Property Management-Chatsworth
CHATSWORTH PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
VAN NUYS PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
ENCINO PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
GRANADA HILLS PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
MAINTENANCE, REPAIRS & EMERGENCIES
Any homeowner knows that you can’t ignore your property. If you do, everything starts to fall apart. Rain seeps under old roof shingles and damages the ceiling. Appliances break down and furnaces wear out. Faucets drip, wires fray, and wood rots. It’s the same with rental property — you have to repair and maintain it. In this chapter you’ll learn the difference between maintenance, repairs, and emergencies, your rights in emergencies, how to schedule repair work with your tenant, and how to find the right help.
Understanding the difference between repairs, maintenance, and emergencies is essential for landlords. Tasks in each category have completely different time frames for being taken care of. In general, think of repairs as fixing things that break and maintenance as routinely keeping up the property. Emergencies, obviously, are situations that need immediate attention. In an emergency, you also have a different set of rules about entering your tenant’s home without permission when he isn’t there.
According to the dictionary, to repair means “to restore by replacing a part or putting together what’s torn or broken.” There are innumerable things around the house that need repair — dripping faucets, leaking and plugged toilets, cracked or broken windows, malfunctioning furnaces and water heaters, refrigerators that won’t stay cold, handrails that pull free of the wall, and dry, cracked putty that falls off window frames. Spend a few minutes thinking about it and you’ll have a list of repairs around the house that fills several pages.
If your tenant or a guest breaks something in the apartment, such as a window, it is the tenant’s responsibility to pay for the cost of the repair. You are responsible for repairs that occur when parts get old through normal wear and tear or haven’t been maintained properly.
Most repairs are not urgent. You can let a faucet drip for a day or a week or even longer if you don’t mind an increase in your water bill. It might get worse if you ignore it and it will certainly cost more because of increased usage; but you can fix the leak when the time is right for you.
There’s a difference between a leak in your home and your tenant’s home, however. Tenants don’t like procrastination, especially if it’s a recurring trait in their landlords. So when she asks you to repair something, and you don’t do it in a reasonable length of time, the tenant might decide you are unresponsive and uncaring. If you have a habit of putting off repairs it might persuade your tenant to find a new apartment when the lease expires.
Even though most repairs are not urgent, some should be undertaken within a day or two after they’ve been reported to you. For example, if a handrail comes loose and you delay fixing it and then if your tenant or a guest falls down the stairs and is injured, you are liable for neglecting to repair your property. Likewise, if a furnace breaks down, it should be repaired within twenty-four hours if it’s cold outdoors. Otherwise you’re failing to keep the apartment habitable.
By Judy Tremore and Deborah Boersma Zondervan
Since 1946 the Carnahan name has had a reputation for honest and ethical Real Estate Property Management services in the San Fernando Valley, Santa Clarita Valley, Burbank/Glendale, Los Angeles, Westside and Conejo Valley areas.
The reason for our success is helping owners like you when they need it. Below is a partial list of property management services we provide to help you protect your real estate investment.
- Tenant placement
- Tenant screening (including: credit check, landlord and employment verification, social security trace report, California eviction check and criminal check)
- Regular property inspections
- Accounting and landlord bill payment
- Monthly financial reporting
- Maintenance service and supervision (we use only proven independent vendors)
- Collections
- Evictions
- We supply all the necessary forms to meet California’s Landlord/Tenant laws
- 24 hour emergency phone service
- Advertising to the broadest tenant base possible
Call or e-mail us today for more information. We’re ready to get started!
Carnahan Property Management services Woodland Hills,West Hills, Calabasas, Canoga Park, Tarzana, Reseda, Topanga, Encino, Northridge, Van Nuys,North Hills,Chatsworth, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, North Hollywood, West Hollywood, San Fernando Valley, Granada Hills, Mission Hills, Simi Valley, West Lake Village, Agoura,Toluca Lake, Valley Village, Burbank. Call us at (818) 884-1500 and check if we can service your area.
