Have you ever walked into a vacation home, ready for a much-needed recharge with family and friends, only to find the coffee machine wasn’t working? Or maybe the AC unit was ultra-finicky, refusing to reach your desired temperature? Or let’s say everything was in working order, but you notice a water stain in the master bedroom ceiling, rust collecting around your toilet paper holder, or a couch that looks like it’s seen better days? Your guest experience will be forever clouded by obvious and easy-to-fix missteps that would have easily been addressed with proper vacation rental maintenance protocol.
That may have been the vacation of a lifetime, but what you remember are those seemingly obvious and easy-to-fix missteps. Your recount of your trip starts like this: “It was amazing! The weather was great, and we got lots of beach time in with the kids, but our condo… well, I wouldn’t recommend it.”
And just like that, word has spread to a handful of people who may have rented that vacation property. Even worse, they may take to social media or other review sites to give their thoughts on their experience. A handful of friends just turned into every set of eyes considering a vacation to that destination.
Now imagine that vacation home was yours. Vacation rental maintenance isn’t the glitz and glamour that comes with creating an amazing guest experience, but it’s arguably the most critical. Failure to maintain your vacation rental unit condition to a standard equivalent or better than how a guest maintains their personal residence is a common mistake of property managers and a sure way to brew bad feelings with a guest. Not only that, proper preventative maintenance only adds to the longevity of a property, leading to fewer big-ticket repairs and more available booking dates.
Preventative vacation rental maintenance is a win-win-win for the owner, property manager, and guest.
What is Preventative Vacation Rental Maintenance?
Remember the old adage, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of care?” Preventative maintenance–often referred to as minor maintenance–is the difference between a small investment to keep things in good working order versus a large purchase to fix the maintenance item once it breaks and potentially causes additional harm to the unit.
Example A: Guest Reports a Leaking Sink in the Bathroom
Preventative Maintenance Approach
Send a maintenance associate to resolve the leak as soon as it is reported. Clean up any sitting water and turn on a fan to air out the vanity to ensure there’s no remaining moisture.
Reactive Maintenance Approach
Note the leaky faucet, thank the guest for their feedback, and resolve to fix the issue after departure. Days or weeks later, likely just before the next guest’s arrival, housekeeping and maintenance are sent to prepare the unit. The standing water in the cabinet started to form mold, and the wood throughout the base of the vanity is beginning to rot. Unfortunately, the entire vanity will need to be replaced, and the guest will need to be reassigned to a different unit.
Many property management companies focus on reactive maintenance, often due to staffing restraints. Scenic Stays invests in routine preventative vacation rental maintenance–referred to as our Minor Maintenance Program–to ensure your property stays in tip-top shape.
Preventative Maintenance Checklist
Your property management company should care for your investment property as you would care for your home. A checklist enables property managers to detect issues before they become a problem. Here’s a sampling of our checklist. Is your property manager doing the same?
Preventative Maintenance Checklist
- Check air conditioning filters. This can become a major issue if not routinely cleaned or replaced, and a common complaint from guests.
- Inspect and replace refrigerator water filters.
- Check and clean out the air duct in the dryer, so it works well and doesn’t create a fire hazard.
- Check for water damage and potential leaks, and address them immediately.
- Inspect fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, and carbon monoxide detectors; proactively replace batteries.
- Schedule routine pest control inspections.
- Inspect electric systems such as heaters, fans, coffee machines, and more.
- Inspect sliding glass doors, closet doors, and windows.
- Test bathtub and sink drains for proper drain functioning.
- Check all lightbulbs.
- Inspect exterior features such as gutters.
- Change remote control batteries (we know this seems excessive, but when you get the call at 10 pm for new batteries in the middle of peak season, you’ll wish you had!)
- Schedule routine pool cleaning, gas grill cleaning, landscaping, pressure washing, and more.
Choose Scenic Stays for a Proactive Approach to Vacation Rental Maintenance
Vacation rental maintenance is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to full-service vacation rental management. From housekeeping and maintenance to reservations and customer service, Scenic Stays offers a full-service approach to ensure your property is ready to greet guests and show them a vacation they won’t soon forget – for all the right reasons.
At Scenic Stays, we use intuitive technology for our vacation rental maintenance, seamlessly managing work orders, vendors, and operations, so the issue is prevented before it becomes an issue. This allows us to maximize your property’s revenue by minimizing time blocked for maintenance repairs, increasing guest satisfaction, and retaining them for years to come.
Let us help you take a load off by joining the Scenic Stays rental program today. We’ll ensure your property is rental-ready while you sit back and enjoy the fruits of your investment. Learn more about our property management program and contact us today by filling out the form below!
