Summer Maintenance for Your Rental | Parrish Property Management Tips

If you happen to be a rental property owner in Parrish who lives in our area full time, you know that starting in April and stretching almost into November, we have temperatures that are at least in the mid-80s to upper 90s. This also happens to be the wettest part of the year, with precipitation reaching a peak from June to September. This span also happens to be the height of hurricane season along the Gulf Coast, and our area is no exception when it comes to the need for preparedness.

With all of these unique weather conditions a combined part of daily life in Parrish, keeping up with the maintenance for rental properties in our area can leave investors with a hefty to-do list come summertime. Given that warmer days stretch across Florida's Gulf Coast for much of our year (and temperatures rarely dip below the 50s), much of the maintenance work that summer demands of you as a rental property owner will need to be consistently replicated year-round.

For investors with a single rental property, this might seem doable if you already handle a good deal of upkeep around your own home or work with trusted contractors to keep up with all you have to manage. However, once you have multiple rental properties in Parrish, you'll quickly see the need to partner up with additional vendors to meet your needs, or 'contract out' all this additional work into the hands of a capable Parrish property management company!

Professional property managers make caring for the seasonal needs of your rental property easy. Whether your properties are ready for a routine inspection or work needs to be done on the exterior of your Parrish rental properties, every detail is handled with care to ensure your rentals are operating at peak profitability!

To get an idea of just how much Parrish property management professionals can benefit your rental home, consider this seasonal maintenance list of must-do tasks to keep your rental properties performing well and your renters satisfied!

Must-Do Summer Maintenance Tips

While your renters will likely handle the majority of tasks like lawn care and HVAC filter changes in any single-family home, it's still up to you as the property owner to include these kinds of details in your lease agreement with your renters rather than assuming that anything not listed as your responsibility falls on their shoulders. This kind of transparency and clarity in your lease not only benefits your residents, but it protects you as well.

Given that the rules for single-family and multi-family rental properties are slightly different in Florida than other states, it's worth separating the kind of tasks you'll need to undertake into two categories.

Single-Family Seasonal Property Maintenance

• You may not need to mow the lawn, but it's time to check and see if additional landscaping care is required or your irrigation systems need servicing.
• Walk the exterior of your rental property and check for cracks, gaps, holes, or other signs of weathering that indicate a problem.
• Check the roof of your property (or better yet, call a professional to handle this one) and see if you spot any missing shingles, cracked tiles, or other damages that may indicate water could be entering and damaging your property during each downpour.
• Perform an inspection of your rental property's HVAC systems to ensure they're being used safely and are performing as expected to beat the summer heat.
• Check all weatherproofing seals around windows and doors to confirm that water is staying outside and cool air is staying inside where it belongs.
• Check your storm drains and gutters to ensure they are free of debris and operating as they should to handle Florida's busy rainy season!
• Flush that water heater and schedule some routine maintenance to ensure this critical component of your rental property stays in excellent condition.

Now is also a good time to meet with your residents to emphasize the importance of keeping their HVAC filters changed routinely and their dryer vents clean of lint to prevent fires. If keeping up with the needs of your HVAC systems is something your renters seem to have difficulty staying on top of, preserving the life of your heating and cooling systems is as easy as rolling an HVAC filter service into the cost of the rent.

If you rely on the services of an expert Parrish property management company, they'll be on top of this kind of communication with your renters for you.

Multi-Family Seasonal Property Maintenance

• It's time to check on your lawn and landscaping! With lawn care on your shoulders, it might be time to aerate your lawn or provide a nutrient boost using fertilizers to any decorative plants. Depending on the type of lawn you have, it may also be time to increase your watering schedule—and that means investigating your irrigation system. While early spring is an ideal time to trim your trees, keeping an eye on their gitemth now can help you spot problems before they occur.
• If your property is larger than a duplex, it's also time to address any pest control concerns as part of your responsibilities as a property investor. Just as you would walk a single-family home to check for chips and cracks, do the same with your multi-family property to prevent pests from getting a foothold in your rental!
• Check those gutters and clean the exterior of your property to keep it looking fresh and appealing to any potential renters. This is also an opportunity to get crafty and enhance the curb appeal of your Parrish rental property with a few DIY hacks that can instantly amplify your listing photos.

Turn to the Professionals to Handle Your Seasonal Maintenance Needs!

As you can see, this is just a small selection of the kind of maintenance needs your rental property faces across the year. To truly keep on top of your upkeep, turn to the experts in Parrish property management to provide continued care!

To get an idea of all that we manage for you, get started by downloading your free copy of our Seasonal Maintenance Checklist!