Adopting a planned approach to routine maintenance might not be one of the most exciting aspects of managing a property portfolio, but it is certainly one of the most important.

In my early years of property investment, I have to admit I found maintenance a real chore. Our focus was on getting the next property ready to let and I thought returning to work on an existing property was very non-productive. However, after a few harsh winters I soon learnt that it was much less stressful to conduct regular routine maintenance at a time that suited us, rather than wait for a problem to arise and then have to find a solution under extreme pressure.

By planning routine maintenance you are tackling future problems before they arise and grow into bigger, more costly issues that are a lot harder to rectify. What's more, by scheduling a maintenance timetable you can give work to contractors during their quiet times, so you save yourself the hassle of trying to find decent tradesmen when the weather turns bad and their services are in high demand. Plus, these guys are more inclined to treat you as a priority when the odd, unexpected problem does arise.