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Make it Shine!
February 24th, 2010
If as a Durham landlord you want to minimise the time that your property is empty between tenancies (what we call the void period), then it is absolutely essential that it’s looking its best for showing to prospective new tenants. This has two main elements: firstly the property’s underlying state of repair and decoration and secondly, how clean it is.
All properties need to be redecorated on a regular basis. Tenants have to look after their house or flat, but they are allowed fair wear and tear. The simple fact is that you will very rarely get a property back at the end of a tenancy in the same condition that it was in at the start of a tenancy. Of course, if it was painted only a year ago, then it certainly should not need to be painted again, but if it was painted three years ago and has had (say) three lots of tenants pass through, then the odds are that it will need redecorating. You may choose to avoid this redecoration, but with the likely result that your property will take longer to find a tenant (a greater void) and even then, will achieve a lower rent. Remember: the taxman (hardly known for his generosity) allows you 10% of your rental income for repairs and maintenance, so it’s very unlikely that the sensible amount is anything less than that figure.
The second thing which the intelligent landlord must do is to make sure that his or her property is clean and shiny. Tenants do have obligations to clean the property to a decent standard before they leave and some will do a very good job indeed. But it is rarely a good enough job to really maximise the property’s lettability and thus minimise the void. A few more hours cleaning are likely to be needed, enough to make it gleaming and really attractive to those potential new tenants that we’ll be bringing round to see it.
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