Power Outage Guide: Keeping Your Tenants Safe in the Winter

What to Do If Power Goes Out for Your Tenants in Winter

As a landlord, you are responsible for the safety and wellbeing of your tenants inside their home. This includes power outage situations, especially in the middle of a Massachusetts winter where your tenants could be in danger without heating. What should you do if the power goes out for your tenants? What are your legal obligations? How can you keep your tenants safe if the power goes out in winter?

We can help you navigate the right course to take during a tenant power outage and how to prepare for outages in the future.

 

First, Call the Utility Company

The first step after your tenants report a power outage is to get in touch with the utility company. Determine if the outage is regional and inquire about the timeline to see it fixed. This achieves two goals: First, you stay informed about the situation for your tenants. Second, you can confirm that the issue is not a problem with the property's breakers or electrical system.

• Create a formal inquery and keep your case/report number
• Request as much information as the power company can provide regarding what caused the outage and when it will be fixed.
• Request or track live updates and keep your tenants informed.

 

Reset the Breakers or Send Repairs, If Necessary

If the power outage is not a local utility issue, then it may be a problem with the electrical system in your rental house. First, walk your tenants through resetting the breaker box over the phone. If that doesn't solve the problem, then send a trusted electrician service to investigate and enact any necessary repairs.

 

Keep Your Tenants Warm During Extended Outages

During a Massachusetts winter, any outage that lasts more than an hour becomes a risk that your tenants (and pipes) may freeze. Whether the utility company will take some time to reconnect the power or the home requires electrical repairs, your tenants will need alternative ways to keep warm.

Battery-Powered Blankets and Space Heaters

It may be possible to provide your tenants with battery-powered electric blankets or block batteries with space heaters to keep warm for a day or two while repairs are underway. You can also provide auxiliary lighting and other supplies. USB battery banks and USB-powered heating devices are the safest ways to provide temporary power and heating.

Keeping Warm by the Fireplace

If the home has a fireplace in good condition and your tenants are comfortable lighting a fire, providing a cord of firewood can help your tenants keep warm in the main room during the power outage.

Alternative Lodgings

If the outage is extensive or your tenants have at-risk household members, you may consider providing alternative lodgings until the power is restored.

Good Advice and Ready Support

In most cases, tenants will be able to manage for themselves during temporary power outages and you are not obligated to provide material assistance if the outage is regional in nature. Sharing good advice on how to keep warm, prevent food from spoiling, and camp comfortably in the house until the power comes back are ways to help your tenants if they are otherwise self-sufficient.

From there, remain attentive and informed about the outage and ready to provide additional assistance if the situation becomes more dire.

 

A Landlord's Legal Obligation in a Power Outage

Is a landlord legally liable for power outages? It depends on the source.

• You are not liable for regional power outages that must be fixed by the utility company, even though the outage creates potentially unsafe living conditions.
• You are liable if the power outage was caused by an electrical flaw or failure in the home.

If the power outage is the responsibility of the utility company, a registered inquery and report can prove that you have taken steps to restore the power for your tenants as soon as possible.

 

Preparing for the Next Power Outage

Power outages are a common occurrence in any area, so it's always best to ensure your properties and tenants are prepared for the next one. There are several steps you can take to minimize the worry when the power goes out.

• Insulate your pipes: Prevent power outage burst pipes in the winter. Encasing insulation is better than heat wire when the power goes out.
• Share an outage guide: Send your tenants a power outage guide including tips on how to keep warm and prevent food spoilage.
• Provide emergency warmth: Prepare a stock of firewood, an emergency tote of blankets, and/or battery/USB heating items to keep your tenants warm during temporary winter outages.
• Have an electrician on call: In case the power outage is a property problem, have a trusted electrician with a 24/7 emergency service ready to call.
• Alternative lodging plans: Always be ready to provide your tenants with alternative lodgings at a safe and affordable hotel nearby. 

 

Prepare for Emergencies with Leaf Management

Emergency situations like a winter power outage are easier to navigate with a property management team on your side. You can keep in touch with the power company and ensure your tenants are safe with the help of Leaf Management. Contact us to upgrade your tenant care capabilities to handle any emergency in any season.

