A cheat sheet for tenants who want to get a double thumbs up at their next inspection

Last year inspections went virtual for a time, but now that it is a fresh new year, physical inspections are back in full swing.

So, we thought we’d put together a cheeky checklist of things that you can do to ensure that we are seeing your home in its best state; giving you a firm leg up with your landlord should you wish to renew your lease, or a rave reference from your property manager if you decide to move to a new property.

General tidying: This one is a given. It is surprising how much of a difference a quick general tidy of the house can just make everything look in order, it gives us clear view of the carpet/flooring and immediately makes us feel like this isn’t going to be a difficult inspection.

Vacuum/sweep: You don’t need to go crazy and get the carpets steamed clean before every inspection, but a generally clean floor makes it easy for us to see how well you are looking after the floors, and means we don’t need to get down on our hands and knees to answer the question “is that a huge scratch on the floorboards or just a stray hair?”

Tidy up the gardens: Again, nothing intense is needed here, no hedge art required. Just a quick mow of the lawn
or a trim of anything that’s clearly overgrown will enable us to quickly see that you are maintaining the gardens.

Showers/Bath: Something that can easily be overlooked, but can lead to big maintenance costs, is shower/bath mould. This isn’t hard to deal with if you keep on top of it. Whether you opt for a mould spray, or its natural cousin white vinegar, you simply need to spritz the product all around the wet areas, leave it to sit for a few minutes and then wipe it away. Pair that with a dash of glass cleaner to remove any build up on the shower screen and you’re golden. A non-scummy bath and shower always makes us feel like you’re a considerate tenant.

Animals: Ensure dogs are outside/not going to surprise the property manager, just for ease of inspection.
Air out the property: The morning of, open up your windows and light a nice candle. Trust us, walking into a property that smells fresh immediately gives us a sense that the house is clean and that you are mindful tenants. Bonus points if the candle is lychee scented as this is Hannah’s favourite…

If you’d like to look at some more of our tips, for both tenants and landlords, please head to propertyowners.com.au and check out our blog.