» Property Maintenance

Apartment maintenance involves maintaining the physical premises of the residence in a clean and hygienic way. It also involves collection of payments from the tenants and other related work, some administrative work and ensuring a smooth working relationship between the owner and the tenants of the house. The job of keeping the premises clean necessitates the professional to look into each and every problematic situation that might arise in the house on a daily basis and solve them. Here are some problems that commonly arise.

• Plumbing problems are very major for any house and they need to be attended to instantly. There might be problems with the toilet, the bathtub or the sink. Toilet paper might get clogged in the outlet from the toilet bowl. The apartment maintenance staff should educate people on toilet etiquette so that they do not clog the toilet outlet with excess paper. When the toilet gets clogged when water is flushed in, it will not flow down the drainage but remain in the bowl and as a result its level will rise. The water supply should be shut off immediately and the clog cleared by using a plunger. The assets managing professional should take specialized help if he is not able to manage the situation well.

Another problem that needs to be addressed is the leakage of water from the pipelines of toilets and bathrooms. It results in the wastage of a lot of water and such a problem should be addressed immediately. The apartment maintenance staff should be notified about such problems and they should promptly attend to them.

On a general basis the staff should educate each and every household about proper usage and preservation of toilets. Sinks and bathtubs can also give similar problems which need to be addressed immediately.

• Electrical problems are the next category of problems that might arise in housing complexes or individual houses. There might be short circuited wires lying on the roadways or corridors and one might step on them which can turn out to be very fatal. The apartment maintenance staff should check the premises for such loose live wires minutely and get them rectified without any delay. They should put a signboard of danger till they can summon the electrician to take charge. In the first place they should try to find some first level remedy by switching off the main electrical supply till the electrician takes up.

Power cuts cause a lot of inconvenience, especially when they occur at odd hours. The assets managing staff should be available for prompt help even during odd hours when there is a cut in the power supply. He should check out whether people are stuck in elevators. He should also divert his attention to the security issue. The apartment maintenance staff should be ever vigilant of any burglar taking advantage of the period of time when the electrical supply is shut off. He should try to find out the cause of the power failure at the earliest and contact the electricians and ask them to attend to the problem as soon as they can. He should perform the basic rectification operations if he can before the electrician arrives.

Maintaining housing complexes involves a lot of other tasks, such as, ensuring that the telephone lines are working properly and the garbage is being disposed efficiently. All these tasks mean that a large management complex may live on property or keep a storage unit nearby with replacement parts.

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Facility maintenance is quite an elaborate task as it virtually involves providing all round service to the building and its occupants. The services are categorized broadly into hard services, soft services, hospitality and staffing solutions. The hard services include repairing of any electrical and mechanical equipment, HVAC services, water and plumbing services and energy management. The soft services include housekeeping, maintaining tidiness in external premises, providing security, pest management, water and waste management. It also includes vendor management and mailroom services.

The hospitality services include guestroom services management and catering services management. The staffing solutions services includes providing support services, administrative services and assistance, help desk services, warehousing and dispatch management services. The facility maintenance services offered by individual firms may slightly vary from the basic framework discussed here. 

When choosing the building material for maintenance it should always be borne in mind to choose materials of a set standard. Though some cheaper materials might look as a good alternative it is always advisable to purchase certified material which will save the cost of damages and repairs in the future. The materials chosen should also be eco-friendly especially so if the environmental code of that location demands the satisfaction of such a criterion. The material chosen should also be convenient to maintain. After all a building is a long lasting investment and the materials chosen by the facility maintenance group should ensure that. It will be appreciated that good quality material is not only durable but it will also save up on the maintenance costs later.

One should also consider the purpose of the building. RV storage would not require the same amenities as a residential facility.

While planning for the beautification of the external premises it should be seen that only plants that can be easily taken care of are planted. Some plants might look very gorgeous but might be difficult and expensive to maintain. Another important point to bear in mind here is that the breed of plants native to a particular region thrive well in that region and hence are recommended  for use in lawns, walkways etc. Using exotic varieties will require greater maintenance and run the risk of perishing incompatible soil conditions.

