Annual Budgeting for Your Nashville Investment Property Maintenance

Lee Blackburn

Maintenance will be required at some point, no matter how new your rental property happens to be. Whether it’s a small leak or a new roof, you need to be prepared for those property repairs. Budgeting and planning is essential. You don’t want to be left with an expensive repair and no way to pay for it. Today, we’re sharing some tips on how to plan for those maintenance expenses. 

How Much Should you Budget for Maintenance?

The amount you spend maintaining your Nashville investment property will depend on its age and condition. Putting together a maintenance reserve is the best way to ensure you have the funds ready to pay for any repairs or replacements that pop up. 

Different owners use different formulas. Some owners use the 1 percent formula, which is to put aside one percent of what your rental property is worth. If you have a rental home valued at $250,000, you’ll designate $2,500 a year for repairs and improvements. 

Others use a 10 percent method, where they’ll save 10 percent of their monthly income for potential maintenance issues. If your property rents for $1,500 a month, you’ll save $150 every month for repairs. 

A good property manager will also have experience data and can advise on an amount that might make sense for your specific property and circumstances.

Preventative Maintenance and Nashville Rental Homes

Preventative maintenance is an excellent way to save on repairs, and it also protects the condition of your home. Get service contracts in place for your appliances, your heating and air conditioning systems, and your landscaping. 

When an expert is inspecting and servicing these things on an annual basis, you can be sure that small problems are caught while they’re still manageable and inexpensive. Have your gutters cleaned routinely and your roof checked seasonally. Make sure your tenants are changing air filters regularly. While you may have to spend a little bit on these inspections now, it will save you a lot of maintenance money in the long term.

Expect Normal Wear and Tear

After a tenant moves out, you’re going to invest some money repairing and updating the home before a new tenant moves in. Any damage that you find can be charged to the security deposit, but wear and tear is your responsibility. Make sure you have at least the equivalent of one or two month’s rent to pay for new paint, minor upgrades, and the general deterioration that occurs anytime someone is living in a home. 

Work with Preferred Vendors and Contractors

Good vendors help you budget for maintenance by providing high quality work and good communication. They should tell you about what your property may need in the future. Work with professionals who are licensed and insured and experts in their fields. When you have a plumber at the property to fix a small leak under a sink, ask the vendor to check out your other pipes, faucets, and hoses. This will help you ensure that everything is working properly, and you’ll get an idea of when you’ll have to make a big repair or replacement in the future. 

It’s not a perfect science, but you need to make sure you have the resources necessary to keep your property in excellent condition. We can help with this and any other Nashville property management issues. Please don’t hesitate to contact us at Omni Realtors & Property Management.