Knowing how to hire a lawn care service for your properties is one of those contracting needs property owners have to consider. Thankfully, due to its distinct nature, lawn care maintenance isn’t as complicated as electrical, plumbing, or roofing. However, that isn’t to say lawn care services aren’t a crucial part of any real-estate operation because it certainly is. Hiring a lawn care service is so crucial property owners need to know how to go about acquiring their services and what they need to consider.
HOW TO HIRE A LAWN CARE SERVICE FOR THAT MANICURED LAWN
Even though the neighborhood kid trying to subsidize their allowance is charging an unbeatable rate, it’s always better to pursue the business of a professional lawn care service. This is especially true if your property is used for residential or commercial ventures.
Aesthetics
The aesthetic value of your properties is usually the first thing potential tenants notice when they are making evaluations. A well-manicured looks clean and can give the impression that a particular property is safe.
Safety
Beyond impressions, tall and overgrown grass can pose safety concerns that parents of small children will take note of right away. In southern states, threats such as fire ants and snakes thrive in tall unruly grass, just waiting for an unsuspecting person to make the wrong step.
Laws
Beyond safety and aesthetics, in some states, your properties are required to have a well-manicured lawn to keep up with city ordinances.
YOUR HIRING PROCESS
Now that you know why lawn care is essential, it’s now time to start evaluating your options for hiring a lawn care service.
The size of your properties can significantly determine what kind of lawn care service you might be looking for. For example, your storefront may only have a wisp of grass and some shrubbery, but you may also own a golf course requiring a trained team of mowers specializing in golf courses.
Speaking of your shrubbery, if you have extensive landscaping that needs to be performed to acquire your desired look, you should make sure your lawn care company offers those services. Landscaping may come at an additional cost, so keep that in consideration.
Once you have a solid idea of what exactly you are looking for in a lawn maintenance service, it’s time to start making calls. Your first calls shouldn’t be to the lawn care services but to their clients. Observe properties in your area and judge for yourself how well their properties are maintained. Once you know the quality of a particular lawn service’s work, you can then call them to begin a discussion.
The first order of business during this discussion is prices and rates for service. You need to know if this service charges by the hour or by the acre and what the rates are respectful. After that, you need to ask yourself one simple question, “can you afford the price?” If so, then you can move on to the next step.
For your and your tenants’ safety, you should ask if the lawn care service you are interested in runs background checks on their employees. Lawn services workers will have access to the grounds on your property and essentially be unsupervised. As a property owner who is responsible for your tenants, this is a risk you cannot afford to make. If the lawn care service has not run a background, you can run it, but request that they pay for the check.
Once all of their employees have been cleared, it’s time to start finalizing your arrangements. The lawn service should take a tour of your properties, evaluate how to best tackle the task, and allocate the required staff. You will then establish a strict schedule of when maintenance should be performed and when payments for services should be made.
KEEPING THE GRASS GREENER ON YOUR SIDE
There you have it – now you know how to hire a lawn care service. Finding the best lawn care service for your property most likely won’t be that easy, but there are numerous resources available for you to shop around from in order to make the most informed decision.