If there is a large and frequent visitor history to a site facility maintenance professionals will advise using tough material for boardwalks, railings, fencings and stairways amongst others because they are susceptible to fast damage by repeated usage. Using delicate and stylish material might enhance the looks but increase the vulnerability and hence shoot up the maintenance expenditure. Using a large number of sign boards can only mess up the look of premises and confuse a visitor.

An important aspect of keeping the property premises is to keep it clean and hygienic. This can be achieved by managing the waste produced efficiently. There are two types of wastes that are produced in the building complexes namely the organic and the inorganic. Good facility maintenance ensures proper disposal or utilization of both these types of waste products. The organic material can be converted to produce fertilizers for the vegetation in lawns and pathways. This will serve as natural manure. The excess drainage water can be channeled into underground and spray irrigation systems. This should not be let into neighboring water inlets like ponds and lakes as that will lead to the contamination of these water bodies. Usage of eco-friendly material should be encouraged and such material should be recycled after usage.

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If you want to earn better money from your rented property, then you should go for regular property maintenance work. The tenant will always look forward to stay in a safe, secured, clean and decent looking building. Depending on these factors, your renting rate will be calculated. So, you must maintain a regular inspection schedule for your property. You can prepare your own tool box for fixing up minor emergency problems. To start with you can have some basic tools like a range of screwdrivers, spanners, pliers and a hammer. You can even keep some basic tools for electrical work, a wrench for plumbing purpose and insulation tapes. It is advisable, that you maintain a stock of fuses and light bulbs, so that in case of an emergency property maintenance situation, you can fix the problem. You should keep a pack of drain cleaner for clogged sink or wash basin pipes, grout filler for leaks, and a variety of screws in your tool box. Finally, you will need a decent ladder, so that you can reach the ceiling. Make sure the ladder is strong enough to carry your weight. With these tools you can easily manage the minor repairing works, if you have a flair for this type of mechanical works.

Normally, the floors of the building are susceptible to more damage, especially if there are young kids. It is a great challenge to your property maintenance program, to keep the floor and the carpets totally dirt and stain free. If you can clean the carpets daily, then you can be rest assured about the cleanliness of the carpet. But, that it is not always possible. As prevention, you can use door mats at each entrance, and vacuum at least once a week. Hard wooden floors should be swiped regularly to keep the polish intact. Take care of the stains on your carpet as early as possible, using a carpet stain remover. If the stain stays for long time, then it will be difficult to clean. Arrange a professional carpet cleaning procedure once in a year.

Most of the times walls do not get proper attention for property maintenance work. The walls must be kept in good condition as these are another important part of a building. Simple surface cracks are not a major issue. You can hide those cracks using wallpaper or paint. But, do not ignore a real intrusive damage, as it demands an immediate expert opinion. Also, check for any damp in the wall, especially for bathroom walls. The earlier you find the problem, the easier will be to fix it. Windows also require regular cleaning up service. Wooden windows should be painted once in three years.

Plumbing is another important side for your property maintenance project. Do not compromise with any of your dripping taps. Clogging of sink and bathroom pipes is a major concern in most of the household. But, this can be treated easily using drain cleaner overnight, and then flushing with water. In case of electrical problem, you can work on simple jobs like replacing plugs, or changing fuse or bulbs. For any type of electrical work, always switch off the supply first. However, it is better to fix any electrical problem by professional trained electricians, as they have better knowledge about this stream than you.

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Regular apartment maintenance is fully the responsibility of your landowner. He is very much liable for keeping your unit in an inhabitable condition. There might be major maintenance problem or some minor fixing problems, whatever is the situation you must not face these problems while staying at the unit. Major maintenance problem will be a serious issue which must be dealt with urgent consideration. Simple problems like leaking bathroom faucets or clogging drain pipe for the kitchen sink or irritating stain over the carpet, will not be a great hazard for you. But, this will increase in due course making them a huge one, if kept unattended at the beginning.

