When managing a Humble rental property, it’s paramount not to miscalculate its exterior image. How a rental home appears on the outside can really transform its property values, not including the home’s curb appeal. It just makes sense to painstakingly govern the exterior elements of your rental home and to anticipate that your tenants will assist in making it more presentable.
If your concept of a “nice” exterior is different from what your tenant feels, hassles can occur. You cannot please everyone and there will be renters who will not be satisfied with managing their yard– they may want to revamp or add to the rental home’s exterior features. With do-it-yourself home improvements a popular fad nowadays, there will be an increasing number of tenants that will attempt to build “improvements” with or without your permission.
In case your tenant feels that a patio umbrella isn’t sufficient – instead, they prefer a pergola. As much as it may seem harmless enough to let them build one in the backyard, this is a hotbed for permit violations, damage to the property, and even personal injuries. (If someone was hurt you may have a major legal problem on your hands, above everything else.) Broken sprinkler or gas lines, damaged siding, and poor workmanship can all make for pricey repairs and turn the garden into a treacherous area.
This also applies for other home improvements, such as painting, replacing the garage door or adding a deck or porch. Unique personal preferences and/or low-quality remodeling lowers property values, making it harder to rent out. In a nutshell, it just isn’t a worthy approach to have your tenants make the renovations all by themselves.
The best strategy is to stop home “improvement” projects before they start. Craft clear language within the lease to state that tenants are not approved to build and install permanent changes to your Humble rental property. It is also imperative to survey your property regularly, confirming that a sneaky tenant hasn’t taken matters into their own hands. Indisputably, this takes time away from accomplishing other things.
That’s the time when you should get the phone and give Real Property Management Avitus a call. We provide regular property evaluations created to terminate unauthorized tenant improvements in their tracks. If you are interested in learning more, please contact us online or by phone at 281-570-6357.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
