Ingoing inspections can often be one of the most time consuming tasks in Property Management. They are however, a necessary evil and one that pays to spend that little bit of extra time on to ensure that your agency, the landlord and tenant are covered.
Keep in mind that there are a multitude of apps out there now to assist in streamlining this process and helping you to claw back those precious minutes in your day. It’s just a matter of finding which one works best for you.
The ingoing inspection is vital to your tenancy process and when you think about the current process in your office, what rating would you give your reports? Are they a 5-star report that is thoroughly detailed with clear photos or are they heading south to a 1-star rating?
Some essential steps in achieving a 5-star rating may be:
- Identify that the property is vacant – you cannot carry out an ingoing inspection for a new tenancy of the property unless the property has been vacated and you have a clear view of all aspects of the property. Also ensure that all cleaning and repairs are complete.
- Ensure you have all copies required of keys, security swipes and remotes for each of the tenants and a copy for the office.
- In any property that may have a pool, ensure it is completely compliant with state legislation, including registration, correct fencing, signage and security.
- In furnished properties, take an inventory of the furniture, the condition of each item and the room it is located in including colour, brand and number of items.
- Ensure the property is compliant in all areas, including smoke alarms, window locks and blind cord safety
- Make sure all boxes on the report are complete, where required and that there are descriptions and details are recorded including, size of flaws including any marks, scratches, burn marks, dents and also fixtures such as hooks, screws and nails. Check that all appliances are in good working order and record colours, make, model and serial numbers.
- Take as many photos as required to cover everything. But be aware not to take too many photos to the point where your camera is overloaded and the report is 50 pages long.
- Explain the condition report in full at the time of issue and on a separate form have the tenant sign off, acknowledging receipt of the report with any other documents they receive. One area of non-compliance that we often find is that Property Manager will have the tenant sign the office copy of the condition report, site unseen and then give them a copy to complete.
- Follow up with the tenant within 7 days after issue for their returned, signed report and make comparisons to the original report completed by you. If there are any discrepancies in the reports, follow it up with the tenant and handle any identified repairs and maintenance. These should be also followed up with the Owner.
A well prepared ingoing report will protect both the Owner and the Tenant against avoidable issues at the end of the tenancy and may just save you the additional stress.
