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What Qualifies as an Emergency Maintenance Request?

Rental home resident holding a bucket under a water leak.When a resident calls with an emergency maintenance request, several property managers realize that they must act at this instant. The question is, which maintenance requests are emergencies that require immediate attention, and which ones can wait? This is a hard topic for property owners to respond to because not all issues, no matter how bothersome or worrying, are emergencies. However, other maintenance issues are enough of a danger to be addressed immediately or risk violating Landlord/Tenant laws or habitability codes. With this information in hand, you’ll be more prepared to confidently handle all your renter’s maintenance requests.

What defines an emergency repair?

One way to know when you have a true emergency on your hands is to consider to what degree the maintenance issue could cause injury, severe property damage, or compromise your resident’s health and safety. Any concern that would meet this criterion would typically be considered an emergency. Frequent emergencies include:

  • Gas Leak
  • Frozen or Broken Water Lines
  • Flooding or Water Emergencies
  • Fire
  • Carbon Monoxide Detection
  • Sewer Back-up
  • No Heat in Cold Weather
  • No Air Conditioning in Extremely Hot Temperatures
  • Extended Power Outage
  • Intruder Break-In

Determining an Emergency from Non-Emergency

Learn that certain maintenance items may be emergencies in one circumstance but not another. Having a broken air conditioner, for example, is not an emergency when the temperature is cold. But it definitely is amidst a heatwave where temperatures reach dangerous levels.

If you do not respond immediately to emergencies such as these, even if they occur during the night, you could violate habitability laws and, eventually, bring about serious legal trouble. This is mostly relevant if your negligence prompts your tenant to take matters into their own hands and organize or make the repairs themselves.

Non-Emergency Maintenance Types

However, there are other maintenance issues that, although frustrating, are not typically deemed emergencies unless there are extenuating circumstances. For example, a malfunctioning appliance, no hot water, or minimal water intrusion may be troublesome for your residents but regularly do not incorporate in the category of an emergency repair. These maintenance issues must be reported as regular maintenance requests, which you can carry out during business hours.

For rental property owners, realizing what constitutes an emergency maintenance issue and how to respond appropriately plays an important role in excellent property management. If you are unable to respond promptly to such inquiries or have other demands on your time, it might be a good idea to hire a quality property management company operating in the Palm Harbor area and the vicinity. Contact us online or call 727-202-9077 for more details about what Real Property Management Catalystpresents rental property owners like you.

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