Your tenants may unwittingly be damaging your rental home’s kitchen. A kitchen contains various elements, from the floors and countertops to the appliances and cabinets. Each one of these elements should be used and kept properly, or there may be accidental damage done to them.
Through misunderstanding or neglect, unintentional damage to the kitchen can lead to high costs of repairs for investment property owners. However, recognizing how this damage occurs, you can equip your tenants with the knowledge of proper kitchen maintenance. This would allow them to help keep your Eldersburg rental homes in the best shape it could be.
One of the reasons why a tenant will choose one rental home over another is an attractive kitchen. However, a kitchen can also suffer a lot of unnecessary damage if it is not being properly maintained. Tenants may not know that there is a proper way to take care of a kitchen’s floor, countertops, or cabinets, unintentionally damaging these features in the process.
Keep in mind that wood or laminate floors can be scratched or gouged by heavy furniture, heavy foot traffic, and even pets. Tile floors normally outlast other kinds of floors, but grout can stain or become damaged by strong cleaners or even magic erasers or scrubbers and dropping heavy objects can crack or break tiles. Over time these kinds of overuse may look inconsequential but it will result in a kitchen floor that must be torn out and replaced years before its expected life is over.
Countertops are another hard surface in the kitchen that tenants can inadvertently damage, no matter how careful he or she is. Countertops can be permanently stained or discolored by setting hot dishes and pans directly on the counter surface, as well as scored by knives from cutting food without a cutting board. A tenant may not even know that a hard stone like granite can be damaged by heat, sharp objects, and harsh cleaners. But it can and it would lead to some expensive repairs.
Cabinets are another kitchen element that is often accidentally damaged by tenants. The most usual type of damage to cabinets arises when a tenant attempts to clean them. Many household cleaners will take the finish off wood cabinets, as will products like magic eraser sponges. Cabinets that have been stripped of their protective finish are prone to be further damaged by heat, steam, and grime build-up, which will be more difficult to remove at each cleaning.
While repairs are expensive when one of these elements are damaged, few things generate more problems than badly maintained appliances. Refrigerators, dishwashers, and ranges need regular maintenance and proper use to keep functioning properly for many years. For example, the useful life of a dishwasher can be severely shortened if a tenant doesn’t know how to load it properly or uses too much soap. Dishwashers also must be cleaned several times a year by running an empty cycle with a dishwasher cleaner or a cup of vinegar, or risk clogged drains or blocked sprayers.
Using the wrong cleaning products on an appliance is another common reason why unintentional damage happens. Ovens, stovetops, and refrigerators can all be scratched or damaged by harsh chemicals or cleaning brushes, making them function badly and look terrible. Cleaning is a crucial part of appliance maintenance, but it must be properly done so that the appliance does not break down and will not need to be replaced right away.
Proper kitchen maintenance is an important topic for your tenants to know– it is essential in managing a quality rental home. However, educating them is quite difficult as it may lead to damaging the landlord-tenant relationship. This is the field of expertise where the experts at Real Property Management Essentials can assist you.
We can aid you by communicating crucial information to your tenants and at the same time encourage good relations. We can make sure that your tenants are carrying out vital upkeep work in the kitchen once-a-year, accomplishing the daily upkeep of your Eldersburg rental home an easy and uncomplicated process. Don’t hesitate to contact us online or give us a ring at 410-832-3138 to know more about what we can do for you.
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