The communal areas of a property are the bits that nobody really owns but everyone notices. So even if you are a very tidy person and keep your flat spick and span, it won’t matter if the communal areas are dirty and look neglected. And when we talk about the communal areas of a property we are talking about the bits that potential buyers or renters walk through on first entering the building. These areas give first impressions of a property and of how a property is managed. So a dirty and neglected looking entrance hall and stairwell gives the wrong impression of both.

For property managers and for housing associations the communal cleaning of shared spaces in a building is a higher-leverage activity than most other spending in the property managers’ budget. It is also one of the most consistently underestimated area of property management spending.

First impressions are doing more work than you think.

The first few seconds that you spend in a building will determine your impression of it. Those few seconds will be spent walking through the communal areas of the building such as the entrance and the hallway. If these areas are clean and fresh then it gives the impression that the building is managed and that any problems that do occur will be dealt with in a prompt manner. This will give potential tenants and buyers the impression that the landlord cares about the building and that they are a good landlord.

A property manager’s first impressions of a building are of huge importance when letting or selling a property. This is because a first impression is made within a matter of seconds and the first impression is made when walking through the communal areas. A prospective tenant or buyer may be immediately put off by a dirty and tired common area and will be looking for reasons to reject the property. In addition, they will be negotiating from a position of strength on price. A well presented common area on the other hand will reinforce the rent being charged and will look to secure a property sale or let quickly.

The health and safety obligations aren’t optional

However, the communal areas are ‘your responsibility’; the slip hazard of a spillage on a wet floor, the health hazard of cluttered or dirty stairwells and corridors, the potential to prevent the escape of tenants in the event of a fire, the spread of pests and the resultant health hazard of poorly maintained bin and refuse stores.

The property manager must also be able to evidence that they have met their obligations. This is why regular professional cleaning of the communal areas of a property is so important. Not only will it ensure that the property is kept clean and hygienic but also that the property manager has a record of all visits to the property. This can be used to evidence that all obligations have been met in the event of a complaint or claim.

Clean buildings generate fewer complaints

Reactive complaints about communal areas can be a real drag on the time of property managers and their teams. They can be logged, replied to and sorted out but the impact on the tenant and on the relationship with them can be considerable.

It’s likely to prevent most complaints about communal areas in the first place. Issues with communal spaces that result in tenants complaining are those that have occurred between less frequent cleans. By cleaning the communal spaces on a regular basis the potential for complaints about the communal spaces will be greatly reduced, thus freeing up time for other matters and giving tenants the impression that the building is being run well.

The long-run economics of a consistent contract

There is an argument put forward that in times of reduced budgets that communal cleaning could be ‘cut’ or ‘reduced’. In reality however, reducing communal cleaning will end up costing more in the long run.

First, the property’s surfaces and materials will be protected from the dirt, the grit and the moisture that is present in the environment. If not removed on a regular basis, this can cause considerable damage to floors, fixtures and finishes. The more that surfaces are cleaned on a regular basis, the longer they will last. It is therefore a small recurring cost as opposed to a larger occasional cost.

A standing contract of communal cleaning also allows for greater accountability as you will know what is being cleaned and to what standard on a regular basis. A one off deep clean of a neglected building will be far more expensive than the cost of regular cleaning. The building with a good track record of being cleaned will hold its tenants, achieve the rental value and maintain the capital value of the building.

What good looks like

A good communal cleaning contract would cover all of the areas that the tenants will move through and are judged by. So, the entrance and reception area, the stairwells and lift interiors, the corridors and landings, the windows and door handles and the bin and refuse areas. This work would be carried out on a regular basis, so you can rely on it. And from a provider who will report any problems they find, such as a failed light, a maintenance issue or a security problem, so that they can be dealt with before they become a bigger problem and have been cleaned in the meantime.

For property managers and housing associations, good quality communal cleaning is not a nice to have; it is a cost effective way of meeting a number of objectives including keeping tenants happy, ensuring a property is being managed in line with a landlord’s obligations and maintaining the value of a property. A good quality communal cleaning contract need not cost the earth and should be a regular part of a landlord’s expenditure.