From Day 1, no matter how your property management journey begins, get to know all aspects of your property.  

Basic property characteristics that you should know, include:

• How many square feet is the property?

• Year Built?  (Effective date, if major renovations have been completed)

• What are the utilities on your property?  Do you have a gas water heater?  Do you have a gas fireplace?  How is your heat operated?  Is your stove electric?  Is there an option for gas appliances if currently electric?

• What size are your blinds?

• What type of lighting do you have?

 • Do you have copper piping?

• How many rooms do you have in your house? How are they designated and the square footage of each? 
• Be sure to write down serial numbers and age of appliances and systems.  

Have a set place where you store information regarding your property and revisit for the purposes of documenting the property.  Build a list of vendors that you can use in order to help preserve your property:  HVAC tech, plumber, an electrician, an appliance tech, general contractors are a few.  As issues arise and your experience increases, you may add to that list, as your business dictates.  My list is not inclusive, as every real estate investment company is different.  My purpose is to show that you need to have key people in place to operate in their realm of expertise, so that your investment journey runs a little more smoothly.

Repairs, general upkeep and major repairs, are a part of real estate investing.  It is just part of the equation.  Realizing that properly planning for it and acting when the need is realized, could be the difference making profits and losing money.  You can very easily pour everything that you have earned to do repairs after the fact, that a successful landlord planned for, preemptively. 

Downloads

• Property Fact Sheet

Lesson Activity

Use the file attached, "Property Fact Sheet," to list the items you should know about the home you live in. Print the file, and research all of the facts to fill it in.