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Your rental property is an investment that you should guard closely. That is because some unwanted tenants can destroy your investment property and make you lose your income.
Pests are unwanted tenants that can chase away renters from your house. One of the familiar complaints that you may receive from your tenants is about pest disturbance.
Pests have the following negative impacts on your rental property:
Pests can cause damage to your property in various ways. Their urine has a terrible odor that stains the walls of the house. Also, pests can chew through plaster or wood and cause damages.
Pest infestations in a rental property raises safety concerns. Most pests are causative agents of diseases and infections. For instance, cockroaches can cause asthma, allergy, and infectious diseases. The mosquito is another pest that causes infections.
Pest invasion is one of the major causes of issues between the landlord and tenants. Nobody wants to stay in a filthy home. That is why tenants will complain whenever they notice pest infestation in your rental property.
It would be best if you respond to their complaint urgently. That is because tenants may report you to the authorities or move out of the property without consequences.
As a landlord, it is your responsibility to keep your property habitable and pest-free. Failure to do so is an infringement on the tenant's rights. That may lead to legal issues.
When pests forcefully evict tenants from your property, the tenant turnover rate will increase. As a consequence, you will lose your rental income.
From all these, you can see the negative impact that pest infestation has on your rental property.
Pests will not stop trying to invade your rental property. As a landlord, you also need to be consistent in your effort to stop them. The following are beneficial tips on preventing pest invasion.
You will not be successful in your attempts to keep your rental property pest-free if you do not involve your tenants. That is because you only visit the property once in a while. Your tenants reside in the property, so it requires their direct involvement.
Also, the lifestyle or habits of your tenants can make the house accommodate pests. For these reasons, it will be best to let your tenants know what they should do to prevent pest infestation. If you want it to be more effective, then you can include it in your lease agreement.
Even when there are no signs of pest infestations, you need to perform regular extermination. Although this may appear costly, it is cheaper than losing your tenants and rental income.
Pests are secretive. By the time you notice their presence, the infestation is already extensive. Regular extermination is a preventive measure for pest invasion. We recommend that you perform it once a month or every other month.
There are many entry points for bugs and rodents. Some of these include roof joints, pipes, chimney flues, foundation joints, conduits, dryer vents, and attic vents.
Ensure that you seal up all these areas. Although it may be time-consuming, the result is worth the effort. Also, check your basements, crawlspaces, attics, doors, and windows. Use caulk to seal tiny entry points and steel wool to block entry points for rodents. When you do these, you will deny pests access to your rental property.
Pests make use of clutter as hiding spots and breeding places. It would be best if you rid your rental property of piles of wood, compost, and rotting logs. Mow the lawn, remove weeds, and trim the bushes. If you do these, bugs and rodents will have no hiding place on your property.
Also, keep the common area clean and free of debris or trash. We recommend that you vacuum or sweep the property at least once weekly. That is because pests find it tough to survive in clean environments.
Provide trash bins for your rental property. Ensure that the waste bins have heavy lids and are in good condition. The waste bin should not have holes or cracks on them.
Place your waste bins at strategic locations away from the house. That is because you do not want odor from the waste bin to attract pests into your property. Ensure that the waste bins are large enough and make provisions for frequent emptying before it fills up.
Pest invasion can render your rental property uninhabitable. For that reason, you need to put up measures that can prevent them. We recommend that you seek the services of professionals to help you with pest extermination services.