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Information Corner
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Cleaning: As a Landlord you have a duty of care to your tenant to
ensure that the property you are renting to them is habitable
for humans. This actually includes ensuring that the property
is clean for when your tenants move in. Naturally, the cleaner
the property is at the start of the rental term, the more
likely the tenants are going to keep the property in a clean
condition.
It all depends on the sort of tenants
you want to attract. If you are looking for professional
persons then I suggest that you ensure that the property
is in excellent condition before you start to market the
property. This will not only entice potentially excellent
tenants, but will also show them that you are a landlord
who takes pride in their property and therefore they will
believe and it is usually the case that should they have
a problem with the property in the future, that you will
assist them in a professional manner. Looks do count! The
whole property should be cleaned thoroughly from top to
bottom. In our agreements we state that the tenant must
have the property professionally cleaned prior to their
contract terminating. An inventory clerk will be able to
pick up on whether this has been done or not. In
theory therefore you should be able to hire professional
cleaners in to clean your property just the once. Then the
tenants have the property cleaned prior to the next set
moving in. It is another expense, but it is worth it in
the long run. Besides it is far easier to get a professional
company in with all their strong detergents than have yourself
scrubbing away with the usual High Street brand names. As
I said, once you have had it cleaned, then the tenants have
to have it professionally cleaned by the terms of their
contract. If they fail to do so then you are within your
rights to have the property cleaned to a satisfactory standard
at the cost of the tenants. But you will actually only get
away with this if you have had a professional inventory
done, both make, and check out. Never cut corners, it can
cost you a lot of valuable time and money.
Professional
cleaning should also include the cleaning of the carpets, where
applicable. Thus you can prove to the inventory clerk when he/she
does the make that there are no stains. When it comes to the check
out and the inventory clerk spots the stains, then you can assure
the tenant that it is their responsibility to get them removed
or that you will do it at their expense. In
short, we advise that you have the property professionally cleaned
prior to marketing the property to attract the best sort of tenants.
They will then have the property cleaned at the end of their tenancy
ready for the next set and so you should not have to have the
property cleaned at your expense again. A clean property, a clean
tenant! We hope!
| Tenancy Agreements: |
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