Your landowner must provide adequate attention for frequent apartment maintenance purpose. The structure of the building must be strong and sturdy, specially the floors, roofs and staircases. Any cracks or damages to the building should be fixed immediately. Also, the electrical, heating and plumbing system must operate safely and smoothly. Skilled persons should visit your place for inspection on regular basis. Consistent check ups must be provided by the landowner for pests and insects like cockroaches, spiders, ants etc. Always remember, if you are responsible for any damages made on the property, you have to pay for the maintenance. Otherwise the amount will be deducted from the security deposit.

Generally, landowners are quite reluctant for fixing up minor apartment maintenance issues. As it is mentioned earlier, that these problems never make the unit unfit to live in. But, continuous occurrence of these problems will be a major source of irritation for you. If the problem is really minor, you can fix that of your own. Otherwise, you have to check your agreement to find out that whether your landowner is liable for solving the issue or not? Sometimes, the agreement does not clearly mention the duties for the landowner. In that case, you can deal with your landowner using different methods.

First of all, write a detail application to your landowner requesting him to look into the apartment maintenance issue. If you have any evidence mentioning that the landowner is responsible for all type of maintenance, attach that document with your letter. He should take decision about the expenditure of the maintenance work. Actually, you can easily describe the whole scenario in details by writing. Give extra importance to the fact that this could have some damaging effect on the property or on you in near future, which will be more expensive to fix up at that time than right away. This will make the reluctant landowner, at least to inspect the problem.

If the landowner still remains reluctant for accepting any responsibility for apartment maintenance , then you can think of some other alternatives, by which you can create pressure on your landowner. You can invite a trained mediator to find out some mutually acceptable way outs for this problem. You can also talk to your local building or housing agency, to enforce your landowner to sit with you with the problems. If nothing works, then the ultimate choice is to make a lawsuit against your landowner in small claims court. It will be always better, if you maintain a good friendly relation to your landowner, so that you can settle down any problem within a moment. In case you totally loose your hopes, only then you should take legal help.

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Maintenance of any property is important not only because someone is using it but also because proper maintenance preserves the value of the property. Commercial property maintenance is all about preserving this value. By maintenance one understands the looking after of the property. But it also means inspecting the health of the building and taking the necessary steps accordingly. If you have a commercial property, you will find that daily maintenance is a major activity when compared to residential property and preserving the property in a crisp shape is actually what your tenants are paying for apart from the rent for the area they are using. So, as owner of the property it is your duty to fulfill their expectations.

Commercial property maintenance means maintenance of the interior and the exterior as well as all the facilities and utilities of the property. It also includes some additional services like security and beautification. The first job of maintenance is looking after the exterior of the property. The maintenance agency should daily make a visual inspection of the exterior of the building or buildings to look out for any damages to the paint, glass, signs, windows, etc. A shabby looking commercial place will not attract customers and your tenants will not like their business to suffer because of your fault. Any grumbling tenant will also mean depreciation of your property as it is mainly the rent that drives your property.

The external matter is more superficial except for broken glass or window pane. Maintenance of the internal features is more important because these are the utilitarian aspects of the property. You should ensure that the elevators and escalators are working right because these are the indispensable parts of your property. Commercial property maintenance means taking care of all items like these including the air-conditioning units. You should also see to it that the utilities like electricity and water are being properly supplied. Waste disposal is another important issue. It not only involves clearing your premises of the waste but also disposing the garbage as per procedure laid down by the civic authorities.

Security of the property is very important and you will be responsible for all the security of the common facilities that you are providing. You are also responsible for the safeguarding of the properties of the tenants. Fire hazard is a matter of grave concern for any property, especially for those where the daily footfall is very high like in a shopping mall or a retail store. You must ensure that all the firefighting equipment is in working condition and commercial property maintenance cannot overlook it at any cost. Maintaining physical security of the place is also important because the tenants are relying on you to protect their property in their absence.

