How do you track recurring maintenance without dropping the ball?

Question

Hey All,

I've got a few rentals (under 5 units) and I keep making the same mistake: forgetting recurring maintenance until it becomes a problem.  This isn't my main source of income so it's been an "after" thought.

Last year I forgot to schedule the annual furnace inspection on one unit. Ended up with a failed heat exchanger in January — $3,200 repair that probably could've been caught early. Another time I completely missed that a lease had expired. Tenant was month-to-month for almost 4 months before I noticed.

I've tried a few things:

• Google Calendar — reminders get buried with everything else
• Spreadsheet — worked until I stopped opening it
• Property management software — overkill for my portfolio size, and expensive

Curious what's working for other small landlords here. Do you have a system that actually sticks? Or is everyone just relying on memory and hoping for the best?

I'm a software guy by trade, so I've started building a simple reminder tool for myself — basically just "here are your properties, here's what needs to happen, here's when we'll bug you about it." Nothing fancy.

But mostly just want to hear how you all handle this. What works?

Drew Sygit · Answer

There really is no "perfect" solution.

The obvious solution to me is using Google Calendar - but not with Reminders.
- Create recurring appointments for annual issues, regular for lease renewals, at times earlier than your typical work day. I do 5am or 6am all the time.
- Set the "reminder" appointment to email you 10 minutes "before the appointment".
- Then the email sits in your inbox until you address it.
- For a lease renewal, you could create a reminder appt on the lease end date and add multiple reminders for 60 days, 30 days, 2 weeks - whatever makes sense for you.
- You can even create filters to auto-label, set Google to put under a specific inbox tab, add a colored star, etc.

Just hope you aren't one of "those people" that rarely delete or archive messages in their inbox:)

Tom Rofe · Answer

@Carlin Desautels totally get the struggle. I also have a small portfolio and tried the spreadsheet/calendar combo before giving up on it. The problem with most "full PM software" is it feels like overkill when you have 3-5 units.

What actually worked for me was finding something lightweight enough that I'd actually open it. The expense tracking and maintenance logging being in one place was the key - now when I log an expense it goes straight to the right property and I can see the history at a glance.

Since you mentioned you're building your own tool - one thing I found helpful was having the software auto-categorize incoming maintenance requests. Saves time and you end up with better data for tax season since everything is already sorted.

I've been using UnitHub and it hits that sweet spot of being simple enough for small portfolios but having enough features to actually be useful (lease tracking, maintenance history, expense reporting). The AI categorization is handy. They have a free tier for up to 3 properties if you want to compare it to what you're building.

Patrick O'Sullivan · Answer

Hey Carlin, definitely a relatable question.

For me, the key has been finding the simplest possible system I actually stick with. I use a basic task manager app (like Todoist or Notion) and set up recurring tasks for each unit. Stuff like:
• HVAC inspection for Property A every October.
• Lease check for Property B 90 days out.
The trick is building the habit of checking the list weekly, just like checking email.

Since you are already building your own tool, that might end up being the best option long term. It will be tailored to the way you think and work, which means you are more likely to use it consistently.

One small thing that has helped me is keeping a running property log with quick notes after each repair, inspection, or issue. It gives a snapshot of what has been done and when, and comes in handy for planning or answering tenant questions.

Sounds like you are on the right track. It is just about finding a repeatable rhythm that works for you.

Colleen F. · Answer

@Allison Park often plans for HVAC maintenance/repair require you to schedule the service, ours does. Some vendors do send reminders but not our HVAC although some may.

Allison Park · Answer

@Colleen F. Yes you are right, it would depend on the company.

Colleen F. · Answer

@Carlin Desautels   Every other year or similarly infrequent is difficult and to be honest I used to be alot better at it when I was logging on to a computer every day for work.  I currently have 8 units with varying needs. Things get out of alignment. There are things you do with a certain frequency, there are things you do only when people move. I do write dates on things like smoke detectors and furnaces and take pictures because then I will Know even if I don't write it down right away. I am writing these things out first so I don't forget to do something but second because at some point I 'm not doing it anymore and whoever takes over has to know the nuts and bolts. The app would be what the upcoming generation will do best with and an app that texts would be their favorite (just saying) although I am fine with email and frequently email myself reminders.  Also you are not in complete control of scheduling so not only do you have to schedule but remind yourself two months in advance for things that are difficult to schedule so there are those nuances. you won't find or build a perfect tool, you will still need to remember. I am guessing furnace maintenance won't fall off your list in the future because the costly disturbing ones stick with you.

Tom S. · Answer

@Carlin Desautels  I'm an Excel person, so I have one file for each property.  Simple month by month numbers going across the columns (Jan, Feb etc): rent received, and expenses paid.  At the end of the year, I just print it out and hand it to my CPA for tax time.

In the file, I just add notes, usually at the top of the monthly column, "Apt #1 lease Jun-25 to May-26", or "annual heater maint" in the Jul column.  The file gets copied for the new year, so all those notes transfer from my 2025 file to 2026 and it's right there in front of me for the new year.

That's me...I only have 10 units across 3 properties , but no issues keeping track.

Side note, I have a running "maintenance tab" in the file too.  So I can easily reference say, water heater apt #2, Feb 2018, JR's Plumbing.

Hope that helps!

Aaron Zimmerman · Answer

There's no perfect fit but if you schedule time in your calendar as opposed to reminders, that could work. I'd say bookkeeping should take no longer than 2 hours per month.

What I've been doing lately is using Monarch Money and categorizing there. They have a mobile app so when I have down time such as gym, bus, or being a passenger in a car, I look to categorize.

For the business expenses for my property, I put the expenses in from monarch into excel and then into my property excel sheet template.

Arman Ahmed · Answer

@Carlin Desautels

For small portfolios like yours, a mix of automation and simple tracking usually works best. Many landlords use lightweight property management apps or task managers with recurring reminders rather than full-blown software. You can tie recurring maintenance, lease expirations, and inspections to calendar alerts that actually ping your phone or email. Even a simple checklist app with due dates for each property can be effective if you commit to checking it daily. Since you’re a software guy, building your own tool makes sense—it gives you exactly what you need without the clutter or cost of big platforms. The key is consistency: once a maintenance item or lease event is in a system that actually notifies you, it’s much easier to never drop the ball.

How do you track recurring maintenance without dropping the ball?

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