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Are Your Dickinson Tenants Damaging Your Garage Without Knowing It?

View of the Garage Door on a Dickinson Rental PropertyA rental home’s garage plays a big part in the total appeal of the home. But even tenants who want to preserve the appeal could still be damaging a rental home’s garage without realizing it. Damage to garage interiors, garage doors, windows, and other elements do occur, and misuse or neglect isn’t always the cause.

Often times, a well-meaning tenant just doesn’t have the know-how to properly clean or maintain a rental home’s garage. When that is the case, expensive and unnecessary repairs are often the result. By giving your Dickinson tenants the right information, you can do a lot to prevent unintentional damage and keep your valuable investment in good condition.

A garage is an important part of a quality single-family rental home. A nice garage door improves the home’s curb appeal, while the interior, windows, cabinets, and even the garage door opener can have a big impact on a tenant’s satisfaction. But each of these should be kept in good working order. That means they all have to be properly maintained. If one part is broken, the whole garage could become a liability instead of an asset.

The garage door needs regular cleaning and maintenance since it’s the most visible exterior element. It is important that it stays working properly and looking nice. There are many ways a tenant could unintentionally damage a garage door. They may not know what the basic maintenance tasks are and inadvertently not do any. They could also mistakenly use the wrong tools or cleaning products when trying to clean the door. For example, different garage doors are made from different materials. Some are painted, while others are vinyl or metal. If a tenant power sprays a painted door clean, that could end up causing extensive damage to the door. They may have wanted to help, but regardless of intention, cleaning a garage door with the wrong tools will always be a bad idea. Harsh household cleaners can also damage a door’s exterior finish, causing far more harm than good.

Going beyond appearances, a garage door also needs to have a functional opener, springs, hinges, and rollers for it to open and close properly. These parts can rust, wear out, or break over time and through heavy use. In fact, a loud garage door often indicates that the door’s hardware is in trouble and needs to be lubricated. This task to maintain the garage door is so simple yet it can considerably extend its useful life.

The windows, floor, and cabinets in a garage are also the usual parts that get unintentional damage. Some garages have stains from a leaking car engine. Oil stains on concrete floors are notoriously difficult to clean. Exhaust fumes, dirt, and other substances can collect on windows and seriously compromise the tracks, locks, and glass. Cabinets may be crushed or broken by heavy storage items or even parking a vehicle too close. Just like the garage door, all of these issues can be prevented or corrected with routine cleaning and maintenance. The problem is that a tenant may not know how to do it.

To illustrate, the methods used to clean up motor oil stains are entirely different from the methods used for other substances. The correct tools and cleaning materials should be used or there may be a possibility that trying to clean it may make things a lot worse instead. Harsh chemicals or scrub brushes can scratch or damage windows and window tracks as well as cabinets, but regular household cleaners may not be enough to get the grime off either. To avoid continued wear and further damage, it would be good for a tenant to have the right information with them and also posses a good amount of oversight. Doing this ensures that the rental home’s garage will be kept in good condition.

Keeping track of a tenant’s cleaning and maintenance record can be time-consuming and difficult for property owners. That is the reason why having a professional property management company is really an excellent decision.

At Real Property Management Prestige, we help property owners teach their tenants on the proper care and upkeep of their rental homes in Dickinson and conduct regular checks to ensure that such tasks are being done. The property management professionals in our team can help safeguard your valuable investment from unintentional damage and prevent expensive and unnecessary repairs. To know more about what we can do for you, please contact us online or give us a ring at 281-532-5455.

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