Though commercial property maintenance is a very essential part of owning such a property and it cannot be neglected, the management of such property proves easier than residential property. In some areas owning commercial property brings in added responsibility as far as civic rules are concerned. Since such property involves the attendance of many people and also generation of huge amount of sewage and garbage, many civic authorities have strict guidelines as far as maintenance is concerned. You should try to abide by them word-to-word to successfully derive benefit from your property. Following the rules of maintenance also enables you to preserve or increase the property value and in any case that is your goal.

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Any property needs to be managed and a part of management is maintenance. Maintenance of a single home is relatively an easy job when compared to maintenance of a building with a number of dwelling units. It is quite difficult for the manager alone to take care of every aspect of the management procedure. It is best to have the manager supervise and a have a set of employees or contractors ready to do the actual job. The nature of duties of the persons involved in apartment maintenance also depends on the size of the building and all the facilities that they provide. The condition of the premises and the terms of agreement with the tenants also determine the extent of maintenance that is required. the larger premises have a full team in place to look after the various matters while in the smaller units, the manager needs to arrange for the services as maintaining a regular support crew is not viable.

The first part of apartment maintenance is the number of support staff that premises must have to efficiently handle all maintenance matters. This actually depends on the manager of the property. He is the best judge of the requirements and based on his estimate he should hire the people. This estimate should be based on the actual experience about the nature of service required and also on the affordability of the owner. A combinations of full-time and contractual employees has been found to be the best option as some things need twenty-four hour supervision while other matters need maintenance job here and then. When hiring personnel for the job, the lookout should always be for the people having more experience and also their expertise in handling minor situations. There are people who can take care of any minor problems ranging from electrical to plumbing and to painting touch-ups.

Most of the multi-unit buildings have resident managers. In apartment maintenance this resident manager plays a very important role. He is actually the front office of the owner and the bridge between the owner and the tenant. So he must be an efficient man to keep the tenants happy. His nature can be very vital in prosperity of the owner. A man of gentle and pleasing nature with the occasional sternness is what makes the ideal manager. He should be cordial to the tenants and at the same time a tough task master in respect to the maintenance personnel. He must also be adept in accounts and make sure that the maintenance job is not eating into the revenues of the owner.

A resident manager is responsible for a variety of matters related to apartment maintenance . He is responsible for supervision of all the maintenance activities. Maintenance of the common spaces like grounds, pool, garage and driveways is compulsory and so is garbage removal. The utility services like water and electric supply are responsibilities of the supply companies but coordinating with them is the duty of the manager. Internally, he is responsible for supervision of the upkeep of the stairways, elevators, common recreation rooms, etc. A very important part is inspection of the electrical, plumbing, heating and ventilating systems of the buildings. A regular check and necessary repair and replacement is vital for gaining tenant confidence and proper apartment maintenance can go a long way in building the goodwill of the property and increase of revenue from it.

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Property maintenance is such an important part of owning a property that has been rented out that any landlord will love to have a magician as a manager. The quality of maintenance can make or break a property and when an owner has invested in one to see some profit he is always on alert to save his goodwill. Any bad reports of the property will bring down the rent on the property and finding good tenants can become real difficult if such report is publicized. On the other hand if it is known that a particular property has the best of maintenance services and the tenants do not have anything to complain about then more and more people enquire about it and you will find that calls keep coming in.

Sometimes individual managers are enough for small single family dwelling houses as the number of problems are limited and rare. They can hire the required professionals and take care of the occasional problems that arise in such properties. But in case of multi-family units and condominiums, an agency is preferred for property maintenance as the number of units is more in such situation and the regularity of problems will be more. These agencies have in-house staff to look after the minor problems on a property and the problems are taken care of quickly. The big managerial agencies looking after the properties sometimes have twenty-four hour helpline for registering the complaints of the tenants and they also maintain the record of such calls for future reference.

Property maintenance is comparatively an easy job if all the amenities on the property are working well. But it gets tough hen they fail regularly. In such cases it is better to replace such fittings instead of frequent repair. You must understand that the flaw may be minor but calling the professional on every occasion means paying his fees and this, over time, can eat into your maintenance budget. In case of large units this may mean more expenses. So it is better to have on-site maintenance people who can attend all the minor repairs.

