Recommended fall maintenance on your rental!

We are at the time of year when the weather turns cooler, the leaves start to fall, and the colors of autumn are glorious. However, around the corner is frigid winter! As the temperatures start to dip, tenants begin to turn their thermostats up and kick on their furnaces. Every year we like to remind our property owners of the preventive maintenance items that we recommend be done for all rental homes going into winter to help you reduce your expenses over the season. 

“We offer our fall preventative maintenance plan to save our property owners time, money, and keep their tenants happy,” says Keith Miller, Maintenance Manager. “Some of our clients are not familiar with our Midwest weather and so we put this plan together to help them maintain their rental property and potentially avoid costly after-hours repairs when the weather turns really cold as well as water damage from frozen pipes.” 

Curious to know what those services are? Let us dive into the exciting world of rental property maintenance and learn together why we recommend each one of these services! 

1.  Annual Clean and Service for Furnace 

Experience has shown us that a fall clean and service of the HVAC system can help the furnace run more efficiently and catch problem issues while they are small. Performing this recommended annual service keeps tenants warmer and happier and keeps your maintenance costs lower by avoiding unnecessary wear and tear on the system. 



Keith recommends “that all furnaces be checked this fall with an overall inspection & cleaning of the furnace unit, installation of a new air filter at time of service, as well as performing a test operation of the furnace to ensure it is cycling & operating properly.” 

2.  Gutter Cleaning 

Clogged gutters will not allow water to shed off your roof properly and can cause expensive damage to roofs and gutters and can lead to wet basements. Additionally, during the cold season this can also lead to ice dams forming in the gutters that can cause serious roof and gutter damage. 

Keith states “We advise this work to be completed after most of the leaves have fallen and before the weather turns icy. This typically happens in December here in the Kansas City metro area."
 

3.  Winterization 

Winterizing your vacant home is highly recommended. Many insurance companies will not cover your home for damage if the property is vacant unless you have a special vacancy policy (you may want to check with your insurance agent to confirm your coverage). 

We have seen extensive property damage from frozen/broken water pipes that can cost up to tens of thousands of dollars. Depending on the placement of the water lines in your home, it may only take a few hours of cold weather for pipes to freeze – and because the home is vacant, it may be a few days after the pipes thaw and begin to leak before the problem is discovered. “The property damage that can result is of such a nature that we winterize vacant properties unless a property owner opts out,” says Keith.  “It is just not worth the risk for the minimal cost.” 

If you currently hold a property with us and would like to learn more about how to best protect your asset through one or all these services, please reach out to Brent at 816-545-9009 Ext. 413.