Property preservation is the process of caring for the inside and outside of a foreclosed property, be it vacant or occupied. Property preservation businesses work with banks and asset management companies to provide services such as repair, inspection, insurance claim management, and maintenance. Property preservation is also called “mortgage field services.” Our services include the following:
Inspection Services
As a property preservation inspector or REO inspector, we responsible for weekly or monthly inspections of the bank’s foreclosure properties. This is to determine things such as the occupancy status of the property, the current physical condition of the property and if there are any new damages to report, and to check the progress of current repairs that the bank or field service company has hired another independent contractor to carry out. It is not necessary to have a construction background to complete inspections, but this type of experience would be helpful.
Repair Contractor
As a repair contractor, we provide a repair estimate and, if our bid is approved, we either complete ourself or arrange to have someone else complete the various repairs required at residential properties. These repairs could include but are not limited to: roof repair or replacement; repairing damages caused by theft, water ingress, vandalism, or other disasters; and total refurbishment. Lately, we have been doing quite a few repairs to damage caused by water and mold such as drywall and carpeting.
Many banks are trying to reduce the market time (the length of time a house is for sale) by renovating their housing stock in the better neighborhoods. As a repair contractor, we know how to use basic estimating software; be able to give accurate start and finish dates; and have access to all the necessary equipment, workers, and subcontractors we might need to complete these repairs as quickly as possible. Construction knowledge is therefore essential if we want to be a successful repair contractor.
Maintenance Contractor
Unlike a repair contractor, a maintenance contractor will be completing mostly smaller jobs and will not need a specialized construction background. Typical property preservation maintenance jobs include boarding up broken windows, winterizing properties, trash outs (which involves the removal of debris), maid services (basic cleaning), and lawn maintenance (grass cutting and weed control). A maintenance contractor will also have to complete inspection tasks such as noting the current condition of the property and estimating the cost of minor property repairs. Although we do not need extensive construction experience to complete these basic property maintenance jobs, we sometimes combine them with larger repair jobs.