Test - should you do your own maintenance?

Most people find being a ‘hands-on’ landlord doing their own maintenance, is not as fun as they imagined, particularly when the property manager starts to also nag them to ‘get the work done already before a bigger problem occurs’.  Some of our clients have learned the hard way that they are not cut out for doing their own work, and it really is far cheaper, and a lot less stress, to have Rental Results handle it.

So, before you volunteer to do your own maintenance, ask yourself these ten simple questions:

Be honest, and don't cheat and look at the correct answers below first.
 

1. Am I trade qualified in the field of the work I am about to do?
2. Do I carry sufficient insurance?
3. Will my doing the work invalidate any insurance claim, current or in the future?
4. Can I get it done within 4 hours of being advised of the problem?
5.  Will I get it done then?
6. Do I have all the tools I need to do it safely and quickly?
7. Do I have the knowledge to do it in a tradesman-like manner?
8. Would I be happy to pay someone to do the repair to the same quality as I can do?
9. Can I tell the tenant ‘speak to your property manager about that’ if they ask me for anything?
10. Do I have better things to do?
 

If you have answered “Yes, Yes, No, Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, and No”, in that order, then sure, go ahead and do your own maintenance.  

Any answers contrary to those, go hang up your tool belt immediately, get Rental Results to handle it, and relax.  You’ve just made the world a better place.