Does your Dallas commercial property have a lower net operating income than you'd like? If so, you may be spending too much to maintain it.
With commercial properties, maintenance involves caring for everything from the amenities to the inventory assets. As a result, your maintenance spending can quickly get out of hand. The solution: have a better maintenance plan.
Not sure where to start? Here are some essential commercial property maintenance tips every Dallas investor should know!
Take a Proactive Approach
Every good commercial real estate upkeep strategy starts with being proactive. This allows you to reduce maintenance spending and fix many issues before they get out of control. Your proactive maintenance approach should involve:
- Seasonal building upkeep services
- Annual property and asset inspections
- Tracking asset lifespans
To make these tasks easier, create a list of all assets in your commercial building. Then, document the maintenance history of each item on the list. This list will serve as the foundation of your proactive maintenance schedule.
Simplify Maintenance Requests
One of the best facility management tips we can give you is to give tenants easy access to maintenance requests. If you have a tenant portal, use it to provide a digital maintenance request form.
Once a tenant fills out the report, your management software will process it into a work order. For best results, let tenants submit reports via their preferred method (SMS, email). You should also make the form simple to fill out.
Install Failsafe Devices
Undetected leaks are a major source of commercial property damage. If you don't address gas and water leaks right away, they can be catastrophic. Fortunately, there are several devices you can use as an early warning system.
For example, in-line flow monitors can help you identify leaks by alerting you if the flow doesn't stop after some time. Ideally, you would combine these with remote shut-off valves on both the gas and water pipes.
Invest in Smart Technology
Smart technology doesn't just help with energy efficiency and property value enhancement. It also reduces the unnecessary use of building systems, minimizing the need for repairs. Smart devices you should consider are:
- Smart lights
- Smart thermostats
- On-demand water heaters
Cultivate Vendor Relationships
Many property maintenance strategies involve cultivating a network of trusted vendors. In return for a steady supply of work orders, you'll be able to get high-quality work at accessible prices.
Of course, developing a vendor network will take some research. Find highly-rated local maintenance services and work with each one a few times to assess their quality. You can also hire a property manager and use their network.
Commercial Property Maintenance Simplified
Every commercial property maintenance plan has room for improvement. The above tips will help you identify holes in your strategy and fix them!
Need help with maintaining a commercial property in Dallas? If you hire a property manager at PMI North Dallas, they'll be available 24/7 for all your maintenance needs! Contact us here to see why we've been in business for 30+ years!
