Most property managers realize they should answer promptly when a resident calls with an emergency maintenance request. Nevertheless, which maintenance requests are emergencies that need immediate attention, and which are less exigent? This is one of the harder questions that property owners face since some concerns, even those that bring uneasiness or burden, are false emergencies. Then again, other maintenance issues are critical enough to be addressed immediately or risk violating Landlord/Tenant laws or habitability codes. Determining the contrast between the two can help you positively handle all your renter’s maintenance requests.
What defines an emergency repair?
One way to know when you have a true emergency on your hands or not is to consider to what degree the maintenance issue could cause injury, severe property damage, or imperil your resident’s health and safety. Any concern that meets this definition is commonly considered an emergency. Conventional emergencies include:
- Gas Leak
- Frozen or Broken Water Lines
- Flooding or Water Emergencies
- Fire
- Carbon Monoxide Detection
- Sewer Back-up
- No Heat in Cold Weather
- No Air Conditioning in Extremely Hot Temperatures
- Extended Power Outage
- Intruder Break-In
Determining an Emergency from Non-Emergency
It is fundamental to realize that certain maintenance items may be emergencies under one set of conditions but not another. Let’s say a broken air conditioner is not an emergency during a cold climate. However, it indeed is in the midst of a heatwave where temperatures reach dangerous levels.
Failing to respond immediately to emergencies like these – incorporating those that happen around midnight – could violate habitability laws and, eventually, cause serious legal trouble. This is particularly obvious if your inaction prompts your tenant to take matters into their own hands and coordinate or make the repairs themselves.
Non-Emergency Maintenance Types
Then again, other maintenance issues that, while troublesome, are not commonly counted as emergencies unless there are extenuating circumstances. For illustration, a malfunctioning appliance, no hot water, or minor leaks may be troublesome for your residents but generally do not fall under the category of an emergency repair. These maintenance issues must be reported as regular maintenance requests, which you can deal with during business hours.
For rental property owners, realizing what constitutes an emergency maintenance issue and how to respond appropriately is a major piece of effectual property management. In the event that you can’t answer such demands rapidly or have different requests on your time, it might be ideal to hire a quality property management company servicing the Davenport area and close by. Contact us online or call 863-877-1078 to discover more about what Real Property Management Lakeside offers rental property owners like you.
Originally Published on July 2, 2021
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