When hiring professionals for property maintenance , make sure you are hiring the right person. Sometimes the situations turn out to be more serious than what is actually reported and after the work starts the faults show their actual severity. So the person you hire must be experienced and skilled enough to handle such uncalled for situations and not run away half-way. In some cases the professionals need to be license holders for certain jobs. You need to check out whether they are actually qualified for the job or you may land in trouble for appointing the wrong person for the wrong job.

Finding the right person to assist you in property maintenance does not end the search. The person may be qualified and has the capacity to meet the most demanding of situations, but he may not be available at the first call. This will not serve your purpose as the tenant will not wait for the best tradesman in town to repair, say his burst water pipe. So the proximity of the person you call on such occasion is a major factor and so is his response time. Now comes the most important part, the funds. Make sure that the rates being offered are reasonable when compared to the service they will provide. After settling for the right person you may have some sort of peace of mind and feel good about owning a property.

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Have you wondered how the air-conditioning system in the shopping mall always works? Why do the elevators in the hotels never stop midway? How does everything in the airport always work in order so that you can get directed to the right plane? Well all these places are facilities and a huge workforce always work round the clock to keep these facilities working smoothly. The art of managing all these is known as facilities maintenance . It is an integral part of the management of any property, especially the commercial properties and public places like airports, stations, hospitals and also the entertainment venues like amusement parks, cinema, etc. Hundreds of people are involved in it and their behind the scene activities serve us to our satisfaction each time we use these facilities.

If you happen to own a facility then you must need such people. It is not possible to employ these people all by yourself and you resort to appointing agencies that take care of your facilities maintenance . Usually your manager takes care of such appointments and they have different agencies for different jobs. You may need to appoint an agency to look after your electrical maintenance and another for maintaining your waste disposal system. There are various maintenance jobs starting from simple ones like looking after the dusting and cleaning to the complicated ones like maintaining your computer networking. Each of these needs specialization however simple the jobs look and when this is projected on a larger screen of say an office several stories high or an airport or a hyper-mall the picture takes gigantic proportions. This now gives the real picture and you can feel how important it is to have an integrated facilities maintenance facility in place in such large places.

An integrated facilities maintenance service is preferred to individual specialized agencies because of the co-ordination between the various agencies. If you have a small property and an efficient management team in place then you can do well with individuals to look after various maintenance works. The manager can handle all matters related to plumbers, electricians, waste disposal agencies, etc. and the cost involved is also not much. But when your facility becomes big, say a condominium, and then there is a chance of cost escalation in appointing separate agencies for separate jobs. Co-ordination of the various agencies can take up much time and the job of timing the start and end of work of each agency can become a real headache. Any mismanagement can lead to time and cost overrun and directly affect your revenues.

Facilities maintenance covers various matters like repairs of carpentry, maintenance and repairs of ceiling and roofing, repair and replacement of electrical fittings and machines, air-conditioning, cleaning including window cleaning, replacement of glass, tiles and carpeting, maintenance and repainting of both interiors and exteriors, security, pest control and even additions and alterations to the existing facility. You must agree that these are the very necessities that not only need maintenance in the facilities but also in our homes and how important they are. The agencies providing the maintenance services do not stop at providing these basic facilities but also looks after the high end maintenance consultation and project management services. The established agencies also have the experience to guide the owner of the facilities to cost effective management of the services and also get the maximum out of the existing facilities.

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Investing in property is a very good option these days and if one can rent out the buildings on the property one gets to generate income even while paying back the mortgage amount. But any property needs care and this is even more necessary when one has buildings on it. Building maintenance is the most important part of property maintaining. It is the buildings that will attract the tenants and keeping it spic and span will automatically attract better revenues. Building maintenance means looking after everything from the exteriors to the roof to the internal wiring and plumbing. So it is a comprehensive job.

