How much upkeep required for 12plex?

Question

I’m buying an old 12 unit building (built in 1920) and the current owner runs carpet throughout the staircase and other common areas. It’s gotten rather nasty over the years and I’m conflicted between just replacing the carpet or refinishing the wood underneath?

The current owner doesn’t strike me as lazy so I assume he chose carpet because it’s infinitely easier to maintain.

Also, on a unit this large am I smart to hire a cleaning person to come a couple times a month to vacuum and dust etc...or am I just throwing money into the wind at that point?

Nathan Gesner · Answer

Rob, that's a real difficult question to answer. How big is the 12-plex? How big are the common areas? Are you in upstate New York with lots of ice and snow melt on the ground that can be tracked in? Are you in Hawaii where the red clay gets tracked in? Are you in Las Vegas with dust blowing everywhere?

I can't imagine hardwood is a good material for common areas. It will be scratched up by rocks stuck in shoes, dirt, people moving in/out, etc. But again, that depends on the location.

I use a cleaning person for apartment complexes with common areas. Once a month is usually sufficient, but it depends on the class of the property, quality of renters, climate, and other factors. With a property of that size, you may try to find a stay-at-home mom or a retired renter that takes pride in their living conditions and see if they're interested in handling this for a reduction in rent. If a normal cleaner is $25 an hour and spends one hour a week cleaning the common area, you can offer that to a renter and probably get a better result because they are available to do it any time the cleaning is needed instead of just every Saturday.

Just be careful and put the agreement in writing! If you hire a renter, make sure they understand exactly what you want them to do, how often, the standard, and that they will be fired if they fail to perform.

Filipe Pereira · Answer

The only thing I like better than carpet in common area stairs is the rubbery flooring (with the grip option) that you see sometimes in commercial spaces (think doctor's offices, hospitals, etc.). It's super easy to clean (you can mop it!), basically indestructible, and never has to be replaced, refinished, etc.

I, like @Nathan G., would also avoid going back to wood.

Once or twice a month is sufficient for cleaning the hallways / stairs. Once a quarter for everything else inside is usually enough (windows, doors, etc.) It will also depend on how many entrances you have and the layout of the building. 12 tenants going through 1 door is going to be a different level of dirty vs 12 tenants going in through 2 separate entrances.