Addendum To Property Inspection Report Property Inspection Agreement (Sample Report: Fill & Download for Free

The question does not mention whether the concern is with existing tenants or with potential tenant applicants - we have to do things a bit differently with existing tenants.Starting here with dealing with existing tenants. With an existing tenant, you are stuck with the existing lease agreement until the time of renewal, unless you can get the tenant to agree to a mid-lease amendment or addendum. So you have to somehow regularly inspect the rental unit in order to view if the tenant is taking good care of things inside; the exterior should be simpler if the tenant has responsibility for exterior care (mowing grass or snow removal for example).You can give the tenant the required advance notice that you plan to visit for an inspection. There are some other ways to "inspect" that aren't announced in advance as an inspection per se: testing smoke alarms (should be one in each bedroom) and GFCIs (should be found in kitchens and baths) so you have reason to enter all rooms; escorting a pest control service to treat the rental unit (again so you have reason to enter all rooms), and quarterly or more frequent pest control treatments are common for rentals; if the municipality has a regular inspection requirement you escort the building inspectors. Some landlords use changing furnace filters as a reason, but that only gets you into the space where the furnace is located if the tenant is insisting on limited access, and that does not work with radiators or electric baseboard heat.With prospective tenant applicants, you have a few more possible things you can do before you approve them. The single most important thing is an in home visit to their existing residence. There are a few situations where I don't visit the prospect's existing residence, such as when they are living with parents or when they are relocating quite a distance for a new job. But I make it a point to visit their existing residence when practical, usually justifying that visit with something involving the application paperwork (one of the reasons I don't use online applications). And you especially want to visit if the tenant has any pets.Why the in home visit to their existing residence? Because after a bit of time that is the way your place will be looking if you approve that tenant. You have to sometimes differentiate between messy living versus the tenant having started to pack things into boxes. But your nose will be able to smell things. Your eyes will see cobwebs and "dust bunnies". You can see the dust on the TV screen. Some landlords even insist on looking into the kitchen and baths because those can be the dirtiest spaces. So now you know why.Then you want to have some section in the lease that addresses Housekeeping. I have a Housekeeping Adendum that I derived from the Housekeeping Addendum that is used by a typical USA Public Housing Authority (that manages Section 8 tenants). I suggest starting with that Housekeeping Addendum because it is pretty thorough, and you can find them online for free. One thing that you also have to consider is how to handle hoarders, should you end up with one somehow. Because hoarding is now classified as a disability, and disabled persons are a protected class under Fair Housing regulations - so you have to be prepared to make "reasonable accommodations" for those who are disabled, including hoarders. Below is a link to a sample housekeeping addendum:Housekeeping - Public HousingThere are other things to do as well. Create a property move in condition and inventory report, itemizing what the conditions of the rental unit actually are. That can be used in comparisons to future conditions to see what the tenant has inflicted upon that rental unit.Have a property maintenance system in place; not everything having to do with a property's condition is the tenant's responsibility - the landlord has some responsibility too. There should be some way for the tenant to submit maintenance requests and for the landlord to address those.And let's not forget the neighbors; become friendly with the neighbors so that in the event that the tenant starts slipping up on taking care of things, the neighbors might be inclined to let you know.Whether the rent is high or low or typical should not matter - the tenant has an obligation to take care of certain things and should do so. Of course, if you value the tenant sufficiently, you might consider keeping any rent increases modest to encourage the tenant to stay - but that is a totally different topic.