Real estate is widely seen as one of the best asset classes to invest in for long-term profits.
The real estate market in South Carolina has a lot of potential, so with the right approach, you could make some sizable profits. Many investors opt for rental properties as they can be a great way to generate a reliable, recurring income.
One of the things many investors are often confused about is rental property inspections; namely, how often they should do them. In this guide, we'll explain what you need to know so you can understand the property management best practices for inspections.
Let's get started.
Types of Rental Property Inspections
Inspections are crucial for effective rental property maintenance, but there are several types you can do.
Before new tenants move in, you should do a moving-in inspection. This involves checking the property and assessing its current state.
At the end of the tenancy, you'll perform a moving-out inspection. For this, you'll check over the entire property based on the same property inspection checklist you used for the moving-in inspection. You can determine if the tenants have caused any damage or if anything is missing, and you may need to use their security deposit to cover any costs.
The final type is routine inspections. You'll do these at regular intervals throughout the tenancy. These allow you to look for any maintenance issues that you need to address.
How Often Should You Perform Rental Property Inspections
You should carry out routine inspections at regular intervals, but how often should this be? This is ultimately down to you.
Some landlords choose to do these quarterly, while others prefer to do them every six months or once a year. These can all be ideal schedules; the most important thing is to make sure your tenants are aware. It's best to specify your inspection and maintenance schedule in your lease agreement so that tenants know what to expect.
Having this put in place from the start will help with your maintenance planning. However, you also need to bear tenant inspection rights in mind.
According to South Carolina Appleseed, you must give tenants at least 24 hours' notice before entering the property (unless it's an emergency). It can be a good idea to give a bit more notice than this, just as a courtesy.
You also need to take the tenant's right to quiet enjoyment into account. If you perform inspections too often, you could be breaching this and disputes may arise. Making sure your tenants understand your maintenance schedule before they move in will help with this.
Professional Rental Property Inspections
Rental property inspections are vital if you want to keep your property in a good state. Make sure you set up a schedule and let your tenants know what that schedule will be. A property manager can help you ensure all inspections are done properly.
PMI Palmetto is a professional property management company based in Columbia, South Carolina. We have years of experience and use state-of-the-art technology to provide exceptional services to our clients. Check out our property management page to find out more about how we can help you.
