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Is Your Rental Ready for Winter?

Is Your Rental Ready for Winter?

It’s that time of year again. The temperatures begin to drop and you’ll see the first flurries of the season.

There’s a dusting on the roofs, on the grass, and on the tops of the cars left out the night before. The snow can be beautiful, but as more and more of it comes, it can cause a real problem, especially if you are a landlord and property manager.

As beautiful as snow – and even ice – may look from your window with the fireplace going behind you, it can cause some serious damage if you’re not prepared.

Even light ice and snow, if it sticks to more than rooftops and the grass, can cause slip hazards.

If you own an apartment complex or have outdoor stairs of any sort on the property, they could become very icy and dangerous, leading to potentially serious injuries if your tenant or a guest takes a tumble.

Locks on the doors and gates might freeze shut, making it hard or even impossible for your tenant to leave the property.

Piles of snow may also keep them housebound, if their car is snowed in or if the snow is piled in front of the door so that they can’t leave.

Water in the pipes that freezes may cause them to burst and too much snow on top of a roof can, eventually, cause it to collapse in due to the weight.

In the same way, branches become brittle with too much ice weighing them down and can damage cars, roofs, or passersby that are unlucky enough to be walking under at just the wrong time.

Don’t let the dangers of the colder months overwhelm you. There are precautions that you can take both before and after the snowfall to protect your tenants, your rental property, and everything in-between.

Preparing for Snow and Ice

While you likely won’t be in the home when the freeze hits, as a landlord and/or property manager you can prepare your tenants to take care of the rental for you.

Your lease should detail out who is responsible for what.

If you own an apartment complex, you are likely responsible for de-icing stairways, common walkways, and possibly even a parking lot if you have it.

If you rent out a single-family home, your tenants will likely be responsible for these things.

Either way, it should be detailed out in the lease from the beginning so that everyone can be on the same page.

Make sure to check your local laws (both state and county) to ensure that your lease matches up.

One of the first things you should do as winter approaches is to schedule a time with your tenant to drop by the property.

You’ll want to check the furnace, the smoke alarms, and carbon monoxide detectors.

You don’t want the heat giving out during a snowstorm or find that a smoke alarm or carbon monoxide detector has gone bad the hard (and dangerous) way.

When you drop by, you may consider providing your tenant with a written reminder of their responsibilities for the colder months.

Include tips and tricks that you have learned over the years to better help prepare for it.

If the temperatures are forecasted to drop below freezing that night, leave the faucets dripping. That will help to keep water moving through the pipes so that they are less likely to freeze. It doesn’t do you or your tenant any good to have a frozen or burst pipe. You’ll need to call a repairman and, depending on the pipe that burst, they may find themselves without water for a short time.

You may also want to detail in this letter (especially if it’s the first freeze for them in the rental) what you will provide and what you will not.

If they do not have access to snow shovels, you may consider having one that you can lend to them.

They should keep salt, sand, or even kitty litter to help melt the ice.

If they’re looking for a quick way to remove large areas of snow out of your pathway, consider laying out a tarp down before the snowfall starts to catch it. If this is done over a walkway or driveway, it can be moved the next morning after a heavy, overnight snowfall.

Snow shovels and snow blowers will also help clear walkways and driveways after the snow has fallen and keep the snow from freezing to the concrete.

Check with them to see if they have experience removing the snow.

If you have a snow blower that you’ve left on the property for them to use, make sure they are aware of both how to operate it so that they do not damage the machine, as well as best practices to make sure they remove the snow efficiently.

The last thing they’ll want to do is battle a snow blower first thing in the morning just so they can get to work and end up late because they weren’t certain how to use it.

Ways to Help Your Tenant

When applicants come to look at your rental to compare it to others in the area, you’ll want to make sure yours stands out above the rest.

If you live in a location where snow can become a real problem, this is a place that you can shine.

Check out the following projects that you may wish to consider to make your rental property more desirable, especially during the long winter months:

  • Make sure all doors and windows are sealed. Drafts caused by loose doors and windows can drive the electricity bill for the property up as the tenants attempt to warm the unit.
  • Update out-of-date heating systems. If the heating system in your rental still works, but not efficiently, you may consider updating that system. Newer units are less likely to break down in the middle of a freeze, giving your tenants an extra layer of security.
  • Clear the driveway. There are a few options here. If you live close to the rental and you’re a do-it-yourself kind of landlord, you may offer to help them dig their car out in the morning. If not, you may wish to simply have someone on hand to call for that. While it’s a nice gesture to have a referral for this kind of work, you may consider paying to have this done, adding an extra perk to your rental that may not be provided with another.

Winter affects parts of the country very differently.

While rentals in New England may have already seen their first big snowstorm and expect more to come, rentals down in Texas may simply have to take a few precautions on the occasional overnight freeze.

You’ll want to approach your own rental with your local climate in mind, but regardless of where you live, there will be steps that you need to take to protect your rental and the tenants that live there.