Maintenance Rhythm

Maintenance in an STR is different from your own home: every failure happens while a paying guest is standing there, and it goes straight into a review. The fix is rhythm — scheduled prevention instead of emergency reaction.

The 2am call is a scheduling failure

Hot tub down, AC dead in July, water heater cold — nearly all of these announce themselves weeks early to anyone who's looking. Your maintenance system is three layers:

• Every turnover: your cleaner is your sensor. Their checklist includes: test hot tub temp, flag slow drains, note odd smells or sounds, check batteries in locks and remotes.
• Monthly/quarterly you (or a handyman): HVAC filters monthly in heavy season; quarterly walk-through for caulk, smoke/CO batteries, water under sinks, grill, deck fasteners, dripping faucets.
• Seasonally: spring (AC service before the heat, exterior, pests), fall (heating service, gutters, winterize hose bibs). Put them on the calendar like bookings.

If you have a hot tub: weekly chemistry checks, no exceptions. It's the highest-maintenance amenity you can own and the single most common source of mid-stay emergencies.

Build your vendor bench BEFORE you need it

Finding a plumber during an emergency means paying anyone who answers. Build the bench on a calm Tuesday:

• Plumber, electrician, HVAC tech, appliance repair, and a general handyman
• Ideally have each do one small paid job first, so you're an existing customer when you call in a panic
• Share the list with your cleaner — for small stuff, they dispatch and you just approve the invoice from your phone

Budget for it too: setting aside a small fixed amount per month for repairs turns "emergencies" into line items.

Go deeper

• Fall Maintenance Checklist
• Spring Maintenance Checklist
• Property Management Basics — maintenance workflows

ACTION: Build your vendor bench this week — five trades, two options each, saved in your phone and shared with your cleaner.

Next: the books — the 30-minutes-a-month system that makes tax season boring.