Problems can begin when your proposition of a “nice” exterior contrasts from what your tenant wants. Some renters aren’t content with solely keeping their backyard maintained – they also desire to adjust or add to the rental home’s exterior features as well. With do-it-yourself home improvements a widely held craze, it’s presumable that there will be an increasing number of tenants that will try to make “improvements” with or without your approval.
There are instances that a tenant may find that a patio umbrella is not acceptable and would want a pergola instead. While it may seem innocuous enough to let them construct one in the yard, this is a hotbed for permit violations, damage to the property, and even personal injuries. (If someone was harmed you may have a serious legal problem on your hands aside from other important matters.) Broken sprinkler or gas lines, damaged siding, and poor workmanship can all result in extravagant repairds to the property and precarious circumstances in the backyard.
The same can be said for other standard home improvements, such as painting, replacing the garage door or adding a deck or porch. Unique personal preferences and/or low-quality remodeling lower property values and make it harder to rent it out. In a nutshell, it simply isn’t a decent proposition to have tenants building improvements on their own.
The best strategy is to stop home “improvement” projects before they start. Construct clear language inside the lease to clarify the fact that tenants are not permitted to build permanent changes to your Blacksburg rental property. It is also essential to check on your property all the time, guaranteeing that sneaky tenants haven’t tried taking things into their own hands. Certainly, this time away from you accomplishing other tasks.
That’s the time when you should get the phone and give Real Property Management Insight a call. We provide regular property evaluations modeled to terminate unauthorized tenant improvements in their tracks. If you are interested in learning more, please contact us online or by phone at 540-998-6917.