace it) and replace batteries.
Carbon monoxide detectors are not required in Virginia, however, if a tenant requests one, the owner must install one at the tenant's expense.
Mold is a 4-letter word in property management. Mold can cause serious health conditions to occupants and expensive damage to property. Every move in inspection must state whether mold has been observed, and if so, it must be remediated or the tenant can decide not to move in. Look for it, remove it. Let us know if you need help.
Lead paint is in issue in homes built before 1978. If this applies to you, your lease will include a lead-based paint disclosure. You do not have to test for it, but it's important to be aware of.
Stair railings inside and out must be secure and not jiggly.
Maintenance/Repairs
All systems must be in good working order including heating/cooling, ventilation, plumbing, electrical, gutters and all kitchen appliances.
Fireplaces do not need to work as we list them as "for decoration only" but it is good to have them ready to use if they are usable.
Plumbing includes all toilets, baths, sinks and drains. We recommend replacing the valve & flapper kit prior to renting out your property since this is a simple repair that will save you money. Make sure all drains drain freely. Consider supplying drain filters if the washing machine drains into the utility sink or if any drain stoppers are missing in sinks or tubs, provide a rubber stopper.
HVAC: change the air filters and make sure your manager knows all the filter locations & sizes.
Electricity: make sure all the lightbulbs are working including inside appliances and outside the home. Check outlets, switches and ceiling fans and make sure all outlets have a face plate.
Walls: Bright, clean walls are more attractive to prospective tenants. Resist the urge to patch and paint, leaving the walls spotty. Paint the whole wall.
Windows: Make sure they are not broken, are fully functional and replace any damaged screens.
Vents: get the dryer vent cleaned and vacuum out all air flow vents including the bathroom vents.
Yard: schedule a cleanup so it looks great for marketing photos and improves curb appeal.
Sparkling Clean
For showings, it's important to tidy up: vacuum, clean the kitchen and bathrooms, make the beds, remove refrigerator magnets, move boxes to perimeter, remove bath towels, empty wastebaskets, clean mirrors, etc. Deep clean tub caulk/grout so the home feels clean. Washing the windows prior to showings makes everything shine brighter.
At move in, the home needs to sparkle to be ready for the tenants. Since tenants must have the home professionally cleaned at move out, they expect the home to be professionally cleaned at move in. We have a list of cleaning companies that we recommend so you can feel confident the home is up to our standards and if new tenants find anything amiss, our cleaners will return to finish the job.
Please note, if a home had a lot of traffic or work performed during the listing period, a surface clean will also need to be arranged prior to move in.
Do not leave any cleaning products or cleaning supplies behind. Remove shelf liners and plugins. Tenants don't want your stuff. It's important to deliver the home to them like a blank slate and in a baseline condition that sets expectations of how you would like them to return the home to you.
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Contact Info
10521 Rosehaven St SW #210C
Fairfax, VA 22030
info@handsonhomespm.com
571-393-1283
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All Rights Reserved
Rental preparation is key to a smooth transition from owner to tenant. Hands On Homes helps our Landlords prepare for property management.