A report forecasted that building maintenance costs would rise by 5.7% in 2023 and 2.5% to 3.1% annually from 2024 to 2027.
Those rising costs can affect your commercial property's repair expenses. You could find yourself facing massive surprise repair bills. The risks are higher if you haven't been conducting commercial property inspections.
To that end, we created this guide discussing why property inspections are crucial. So read on, as what you learn here can help you take the necessary steps to preserve property value and safety.
Strategic Property Maintenance
Property inspections allow you to determine your building's condition and structural integrity. They also give you insights into the areas that require maintenance or repairs.
Here are some examples of what a property inspection checklist can reveal about your building:
- Defects in the roofing, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems
- Issues concerning indoor air quality (IAQ)
- Problems affecting your property's curb appeal (e.g., dirty exterior walls and windows)
- Damaged components, such as ceilings, walls, floors, windows, carpeting, and insulation
Knowing those problems then lets you create a strategy for prioritizing the repairs or maintenance of those areas.
Prevent Costlier Repairs
You can catch structural issues before they worsen with regular property inspections. Once you discover these problems, you can then schedule them for repairs ASAP. That allows you to avoid more expensive repair costs.
Keep Tenants Happy and Healthy
Issues like roof and plumbing leaks and faulty HVAC systems can lead to poor IAQ.
Unfortunately, poor IAQ can cause health problems, including respiratory illnesses and heart diseases. If that happens to your tenants, they may file complaints against you for failing to satisfy building codes. At the very least, they may move out, increasing your vacancy rates and turnover costs.
So, before that happens, inspect your properties regularly and address building issues immediately. That way, you can keep your building safe for your tenants. That can help them stay happy and healthy and encourage them to renew their lease.
Confirm Property Compliance
Regular inspections also help confirm that your tenants comply with their lease terms. For example, you can find out if they're breaking the agreement by:
- Smoking in the property
- Misusing facilities and amenities
- Not performing tenant responsibilities in terms of property maintenance
- Using the property for illegal activities or crimes
Hopefully, your tenants are compliant, but if they're not, then at least you'll discover sooner than later. You can then take the appropriate steps, such as notifying them that continued non-compliance can lead to an eviction.
Delegate Commercial Property Inspections to Professionals
Now that you know how crucial property inspections are, you must decide if you can do them by yourself and if you even have the time. If not, it's best to leave these crucial tasks to the pros.
You can rely on the team of experts at PMI First Choice Property for all your commercial property management needs. We have over 19 years of industry experience providing property services and asset management in Orange County, CA. We can help with tenant management, property maintenance, accounting, and financial reporting.
So, if you're ready to enjoy the benefits of simplified property management, call us today! We look forward to discussing how our real estate services can help boost your bottom line.
