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Guide to weather proofing your property

Both the government and Citizens Advice stress a landlord’s responsibility for maintaining let property in a good state of repair. Not only is that your legal obligation as a landlord but a regular schedule of regular maintenance and repair is the key to avoiding the disruption and expense of tenancy voids.

Much better to avoid the risk of the let property having to be vacated because it has been allowed to fall into disrepair and a major restoration project is needed to fix it up again.

Since the cost of that maintenance schedule is typically one of the biggest overhead expenses which you are likely to face as a landlord, what might be done to manage and control essential repairs and maintenance?

Weather

Probably the number one enemy for the owner of any buy to let property comes from something as simple and inescapable as the great British weather. Blistering sunshine in summer, pouring rain, winter storms and the risk of flooding, ice, and snow, all take their toll on the condition of the building itself and even its contents.

If you want to manage and control your expenditure on repairs and maintenance, therefore, a major objective will be mitigating the punishing effects of the elements by weatherproofing your let accommodation.

This means maintaining your let property in a good state of repair the full year around.

Areas for particular consideration are:

  • the roof, where any slipped or missing tiles or slates must be promptly replaced;
  • all the rainwater goods – such as gutters and downpipes – which must be kept free of blockages and provide free-flowing drainage; and
  • the external walls – where the brickwork must be checked to have been adequately pointed and remains free of cracks.

Maintaining your property in a good state of repair is also likely to be a condition of the landlords’ insurance you might have arranged through us here at Cover4LetProperty.

Seasons

Your maintenance schedule for weatherproofing the let property also needs to take into account the changing seasons – and the fact that winter conditions may be especially punishing.

This is the time of year when the focus is on the importance of striking the most appropriate balance between the cold and wet conditions outside to the moist and warm conditions that are likely to be present inside. Communication with your tenants on maintaining that balance may be critical.

So, weatherproofing your let property might involve just as much attention to the facilities you are providing your tenants inside the building as to anything you need to maintain and repair outside. This means ensuring that open chimney flues have been competently swept (preferably by a member of the National Association of Chimney Sweeps or the Guild of Master Chimney Sweeps) and that any hot water or central heating boiler has been professionally serviced.

Empty property

A properly weatherproofed property is all the more important when and if your let accommodation is left unoccupied – for example, during the period when former tenants have left, but whilst you are still waiting for new tenants to move in.

This is a time when your usual landlord’s insurance policy may impose severe restrictions that reflect the increased risks of an unoccupied property. Some insurers may even consider your insurance cover to have lapsed altogether after your property has been left empty for longer than 30-45 consecutive days (depending on the insurer in question).

The solution in those circumstances is likely to be purpose-designed, specialist unoccupied property insurance which we can help you arrange.

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