Property maintenance questions

It varies by location, property and what needs doing. A rough ballpark is $0.50 to $5 per square foot. Light cleanings and basic maintenance may be as low as $250, while full remodels with new carpet, paint and appliances may be $5,000 or more.

A deep clean is one part of a make-ready. A deep clean gets a unit clean. A make-ready gets it ready to lease, which can also include repairs, paint, flooring, moisture checks, pest control, and testing appliances and alarms.

A flood cut means removing the lower part of a wet wall, usually a foot or two above the water line, so the wall cavity and insulation can dry. It's done because drywall and insulation hold water that fans can't reach. Once it's dry, new insulation and drywall go in, and the seam is finished, textured and painted to match.

Not as a real fix. Paint, including mold-resistant paint, can hide mold for a while, but it doesn't remove what's there or stop the moisture that's feeding it. Find and fix the moisture source first, remove affected porous materials like drywall, clean what stays, and only then paint.

Generally, it's anything after hours that puts a unit, a building or a resident's safety at risk and can't wait for a scheduled visit. That includes active water leaks, heating or cooling failures, lockouts and urgent repairs. If there's a gas smell, fire or immediate danger, residents should call 911 first.

One vendor usually means fewer handoffs, one point of contact and fewer gaps in scheduling, which matters most on turnovers. Separate specialists can make sense for a large, specialized scope. It often comes down to how much time your team spends coordinating, and whether one company can really do the work well.