42.7% of intentional property owners claim that maintenance is one of the most stressful aspects of owning rental property. After all, maintenance and repairs performed on your Phoenix, AZ rental are sure to be more costly than you might expect. Plus, they can take up a lot of your time when you’re self-managing a rental and trying to do it all by yourself.
That said, knowing how to handle common repairs on your own will help increase tenant satisfaction. It might even land you more lease renewals too. But only if you know what you’re doing.
That’s why today we’re rounding up the most common rental property repairs in Phoenix all landlords should know how to do. This way, you can prepare yourself for the repairs your tenants are going to request.
Most Common Phoenix Rental Property Repairs
1. Drywall Repairs
It happens to the best of us. Something, or someone, accidentally knocks a hole in the wall and leaves the drywall in need of repair.
As much as you’d like to think your tenants will never damage the interior walls of your property, it is bound to happen. Luckily, repairing drywall is not that hard to do:
- Small holes require a small amount of putty and spackle to cover up
- Large holes need a bit of cutting, drywall, and tape
No matter the size of the hole in your property’s wall, one thing is for sure. You should always have extra paint on hand so you can paint over your DIY repair and avoid mismatched colors. And don’t forget, while minor repairs are easy to repair, major damage is not. Always collect a security deposit from your tenants before they move in to protect yourself and your property.
2. Garbage Disposals
No matter how many times you tell people not to shove large amounts of food, oil, paper, plastic, and other items down the garbage disposal, they do it anyways. Ultimately, this leads to a broken garbage disposal that’s incapable of running the way it should.
Many times, you can fix the garbage disposal yourself by clicking the bright red reset button on the bottom. Other times, it will require you to replace the entire unit, which isn’t that tough if you’re handy. In any case, knowing how to take care of a garbage disposal yourself will save you lots of money.
3. Appliances
Most appliance issues require the help of a professional handyman to fix. However, if your tenants do have a problem with an appliance, you might be able to troubleshoot yourself and make some quick fixes.
For example, you might be able to replace a burned out lightbulb, install a new heating element, change out the filters, or defrost a freezer without any help. The key here is to always have the manuals on hand for when things break down. The manuals, paired with your ambition to be handy, could be enough to get the job done on your own.
4. Leaky Faucets
Leaky faucets pose a huge threat to your rental property. For example, a leaky faucet that goes unchecked may cause water damage, mold to grow, or your tenant’s utility bill to increase. Because of this, it’s important you stress to your tenants that if there is ever a leak, they should report it to you or your property manager.
While some plumbing issues may be too large to handle on your own, there will be times when you can fix the problem yourself. In fact, sometimes all a leaky faucet needs is a new washer.
5. Paint Scuffs
You may not add a fresh coat of paint to your rental property every year, especially if you have long-term tenants. Yet, over time, it’s likely your rental’s interior paint will become scuffed or worn away. When this happens, you have two choices. You can either hire an expensive painter to do the job for you or take on painting the interior of your property yourself.
If you ask us, painting your walls yourself is the easiest and most cost-effective solution. Plus, it will make your existing tenants happy.
6. Bugs and Rodents
Though this doesn’t technically fall under the most common rental property repairs in Phoenix, the presence of bugs and rodents is a huge problem for both landlords and tenants. And the worst part is, bugs and rodents usually appear because your tenants are not being as cleanly as they should be.
One way to tackle this issue yourself is to spray periodically for your tenants to prevent bugs and rodents from ever appearing. In addition, you can educate your tenants when they move in about the importance of cleanliness. Lastly, you can always add a lease agreement provision that places the responsibility of pest control on your tenants.
7. Toilet and Tub Re-Caulking
Another one of the most common Phoenix rental property repairs landlords will face is stiff and disintegrating caulk that seals the toilets, tubs, and even sinks of a rental property.
The trick to being able to handle this common repair on your own is removing all the old caulk first. From there, you’ll need to clean the area with paint thinner, apply new caulk, and let it dry. This is a whole lot easier than hiring someone to do it for you, even though it takes some time to do on your own.
8. Squeaky Floors
No one likes to walk around on creaky floors. It’s noisy, annoying, and a major turn off for potential tenants checking out your property.
There are a few ways you can handle this problem on your own:
- The easiest way is to sprinkle talcum powder between the floorboards that are causing the noise
- Another solution is to add a new brace underneath the creaky spot
Just make sure before you go cutting into the floor of your rental property on your own you know what you’re doing. It’s better to have a squeaky floor than a floor with a hole in it.
9. Clogged Drains
A clogged drain in your Phoenix, AZ rental property is usually a quick fix and one that doesn’t need a professional.
The first thing you should always try is a liquid de-clogger like Drano. If that doesn’t work, you might even consider using a drain snake to nab whatever is lodged in the pipe. Just be careful when you do this. Old pipes are fragile, and you may accidentally bust through the toilet or the wall if you dig too hard.
10. Fence Repairs
You never know when the fence surrounding your rental property might be damaged. A child’s basketball, an extra windy day, or even an ambitious dog trying to escape can damage your wooden or chain link fence with ease.
If you have a wooden fence, replacing the broken boards yourself is an easy solution. If you’re feeling extra handy, you can even replace the chain link fence that fails to hold up with a little help from your friends or family.
11. Blinds
If your rental property has vertical blinds covering the large sliding glass doors, you know how easily they break. Luckily, you have the option to have extra blinds on hand for when this happens.
Unless the plastic clip is broken (don’t worry, there are replacements for those too!), all you have to do to fix a broken blind is clip the new one into place. This means you don’t have to invest in an expensive window covering professional to make this quick fix.
12. Gutter Fixes
If the thought of climbing up on a ladder and dealing with your rental property’s broken gutters doesn’t bother you, it’s best to do it yourself.
You can get most gutter replacement parts from the local hardware store. From there, you can perform a DIY gutter fix and solve yet another one of the most common Phoenix rental property repairs around all by yourself.
13. Faulty Light Switches and Outlets
With lots of use, it’s not unusual for light switches and outlets to become damaged and even unsightly. That said, replacing light switch and outlet covers are easy. So is buying new components, matching the wires, and making your rental property look better than ever with fresh, clean, and functional outlets.
Take the Stress of Property Repairs off Yourself with Stratton Vantage
Are you in need of Phoenix property management? If so, contact us today and see how we can help you with even the most common of Phoenix rental property repairs.
At Stratton Vantage we work hard to handle all rental property maintenance and repairs for you. In addition, we perform routine property inspections and identify minor repairs before they become costly and eat into your annual profit. If you’re ready to stop handling common rental repairs and save yourself time, let us manage your rental property for you. It’s time you enjoy your rental and all the benefits of being a landlord, without having to put in all the hard work.