Maintenance is where owners quietly lose the most money, and almost none of it is lost on the repairs themselves. It is lost on emergency pricing, on damage that got worse while nobody looked at it, and on tenants who left because a request went unanswered for three weeks.
The goal is not to spend less. It is to spend on your schedule instead of the property’s.
How maintenance runs
- 24/7 intake. Tenants report through the portal or by phone at any hour. Nothing depends on someone checking a voicemail on Monday.
- Triage before dispatch. A genuine emergency gets an immediate response. A dripping faucet gets scheduled. Treating both the same is how maintenance budgets get destroyed.
- Your approval threshold. You set a dollar figure. Below it we handle things and it appears on your statement. Above it we call you first, with a recommendation and a number.
- Vetted vendors, or our own techs. Subcontracted work carries a 10% markup; work our own staff does is billed time and materials. Both are on the fee schedule.
- Documented condition. Move-in and move-out condition is recorded so deposit deductions are supportable rather than arguable.
- Renewal inspection at sixty days out, which is the single most useful inspection in the calendar.
Why the sixty-day renewal inspection matters
About sixty days before a lease ends we inspect the unit, assess condition, note deferred maintenance and analyze current market rents. That timing is deliberate and it is where the renewal fee earns itself.
Damage found at renewal is chargeable to a tenant who still lives there and still has a relationship with you. The identical damage found at move-out is a deposit dispute, and deposit disputes in Ohio are governed by ORC 5321.16 with real penalties for getting them wrong.
It also means rent adjustments and the renew-or-vacate decision get made with two months of runway instead of five days of panic. A property you decide to re-tenant in October leases far better than the same property in January.
Emergencies, defined
An emergency is anything threatening the property or someone’s safety: no heat in winter, no water, an active leak, sewage backup, gas odor, a security failure like a broken exterior door or lock, or storm damage. Those we act on immediately and tell you right after.
Everything else is scheduled. That distinction is written into what tenants are told at move-in, which dramatically reduces 2am calls about a garbage disposal.
What this costs you
Maintenance coordination is part of management. You pay for the work itself: subcontracted vendor work at a 10% markup, in-house work at time and materials. Owner-requested property condition inspections are $100. Full detail on the fee schedule.
Questions
Can I use my own contractor?
Yes, provided they carry current liability coverage and workers compensation and will respond inside our timelines. Plenty of owners keep a trusted HVAC or roofing relationship.
What approval threshold do most owners set?
It varies with portfolio size and appetite. We will suggest one based on your property and you can change it any time.
Do you mark up your own labor?
No. In-house work is time and materials. The 10% markup applies only to outside vendors.
How often do you inspect?
At move-in, at move-out, at renewal roughly sixty days ahead, and any time you request one.
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