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By Kosta Giannopoulos, Head of Property Management and Short-Term Rentals, Better Homes
1. Communicate, communicate, communicate
If real estate is about location, location, location, then property management is about communication.
A sure way to make any issue worse is to avoid or ignore your tenant, so communicate and find out what they are upset about. If possible visit them and follow up with e-mails.
Remember that it is not a personal issue. The tenant may have had experiences in the past with complaints not being dealt with and so they try to make the issue sound worse than it is or think that by being irate they will get a quicker response.
Remain calm and talk through the issue. Try to fully understand the cause of their anger.
If the tenant is right, agree with them. This will go a long way to calming them down but don't be a push over. Remember that you have rights too.
2. Act quickly if it is your responsibility
If it is a major maintenance issue such as a plumbing leak, an issue with the air conditioning or an electrical fault, then it is the landlord's obligation to take action, so make sure you have pre-arranged a licensed and qualified maintenance company to fix the problem.
The speed and quality of service provision from maintenance companies is something that is very difficult for a landlord to control and yet tenants will still blame the landlord if the maintenance service is below par. It is important to ensure you are dealing with a professional and reliable company that will solve these problems permanently. If the service provider is not doing a good job hold them accountable and/ or get someone else to do the work.
Remember as a landlord you also want the property to remain in good condition so don't neglect the maintenance with the short-term goal of saving money; instead consider that having a happy tenant and well-maintained property is in everyone's long-term interest.
Of course there is a balance that needs to be struck as a landlord. Your obligation is to make sure the major maintenance elements are working: air conditioning, plumbing and electrical systems; however, minimise your time spent on minor maintenance such as loose door handles, blown light bulbs, loose toilet seats, and so on.
3. Seek understanding from the tenant if the issue is outside of your control
Sometimes maintenance issues are caused by design faults to the unit which means there is a limit to the extent of your major maintenance. Make sure the tenant understands the bigger picture and that you're doing everything possible to attend to the issue at hand.
Another good example of something outside of your control is the noise from neighbouring units. In this situation it is appropriate to suggest that the tenant calmly tries to discuss the issue with the neighbour. If that doesn't work then a letter to the owner's association (or developer) or neighbour themselves may be helpful. If that fails remember that the tenant does not have the right to be upset with you as the landlord because it is outside of your control and simply reiterate that you have done everything you can.
If the complaint is related to a common area issue or something that the owner's association is responsible for (i.e. a fault with the district cooling) then remind the tenant that you are on their side and want to see the issue resolved as soon as possible. A call, letter and persistent follow up to the owner's association (or developer) are appropriate at this time.
Staff