How to Manage a Water Leak

 Managing a Leak in the Water Main of Your Rental Property

What To Do If You Have A Leaking Main Water Line

Thousands of folks every year have to repair or replace a leaking main water line.

There are many types of leak that can occur in old city plumbing. Leaky faucets may drip. Rusted pipes may release water behind the walls. Frozen pipes might even burst. But the most subtle and potentially dangerous type of leak is a water main line leak. Your water main is where the building's water branches from the main supply pipes of water below ground level. Water main leaks are the most likely to damage your foundation, flood your basement, and pour out onto the street. Not only is this bad for your water bill, but it can also cause serious damage to the property, and it's not a simple plumbing repair.

What should you do if you have a leaking main water line? As underground plumbing experts, we can help.

 

First, Determine If Your Leak is the Water Main Line

Signs of a leak and signs of a water main line leak are often very similar: Water where it shouldn't be. However, water main lines are almost always underground, in the basement, or near the lowest areas of the house, where other types of leaks can appear higher in your building's structure.

Signs of a Water Main Line Leak

1. Pooling water at ground-level or in the basement
   • When a water main line leaks, water may seep up through the ground, foundation, and basement levels to form a puddle.
2. Hissing or bubbling sounds down below
   • A leaking pipe will sometimes make a soft noise as pressurized water escapes through a small leak.
3. Lower water pressure
   • A major leak in the water main can minimize your home's access to water pressure.
4. Discolored water
   • If all the water in your house becomes discolored or develops a funny smell/taste, this could be a sign of water contamination at the main line.
5. Flooded basement
   • Water main lines are more likely to flood your basement because they tend to be placed at an underground level.
6. Foundation cracks
   • If the water penetrates your foundation, it can cause expansion and dangerous cracks.

Sight Test

On rare occasions, it may be possible to physically see your water main line and where the leak is coming from.

 

How to Test If a Leak is a Water Main Line Leak

A professional plumbing service can provide water leak tests to help determine where the leak symptoms are coming from and whether the problem is your water main line.

• Meter Test
  • All faucets and shut-off valves are closed so the house should be using no water. If the meter continues to register water use, there may be main line damage.
• Audio Test
  • Delicate testing equipment may be able to listen through the pipes to determine where the water is escaping and if it's in your water main line.
• Water Main Inspection
  • A plumbing pro may also be able to access your water main line for a direct inspection of the joint components and the connected pipes.

 

What to Do If You Have a Water Main Line Leak in a Big City

Knowing what to do next is critical to protect your property and your water bill. What should you do if you have a water main line leak?

Turn Off the Water

If possible, you can stop the flooding and water damage by turning off the main water valve - if the valve itself is not the source of the leak. Closing the water main valve will stop water from reaching your building, but it will also cut off water to the leak.

If the problem is between the curb and your home, you may need a specialized plumbing service to turn off the curb stop valve.

Call 311

In most cases, unless you can actually see that your water line is leaking, is to report the leak correctly. Verification is to key to avoid performing water line repair work that may not be required. 311 is the non-emergency local government number.

Schedule Water Main Line Repairs

Once you have confirmed the location and type of damage to your water main, you can schedule repairs. Look for licensed specialists who perform this type of work. Main water service line work is a specialty within the plumbing industry. Balkan Sewer and Water Main Service specializes in underground city plumbing tasks and can provide both repairs and pipe section replacements related to your water main and the water main line that leads into your property.

 

Protect Your Property with Leaf Management

If you are worried about major malfunctions like the water main for properties in the big city, Leaf Management can help. Contact us today to partner with a skilled property management team.

Fair Housing Violations

 

How to Protect Yourself From a Fair Housing Violation Accusation

As a landlord, choosing tenants carefully is an essential part of protecting your rental homes. You are looking for people who are stable, responsible, and ideally plan to stay for a few years. However, fair housing laws require that you determine these traits without asking a number of personal questions ranging from national origins to family status. It is illegal to make decisions based on any protected status defined by the fair housing act, so landlords use credit reports, work history, and rental histories instead.

But what do you do if someone has accused you of a fair housing violation, and how can you protect yourself from fair housing accusations in the future? We can help you navigate this delicate situation to ensure your rental business is always clearly above-board.

