subject: Property Inventory Clerks - The Landlord [print this page] We all know that renting a property is not as easy as it once was. People have become more reckless and it is likely that if you rent your property today that it will be degraded in some way, shape or form. Marked walls, broken windows, ripped carpets, scratched chairs and tables among many others can cost you a lot of money to repair and restore back to their original state. That is why; instead of opting to do these repairs yourself it is advisable to hire property inventory clerks to assess your property before renting it out so that you can hold the tenant liable for any damages that occur during his tenancy.
This sounds like a good idea, right? Well, it is. But how do you go about hiring property inventory clerks and what should you know about them and what they do? Simply put, property inventory clerks are professionals who are paid to make detailed notes about the contents of a given property before it is rented out. They are also required to take high quality digital photographs to support their notes. With that said: let's look at a few things that one should consider before and when hiring these specialists to do an assessment of their property.
"The inventory firm that the clerks are working for. - Why is this important? It is important to find out the reputation of a given firm so that you can have a clear picture of how the management is likely to treat you should they get you as a client. In an effort to cut down on costs, some firms employ untrained candidates who know nothing about professionalism and these individuals can make the entire inventory process unbearable for you.
"The reputation of the clerk assigned to you. - Assuming that you've already gone through the first step of learning about a given firm's reputation and you've decided to pursue an inventory report with that firm using some online systems like online scheduling software, then the next step is to vet the clerk that is assigned to you. Let's face the facts - not everyone is honest and disciplined, the two top qualities that property inventory clerks are supposed to posses. A simple Google search of the clerk's name can yield a lot of useful information. If you don't like what you find or you have other reasons to suspect that you will not be served properly then you can always request for a change. Should the firm refuse to grant you this; then it would be a wise move for you to withdraw immediately. Frankly, it's not worth the time and hassle of working with incompetent clerks.
"Can the clerks in a given inventory firm produce Energy Performance Certificates? (EPC) In certain parts of the world, Energy Performance Certificates are mandatory and landlords are required by law to produce them before a tenancy can begin. For that reason, landlords who are seeking to hire property inventory clerks to assess their property should remember to hire individuals that also have energy assessment skills. EPC's are all about informing the tenant about how energy efficient a given building or property is. Instead of hiring a single firm to provide you with an inventory report and another one to provide you with an Energy Performance Certificate, it is better to hire a single firm that can deliver both with the aid of online scheduling software. These online systems do not just automate report generation and documentation but also lessen the time consume to do the tasks of the clerks. Thus, will undoubtedly save you a lot of money.
Remember, property inventory clerks are required to visit your property at least twice i.e before a tenancy begins and after it ends. If you would like to have them perform routine checks on your property, provided you've stated this in the tenancy contract, to ensure your property is being maintained well, then you should consider hiring clerks that will not overcharge you for this service. Routine checks are not like the "normal" checks and should therefore not cost the same.
