How do you handle incomplete maintenance requests from tenants?

Question

Hi everyone — quick reality check for landlords/property managers.

Am I the only one dealing with this…

Tenant submits a maintenance request like:

“Something is broken” 😅

And then it turns into 5–6 messages just to figure out:

what it is, how bad it is, and whether it’s urgent.

I’ve been hearing this a lot and wanted to sanity check with people actually doing this every day:

— Does this happen to you often?

— How do requests usually come in (text, email, portal, calls)?

— What’s the most annoying part — getting info, coordinating vendors, or follow-ups?

Curious how people are handling this in the real world.

Would love to hear how you deal with it (or if it’s not really an issue for you)

Richard F. · Answer

It is amazing to me the lengths some of you go to for such a fundamental issue. Feel free to call me Old School, but in 30 years I've solely relied on a phone call to a single Office number, or an email. Or of course, an occasional walk-in. Tenants are instructed from Day One to always leave their name, address, phone number and state their issue. Regardless of how poorly they describe the issue, my response is consistent.

I have at least enough info to simply call or email them back IF I have need to. If they are clear enough, I have enough knowledge of the unit/property to simply call the proper vendor, provide them with the Tenant contact info and instructions to call me direct on my cell from the site with any questions or for authorization for additional or unexpected work. They contact the Tenant directly within 1 business day or less to schedule with the Tenant and handle the job.

If their message is not clear, or I suspect it may be something I can solve over the phone or with email reply, I will respond back to them with specific questions or potential solutions. Depending on their response at that point, I either contact a vendor, or wait for the Tenant to contact me after trying the proposed solution.

Neither of these calls/emails takes more than three to five minutes in total. Now, to be clear, I don't let voice mails or emails sit for days at a time without checking. Indeed, I check and respond to all emails within hours during a normal business day, and within one business day maximum. I check email and voice mails multiple times daily during regular business hours, and always first thing at the start of the business day and at the end of the business day.

We always used an "outcall" feature of our voice mail system, with a unique "extension" number to for callers to press for after hours emergencies. Once they left a message, the system would call out to my cell and I could review that specific message to determine response.

Handling around 150 units plus multiple HOA's for the most recent past 10  plus years, it would be a rare week to have more than ONE urgent, usually plumbing, service request. There may two or three other minor issues...laundry equipment not accepting quarters, hallway or parking lights out, faucets dripping, door problems, whatever. But overall, if units are thoroughly prepped prior to occupancy, Tenants are well screened, and routine inspections and preventative maintenance are carried out, there really shouldn't be anything taking up much time. Most time is spent with older units, which are more prone to plumbing issues, but I've had scores of units with zero service calls for years, and verified to be in good condition at interim inspections...and at move outs. A large percentage of these units have been C grade properties. Overall turnovers occurred at 4 years or longer occupancy, with a large percentage requiring very minimal work, usually just some additional cleaning, paint touch up, or buffing/polishing of VCT flooring.

Colleen F. · Answer

@Jon Westrom what do you need pictures for? I get for some things but a lot of things what does a picture add? the fridge isn't keeping food cold,  the kitchen faucet is leaking, the toilet is running? Only a leaking faucet a picture might help tell you how bad or from where, the rest its no benefit.

Alexa K. · Answer

I've found the best way to deal with that is to ask the right questions from the get-go... ones you've basically already laid out. And have a consistent process.

For example, when tenants submit maintenance requests, we have a form that has three mandatory questions:

1. Please describe the issue.

2. Is the issue urgent?

3. Please provide a photo or video of the issue.

4. Additional Comments (optional)

This has cut down the back-and-forth quite a lot. When tenants text us off the cuff instead of submitting the request as per procedure, we send them a link to the form to complete.

Most annoying thing is by far handling coordination with vendors and whatnot. Most of the time though it's as simple as giving the tenant's contact # to the vendor and having the tenant schedule -- easier than playing telephone. I simply "okay and pay." I only handle long-term rentals, though.

Melissa Gambrell · Answer

This is very real—you’re definitely not the only one dealing with it.