Generally the management company that looks after the property does the building maintenance jobs, and sometimes companies are hired by the owners. But in all cases they must look after certain things to maintain the health of the structure. These should include assessment of the condition of the general building structure, mechanical installations like lifts, etc., utility services and electrical infrastructure. The necessary repairs and restoration should follow such assessment and the aim should be to preserve the desired condition. These maintenance work should also include additions and alterations where needed. These days emphasis should be also laid on matters like incorporating new techniques in construction, use of technologically superior materials, and finally use of environment friendly substances.

The life of a building depends on the way it is taken care of. The long term repairs and renovations may be necessary for keeping the building in a fine condition, but the most important thing is the routine maintenance. Routine building maintenance is not only the most visible aspect of the total maintenance job but if this maintenance is religiously carried out the major repairs can be kept out for long periods. The tenants also feel happy because all the facilities work well and they hardly find any reason to complain. These activities can be of daily nature like checking the valves and electrical points for malfunctioning to carrying out external decorations every five years or reinstalling the roof after about fifteen years.

People often feel confused with the routine building maintenance jobs. Queries are bound to arise about what is the time period after which the routine repairs must be carried out. There are various periods for different parts of a building. The external paint job needs to be done every five years to look fresh all the time, the boiler needs servicing every year to preserve their efficiency while the roof needs to be treated regularly and re-laid after fifteen years. But these are not the hard and fast rules to follow. A place where rain is frequent may require maintenance of the external parts more often than a drier place. Similarly, the material of the roof decides how often it needs to be replaced. So it is best to decide this period with the help of the knowledge of the local inhabitants.

Finally, management of any building does not only need new constructions and repairs. It requires money to fund any maintenance projects. The extent of renovation depends on the available money. Thus the viability of a project, the calculation of cost and benefit, arrangement of funds and each and every aspect must be thoroughly judged before actually executing it. The manager of the property is the best person in this matter because he knows the financial health of the property and the physical health and strike the right balance to benefit the owner.

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If you are a member of a householders association and living in a condominium you must have a condo manager to manage the affairs of the condo. If you are experienced enough you may not need to go through this article but if you are new to the job you must be willing to get a close look at what are the jobs that a manager should look after. Well, the superficial jobs are the actual superficial jobs that do not need real management skill to carry out. The management training really helps in some respect but they do not make much difference from what you can achieve with your experience. You should know that when the manager is not supervising some cleaning or pruning exercise he is not actually doing anything.

The condo manager is the main person who actually looks after your condominium more than you do. He is the person responsible for bringing to your notice each and everything that needs attention. So the first thing you should do when you have appointed a manager is to make his tasks clear and let him know what to do and when. The basic responsibility is to physically manage the property and caretaking of the daily maintenance jobs like keeping the premises clean, keeping the garden trimmed, maintenance of the tennis courts and swimming pools if there are any, maintenance of the exteriors and the common interiors, taking care of the lighting of the premises and such other things that need regular inspection. These are not the fixed jobs that a manager must perform but they can vary and sometimes the manager might have to do some jobs that are not included in the list of jobs that is provided to him.

One of the major tasks that a condo manager needs to take care of is the periodic maintenance job of some major nature. This is the repairing of the roofs and major civil works that are a must for the long life of the building. The manager must identify the actual time when the repair is imminent and inform the association about it. He should also make periodic checks to ensure the condition of the building is maintained in a good shape. An important area that needs such inspection is the roof. Replacing the roof, repaving the footpaths and roads in the condominium premises and repainting the buildings are some of the major renovation jobs that need special attention.

The condo manager plays a vital role in the execution of the major works. The first job is to inform the house owners association about the urgency of the job. After obtaining the necessary permission he is to seek quotations from the suitable agencies and negotiate the contract on behalf of the association. All along the time when the job is being done the manager must supervise the process and indicate the contractor to any shortfalls that he has noticed. Finally, after the job is complete he should make the payments on behalf of the owners.

The condo manager has to execute his jobs in a very tight budget and he should also see that no money is wasted on anything silly. To be successful with a manager you are needed to have a healthy relationship with him. If at any point of time you do not feel comfortable with your manager, you should better change him. After all you are appointing one for your convenience and not for increasing your anxiety.

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