Decorating, Repairing and Maintaining your Buy-to-Let Property
Property investment and renovation television shows, paired with last year’s stamp duty holiday, have inspired an influx of Brits to start purchasing buy-to-let properties. As fun as binge-watching Homes Under the Hammer may be, there is far more complexity to repairing, decorating, and maintaining your buy-to-let property. From maintaining your outdoor space to correcting emergency leaks, restoring and letting a property can be a lot to tackle on your own, especially for those who live far away from their buy-to-let properties, have busy lifestyles, or have invested from overseas. We recommend employing a property maintenance service such as us to help tackle potential problems that could arise whilst maintaining your buy-to-let investment.
Should I do it myself?
Although many landlords feel a sense of pride in handling all of the decorating, repairing and maintenance at their investment properties, you can easily end up wasting time and money, leading to a longer initial void period before you can start renting out your property. With many landlords and tenants alike spending their time taking on gardening and home improvement projects during the pandemic, many of us have gained confidence and a passion for DIY. However, dealing with ladders, electricity, chemicals and sharp tools is a serious endeavour that should be left to professionals, or you could risk damage to yourself, others, or your home. In fact, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Injuries explicitly advises that a “competent, qualified person should always carry out gas and electrical renewal or repair work” due to the extremely high risk of error and serious consequences that could occur from mistakes in these processes. So, with this in mind, be sure to think twice about tackling any home improvements without the help of a property maintenance service.
What happens when you do nothing?
Ignoring any pending issues and hoping that your maintenance problems will subside is no better than rushing for your DIY kit and diving head-first into fixing things. Abstaining from any maintenance could equally cause further damage or injury. For example, a blocked gutter costs on average £150 to clear. However, if this is neglected, the resulting leaks could cause joinery damage, water damage, and require redecoration, all of which could run up a bill far in excess of £150. It is therefore worth consulting a property maintenance team to assess the potential damage to your buy-to-let property and plan a solution.
Leaving maintenance jobs until the seasons’ change can be particularly detrimental: dampness and mould will become particularly problematic in autumn. The age and constructive form of your property also need to be considered when looking at issues such as dampness – understanding these factors is vital for solving the issue quickly and effectively and requires an expert evaluator. Thankfully, Virtu offers a service for vacant properties to keep them well-maintained through every season – from draining down heating and hot water in winter, to broader grounds maintenance, we can create a bespoke maintenance package for every home.
Why should I involve a Property Maintenance Service?
With the cost of property maintenance on the rise – Property Reporter indicated an increase in costs by 17% in just twelve months – enlisting the help of a property maintenance service can not only help landlords financially but can take away some of the stress associated with maintenance repairs. With emergency maintenance issues, it can be a worrying prospect for buy-to-let landlords to ditch whatever they’re doing to find a quick fix to a maintenance issue, especially as many landlords have other jobs and commitments to attend to.
Having a maintenance company on-hand to assist in the event of an emergency allows landlords to carry on with their other commitments uninterrupted. That’s not to say that property maintenance services are only helpful in the event of an emergency: Virtu offers year-round grounds maintenance and repairs for buy-to-let landlords. This is ideal as a preventative measure to keep on top of maintenance works and avoid any sudden issues that could result in a hefty bill.
What’s more, haphazard repair jobs likely won’t fix the problem in the long term, and worse, could result in injury to yourself or your tenants. When letting a property, landlords have a duty to their tenants, which calls for a quick and effective solution. Enlisting the help of a property management company such as Virtu ensures that you are getting your works completed by reputable experts with unrivalled knowledge on health, safety and hazard protection. Hiring a professional also means that you’ll get the job done right the first time, saving you time and money in the long run.
Virtu’s property services are trusted by councils, nationwide developers, landlords and individuals to provide an efficient, cost-effective and stress-free service. For more information on how Virtu can handle your property’s decoration, repairs and maintenance, contact us using the form below: