Emergency SOP

Most of my rentals have PM's, but the most recent property I purchased and rented I'm managing myself. What is your procedure for handling a tenant calling you on a cold Winter day at 2AM on a Saturday saying the heat went out and they have no alternative heating method.

1. Do you call a 24hr emergency service?
2. Do you wait until morning to check it out yourself and leave them in the cold.
3. Do you immediately go check it out and access the situation?

Jon Holdman

Real Estate Investor · Wheat Ridge, Colorado

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Jan 19, 06:41 PM

Not at 2:00 AM, but I've had a call like that. I went over and checked myself, first. The house in question had a fireplace, which they had already started, so they had some heat. Unfortunately, it wasn't just something simple. Fortunately, I had the number of a HVAC guy I had used previously. Unfortunately, it was an early-season cold snap and HVAC guys were busy as beavers. He did finally show up about 10:00 PM, and tried to get it going. Needed parts, though, and it was late the next day before we got it going.

Now, my sister rents a house, and her furnace went out a week ago. She couldn't even get in touch with her landlord for several days. I had a look at it. Blocked pressure sensor tubes and gunked up flame sensors that can be fixed with some sanding are common and easily fixed causes of heater problems. Unfortunately, it also required parts and she was without heat for the better part of a week. She stayed with me a couple of nights and with other friends on several other nights.

Jon Holdman, Flying Phoenix LLC

Jean K.

SFR Investor · Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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Jan 19, 07:45 PM

No actual experience yet, as I am still rehabbing my first property, but... I'd be very concerned about leaving my property for too long without heat. Yea, my tenants could stay with a friend, or I could put them up at motel, but the pipes could freeze. I plan on bringing my oil-filled space heater over immediately, and calling an HVAC company as soon as feasible, if/when I get this issue. (Wish I had your skills & knowledge Jon :-)

Note, I have run this oil-filled space heater on a timer for the past six or seven years to heat the 'bunny room.' (Spoiled bunnies.) The timer uses little pins that can be pulled completely out, so I bought extra timers to get the pins. The space heater runs for about two hours, is off for about an hour, runs two hours, is off again, you get the idea. This is to keep the power cord from getting too warm. Haven't had an issue.

Of course, the pipes in my tiny little two bedroom rental property could probably be heated with just two of these heaters. A normal house might need a dozen!

Nathan Emmert

Multi-family Investor · South Jordan, Utah

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Jan 19, 08:18 PM

Look into renting some eletric baseboard heaters. Landlords with lots of units seem to keep a set in storage for those 'emergencies".

You could also do kerosine type heaters. Lots of options.

Nathan Emmert

Multi-family Investor · South Jordan, Utah

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Jan 19, 08:20 PM

Btw, turn your phone off at night (google voice can do it automatically I believe). The only emergencies that need to be handled at 2am are the fire department, the police department, or a 24 hr plumber. Anything else can wait until business hours.

Jeff N.

SFR Investor · Virginia Beach, Virginia

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Jan 20, 03:19 AM

Thanks guys. I made sure to show the tenants where the main water shutoff valve is for the home, so they should be able to mitigate a late night plumbing emergency themselves.

Concerning the heat, I like the idea of having an electric or kerosene option on standby.

Thanks for everyone's input.

Melissa W

Property Manager · Syracuse, New York

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Jan 20, 04:40 AM

Make sure that your furnaces are in good shape to begin with - have them inspected and serviced at the start of the season. Use one hvac company, that has a 24 hour service so that you can just call them and they will already have you on file and be familiar with your properties and the furnaces.

Also train your tenants what to do if the furnace stops - they need to check the breakers before calling.

Since you will have already serviced the furnaces it's unlikely that you will have many problems with them.