Turnover maintenance for your rental home or room

A tenant gives notice, the next one wants to move in on a fixed date, and in between the home or room has to be back in order. That is turnover maintenance. It is work with a deadline, and every week the home stands empty is rent you miss. I do this for landlords in Nieuwegein and Utrecht, and you call me about every part. Everything I do for landlords is on the page for landlords.

What usually has to be done

Walls. Filling the holes from screws and plugs, filling cracks, plastering smooth where needed, and then painting or wallpapering. If a wall is not flat I make it flat first. Otherwise you see seams and bumps. More about wall finishing is under plastering.

Floor. Replacing worn or damaged floors. Laminate, vinyl or wood, with skirting boards and finishing at doors and thresholds. If the subfloor is not flat I level it first. Details are under laminate and vinyl flooring.

Sanitary ware and sealant. Old sealant out and new in, because old sealant lets water through. Replacing a dripping tap, repairing a shower set or toilet. If the bathroom is worn further, it turns into a bathroom or toilet renovation.

Doors and fittings. A door that sticks, a hinge that sags, a lock that runs stiff. I adjust or replace door furniture.

Clearing up. I clear up and remove the dust my own work makes. A final clean of the whole home is not part of it.

A room or a whole home

With rooms to let, a turnover is often one room in a property where the rest stays occupied. That means the walls and floor of that room, the sealant in the shower, and a wardrobe or bed that has to be repaired or replaced. I also assemble wardrobes and beds, which is under furnishing a rental property. For a whole rental home the list is longer, but the approach stays the same: look first at what is there, then agree what I do.

How I go about a turnover

Send me photos of the home, one per item, such as the living room, the bathroom, the floor and the wall with the holes. From the photos I can see which floor, which tap and what kind of wall it is, and that decides what I bring. Who supplies the material, we agree up front.

On the day itself I start with the points that might hide something, such as a sealant edge or a damp wall, not with the easiest ones. If something turns up, I stop, show you what I see and what it costs extra, and only then carry on. If something is better done by yourself, you hear that from me.

What is whose cost

As a rule of thumb normal wear and tear is for the landlord, and damage the tenant caused themselves is for the tenant. What exactly falls to whom follows from the law and your tenancy agreement. I do not rule on that. What I can do is build the quote per item, so the work on the wall and the work on the floor are separate lines on paper. Also take photos of the home at handover, for the next turnover.

When it is more than turnover maintenance

Sometimes a home turns out to need more than refurbishing: a bathroom that needs new tiling, a floor with water damage, or a room that deserves a new layout. Then it is renovating a rental property. You keep calling me. For a few separate points in an occupied home, handyman and maintenance is the page you want.

Send me the address, the photos and the date the new tenant has to move in through the contact page. Then you hear what I would do and whether it fits.