Entry Condition Reports – they’re not much fun to read, let alone write! But you know what’s even less fun?
Having something go wrong in your investment property and NOT having a comprehensive record on hand to make sure you’ve covered.
The entry condition report is your bible when it comes to making sure your investment property is handed back in the same condition it was in at the time it was let out. A detailed document backed by literally hundreds of photos, this is what sets the standard for your property and should cover everything from the marks on the walls (if any), the chips in the tiles (that saucepan you dropped last Christmas) and even how high the grass was. Room by room, wall by wall, and appliance by appliance.
Once prepared in the first instance, your property manager will refer back to this document throughout the tenancy, both at routine inspections (which should occur every 3-4 months of the tenancy) as well as at the all-important exit inspection when a tenant moves on. If something DOES go wrong, and in the event that a tenant doesn’t rectify the issue, a good entry report can help substantiate any claim made, whether for the bond or under your insurance policy (which you should definitely have).
A detailed report can be good for the tenant too – I can recall being at the end of a tenancy of my own in my early 20s, panicking over a mark on the wall and then breathing a sigh of relief to find that it was in fact on the entry report and not an issue for me to fix.
It should go without saying that in order to get your property back in good condition, you do need to have provided it in good condition, and its here that effort pays off. A clean and well-presented property is more likely to be cared for and maintained by your tenant than one where you struggle to find a wall that ISN’T marked rather than one that is. its like the car that starts to collect one too many bumps and scrapes – you’re a lot less careful than when its brand new, shiny and the first scratch brings a tear to your eye. You can also find that the calibre of tenant drops with the cleanliness and condition of the property, and while a tight rental market might be forgiving now, its not a great path to take for the future.