 

Define Fair Housing Violation

The Fair Housing Act requires that landlords never make decisions - especially discriminatory decisions - based on protected information about an applicant or tenant. Knowing exactly what qualifies as a fair housing violation can help protect you from false and spurious accusations.

Protected details include:

• Race
• Skin color
• National origin
• Religion
• Sex, gender, or sexual orientation
• Familial status or structure
• Disability

Types of discriminatory practices that are prohibited include the following actions based on a protected status:

• Whether to rent to someone based on protected information
• Setting different lease terms
• Exacting harsher fees and penalties
• Raising the rent more than usual
• Providing a lower quality of service or denying service
• Use different qualification criteria
• Evict a tenant or guest
• Harass or act hostile toward a person
• Assign specific housing

You are also not permitted to reference protected status details when advertising for rental homes.

 

Refuting a Fair Housing Accusation

Landlords might be accused of fair housing violations from a rejected applicant, a current tenant, or a past tenant depending on the nature of their accusation. Fortunately, a landlord that has been running their operations with documentation and record-keeping can usually refute these accusations by providing the paperwork and criteria they use to make each decision regarding rental properties, leases, and tenant management policies.

Disclose Your Tenant Screening Process

Reveal the process you use to screen applicants for each home. Most landlords have a specific routine they go through and a formula they apply to help make a safe tenant selection for each home. This likely includes running a credit check, rental history check, and income verification, then choosing the applicant with the best numerical scores. Other laws are required to ensure these checks provide fair and equal data regardless of protected statuses.

Show Equal and Consistent Lease Terms

Most landlords use the same lease for each property, and often nearly identical lease terms between multiple properties. If you have used the same lease and terms for several previous tenants, this can show that you did not treat an accusing tenant any differently. Records regarding fees and penalties can also help show that any fees exacted were under the same policies and conditions as previous tenants.

Reveal the Purpose Behind Each Decision

For less uniform decisions, reveal your decision-making process or routine procedure, such as the process you use to send maintenance teams for house repairs, how often you answer tenant emails, and so on to show that you have treated the accusing applicant or tenant the same way you have treated everyone else.

 

How to Avoid Fair Housing Concerns in the Future

How can you protect yourself from accusations of fair housing violations in the future? While some people are inclined to make spurious decisions, you can discourage these instances and make them easy to refute with a few simple steps.

Formalize and Document Your Screening Process

Formalize your tenant screening process and do it the exact same way every time. Use numerical scores in your decision making that cannot possibly be personal or related to protected personal details. Then create a clear documentation of your screening process for each and every applicant and turnover process.

Note: Many landlords use a screening service to ensure the process is routine and objective.

Never Ask Personal and Protected Questions, Even in Small Talk

Small talk can be risky with an applicant or tenant. Never ask personal questions related to someone's identity or even their family structure and politely decline to learn more if tenants start to tell you about themselves regarding these details. Not knowing is a good protection against accusations of discrimination. 

Use the Same Lease for Every Tenant

Unify your lease terms. Many landlords use near-identical lease terms for every rental house in their portfolio. If a house requires custom terms relating to the property features (like appliances or gardens) be sure to use the same lease for each tenant of that property. Otherwise, maintain standard terms like late fee grace periods for all properties and tenants - and implement those rules the same for everyone.

Keep Records of Fees and Penalties

The biggest gray area after screening is the implementation of certain rules like fees and penalties. Keeping meticulous records of each time a penalty is enacted and why can show that you are always fair and consistent and don't apply the rules differently for different tenants.

Note: Some cases cause for unique rule management - like being particularly forgiving if you rent student housing. Document this policy clearly as well.

Document Unique Lease Negotiations

Lastly, if a tenant asks to negotiate unique lease terms, document their request, your response, and the terms you agree on. It may be reasonable for a tenant to ask for a discount on rent if they do their own yard or go half-and-half on an upgrade. Clear documentation can show that unique terms were a solid business decision and not related to tenant identity.

 

Formalize Your Rental Home Policies with Leaf Management

One of the best ways to protect yourself from fair housing accusations is to work with a property management team that has already formalized their routine for applicant screening and tenant policies. Leaf Management can help you take your rental home strategy to the next level in terms of efficiency and protection. Contact us today to learn more.