The Most Common Mistakes Landlords Make During an Apartment Turnover | Nexus Property Management® Franchise
Don’t Let Tenant Turnovers Wreck Your Returns. Learn How To Minimize Loss During Vacancies and Avoid The Most Common Mistakes Property Owners Make.
Ugh, a tenant is leaving at the end of the month; what a drag! That means it’s time to put on your painting gear, take the day off work, and go wait in line at home depot. Well, once you’re all set with that you will likely be making these 3 common landlord turnover mistakes!
Using different paint, every time
Trust me, we are with you, there’s nothing like a nice bargain on paint, or using the leftover cans you had in your basement. The problem here is that you are not creating an efficient turnover for yourself in the future. What Nexus Property Management suggests is using the same paint for every single apartment every single time. If you go to any Home Depot nationwide and ask for “Nexus Linen White” you will have access to our same paint we use for turnovers each and every day. It’s an off white color, and does a great job covering up those walls all the while being appealing to potential tenants. The advantage to using the same color paint is that when a tenant leaves you may be able to do some light patch/spot painting, as opposed to having to paint each and every inch of the wall over and over again. Not too mention, you will probably have to do 2 to 3 coats if you are covering up a different color paint. This not only hurts your bottom line, but it also hurts your time! Here is an example of a Nexus performed turnover with our trademark linen white paint!
Opting for the cheapest flooring
Once again, isn’t a great deal nice?! Well, not in this case! A majority of landlords come to us with units that are equipped with the cheapest flooring coverings available. From vinyl tile (peel and stick), to flimsy wood laminate, or even the low quality carpet you see at the mini golf course. What are they thinking? Well, they are thinking through a microscope that’s for sure, because once the tenant leaves you are likely going to be replacing that flooring. What Nexus suggests is opting for higher caliber floor options such hardwood flooring, tile flooring, or even concrete/epoxy surfaces. These have proven to be extremely durable and only need cleaning/waxing upon a tenant vacating, rather than a complete replacement. An additional option is to refinish original hardwoods that exist. If your property is older (like the ones we have here in New England) it is almost 99% certain that the floors are made of wood. This was because it was the cheapest and most readily available product during the housing boom. Ironically, compared to today’s products, this cheap and available product is actually one of the most durable out there. Refinishing hardwoods takes very little time, minimal materials, and will extend your flooring utility greatly!
Neglecting the cleaning
Being in the business of rental property management we often see owners who complete the turnovers themselves to save money. This can be good or bad depending on the owner’s perspective. A common trait we see amongst owners completing their own turnovers is that they do an excellent job painting, remodeling, adding updated appliances, and replacing flooring, but don’t quite make it to the finish line. By that we mean they leave coffee cups lying around, wrappers from materials used, saw dust on the counter, dirt on their new floors, or even paint drips all over the counter tops. While in their mind they just invested $5,000 into this apartment, in our eyes it’s not able to advertised, and that’s for good reason. When a prospective tenant views the property they want to see a finished product that shows no expense spared and that they are getting into a relationship that is above board from the beginning. A simple cleaning can cost $100 but while definitely put you over the top and get your unit filled quickly with the best caliber tenant possible. Don’t chase the nickels because you will be dropping all the dollars
Gregory Rice is the Vice President of franchise sales for Nexus Property Management®.
Nexus Property Management® is a National Property Management Franchise that manages all types of rental property from single family homes or condos to large apartment buildings and complexes.
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