Most of the time it’s incomplete info up front that creates the back-and-forth. By the time you figure out what’s actually going on, you’ve already lost time and delayed getting the right vendor out. It turns a simple work order into multiple touchpoints.

From what I’ve seen, requests usually come in from everywhere—portals, texts, emails, calls—and each one requires a different level of follow-up. The most frustrating part is less about the request itself and more about:

• getting enough detail to diagnose it properly
• and then coordinating vendors without having to go back to the tenant again

The cleanest way to handle it is forcing better intake on the front end—structured questions, required photos, clear urgency selection—but that’s easier said than done depending on the system and tenant compliance.

Also—if you’re open to it, I’d love to connect. I’m helping develop a proptech platform and we’re doing some quick discovery calls with property managers to better understand these exact pain points. No sales or pitch at all—just a conversation. Would really value your insight.

Janice Carter · Answer

@Anastasia Papyan It happens all the time. The biggest issue is incomplete information upfront which slows everything down. I have found it helps to require all requests go through a portal with specific questions and photos or videos. That cuts down the back and forth and speeds up vendor coordination.

Drew Sygit · Answer

It's not uncommon.

Even better is the, "just send someone" message from a tenant.

Nothing about the problem, so you know who to send - handyman, electrician, HVAC, plumber...

It's all about patiently & consistently training tenants.

We politely ask what the problem is and often REQUIRE pics or a short video of the issue.

AI agent "promise" to handle this issue, but we'll see.

William S Brenza · Answer

This is the #1 time sink I hear from self-managing landlords. Training tenants to use a portal helps, but most still call or send a one-line text. Some newer tools use AI to actually ask follow-up questions — 'Can you send a photo?' 'Is it leaking now or intermittent?' — before it ever hits your phone. Leasify does this via an AI assistant that handles the intake call/text and creates a proper work order. Between that and just setting a firm 'no photo, no dispatch' policy, you can cut the back-and-forth in half."

John Ledesma · Answer

Anastasia — you're describing the exact problem that burned me out on self-managing. The '5-6 messages just to figure out what's broken' loop is real and it compounds fast across multiple units.

What changed things for me was shifting from trying to improve the intake form to removing myself from the intake conversation entirely. Tenants text in, an AI asks the follow-up questions — what is it, how bad, any water involved, photos — categorizes the urgency, drafts a response to the tenant, and queues it for vendor dispatch. I only see the summary.

The 2am 'something is broken' text still comes in. I just don't wake up for it anymore.

Drew's right that AI agents promise a lot here — the ones that actually work are the ones where the AI handles the structured intake conversation with the tenant directly rather than just routing a ticket to a human who then has to do the back and forth anyway.

Happy to share more about how we set it up if it's useful.

Colleen F. · Answer

@Jon Westrom  I am not criticizing your way I just couldn't think of alot of use for pictures in most cases. Also thinking there would be some back and forth instructing on what to take a picture of. My son lives in a complex the AC guys caved the floor in when they did the AC replacement, not required but he sent a picture because he thought hey you have to see to understand this.  Aside from trees down my tenants haven't sent pics because almost all their calls don't need them, granted I'm small scale and rarely get incomplete calls. Fridge not cooling unless it's a brand new tenant for me generally means a dead fridge now stove not working that is another story I have found tenants cleaning unplug a stove. Was just curious on the picture requirement. I don't do text requests so yes I agree the process has to be a bit harder than 3 words.

Jon Westrom · Answer

@Colleen F. valid question.. yes I am sure there are exceptions. However, we train tenants how to behave. I am not saying I'm right, and it's the only way, but we want the tenant to take some ownership of the issues and not just think they can submit whatever, and it's a free maintenance call. If the refrig is not cooling.. we need the picture of the temperature knob. The freezer can be so stuffed with food that its overloaded and not allowing cool air to refrig. Find a way to require more effort to submit maintenance and not just make it super easy with texting in "refign not cooling"

How do you handle incomplete maintenance requests from tenants?

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