There are several matters to think about when pruning the trees at your Rigby rental property this fall. Almost all property homeowners comprehend that pruning is an essential part of keeping your rental property’s landscaping and plants healthy. Pruning is also a vital piece of preventing damage to the property. By understanding as much as you can with regards to the who, what, why, and how of fall pruning, you can make sure that this invaluable seasonal task is being carried out accurately by the right people every year.
While the most intensive pruning, including tree and shrub shaping, should be done during the growing season, there are necessary obligations that must be done throughout the fall season. Removing dead or low-hanging branches, as well as whatever new growth that is obstructing doorways, driveways, or walkways, is a big chunk of rental property maintenance. This kind of pruning pertains to the aesthetics and maintaining the property value via curb appeal. By pruning away problematic parts of the tree or shrub, you encourage healthy new growth while ensuring your plants are strong for the upcoming winter.
Keeping trees and bushes trimmed is additionally an invaluable segment of making your tenants safe. Dead branches pose a serious safety risk to tenants and other visitors. Should a dead tree fall on a tenant, a visitor, or even a neighbor, you could be held liable for any legal or medical costs. Overgrown trees and bushes can also be an added risk during severe weather events if they cause damage to vehicles and/or the rental home. Presuming an overgrown tree or bush falls and damages the house or the tenant’s personal property, you may wind up footing the bill.
Even if the tree or bushes do not fall, overgrown foliage can cause different types of property damage. Bushes and trees growing near foundations, walls, or other structures can weaken the cement or brick. Roots can push up structures from underneath, cracking foundations amongst other things. Thick foliage likewise tends to attract insects and other pests, which can cause damage to the property or transmit diseases to your tenants and their pets. All of these are crucial reasons to make pruning back overgrown trees and bushes an indispensable part of your fall property maintenance.
While tenants can normally be depended upon to perform basic yard maintenance, pruning is one task that you should not require them to do. A tenant could kill your trees or bushes by not understanding how and when to prune properly. Their lack of awareness or a disappointing result would cause you to pay even more for expensive landscaping repair in the future. Tenants will also expect a ladder and other equipment but bear in mind that ladders are responsible for more than 164,000 injuries and 36,000 deaths in the United States every year. As the Rigby property owner, you could be held liable should any of your tenants injure themselves.
So what’s a real estate investor to do? To bypass getting into a sticky situation, hire a Rigby property manager. Real Property Management Southeast Idaho handles property upkeep, tenant requests, rentals, and more. Our team of property management experts can conduct any necessary fall pruning that your property needs, making certain that it is done precisely and as reasonably as possible. To learn more about us and what we can offer property owners such as yourself, contact us online or call us at 208-522-2400 today.
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