When you have a good investment strategy, you can make a reliable income from rental properties. To maximize your profits you need to follow the best practices.
Rental property inspections are a crucial part of managing your real estate. You can follow a rental property inspection checklist to make sure you cover everything. One thing that many landlords wonder is when they should do these inspections.
Let's take a closer look so you can determine how often you should be inspecting your rental properties in DeLand, FL.
The Purpose of a Rental Property Inspection
As a landlord, you're responsible for rental property maintenance. Any properties you own should be safe and suitable for tenants to live in. Inspections allow you to assess properties and determine if any work is needed.
Things like plumbing and electrical systems can experience issues and these often go unnoticed. Things like these can be found during inspections, then you can take the necessary action to get things back in order. Bear in mind that the tenants are responsible for everyday tasks like cleaning and removing trash.
Types of Inspections
When you get new tenants, you should do a moving-in inspection. You can make sure everything is ready for them and take note of the current state of the property.
At the end of their lease, you'll do a moving-out inspection. Here, you can see if they've caused any damage while living there. You may need to pay for repairs using their security deposit.
Aside from these one-time inspections, you'll also do regular inspections throughout their tenancy. These allow you to keep an eye on things and you can take care of issues as they arise to ensure your tenants stay happy.
How Often Should You Inspect a Property?
There's no specific answer for this, and it typically comes down to your preference. Some landlords do quarterly/seasonal inspections, while others only do them annually.
Rental property inspection laws do, however, dictate when you can do an inspection, and these laws vary between states. In most states, landlords need to give 24-48 hours notice, but in Florida, it's only 12 hours. Additionally, you can also only enter a property between 7:30 am and 8:00 pm.
Tenants have a legal right to "quiet enjoyment". As such, you can't turn up and enter the property without notice.
When possible, you should give your tenants more notice as they may not be too happy about sudden intrusions. Most landlords put details about when they'll do inspections in the lease agreement to avoid any confusion.
Bear in mind you can enter a property without notice if there's an emergency. This could be a flood or smoke coming from the property, for example.
Professional Rental Property Inspections
Rental property inspections are vital to make sure your properties don't degrade and your tenants are happy with the state of their homes. Make sure you always give enough notice before entering a property to prevent any issues.
It's usually best to have a professional carry out these inspections as they know what to look for. PMI Central Florida has been providing rental property inspections and a range of other real estate services throughout DeLand and the surrounding areas for almost 20 years.
Check out our property management page to see more about what we do.
