How to Reply to a Maintenance Request From a Tenant

A tenant emails at 8.40 on a Monday: water is coming through the kitchen ceiling. Or the extractor fan has stopped. Or the front door does not lock properly. Whatever it is, the first reply you send decides how the rest of the week goes. A vague one brings a chaser by lunchtime, another in the evening and a phone call to the landlord on Wednesday. A clear one brings a thank you and silence until the job is done.

What the tenant is actually asking

The email says "the boiler is broken". The questions behind it are: did you get this, do you understand how bad it is, is someone coming and when will I know. A reply that says "thanks, we will look into it" answers the first and none of the others. That is why they write again.

The first reply, in order

1. Say back what they reported. "Water coming through the kitchen ceiling under the bathroom." It proves the right job was logged and it catches misunderstandings before a contractor is sent.
2. Say how urgent you are treating it. Today, this week or at the next scheduled visit. Tenants accept a wait they have been told about. They do not accept one they had to discover.
3. Ask what the contractor needs. Three questions cover most jobs: can you send a photo, where exactly is it and when is someone home this week. Asking now saves a wasted visit.
4. Say who is coming and what is next. A name if you have one. If you do not, say when you will write again. It is a holding email with a job attached.

Two examples

When the repair is not yours to do

Blocked drains from what went down them, blown bulbs, a lost key. The tenancy agreement usually puts these with the tenant. Say so in the first reply, point to the clause and tell them what to do next. A "no" that comes with a next step is accepted far more often than one that does not. Our guide to saying no in an email has the shape.

One request, three emails

Every repair is really three emails: the reply to the tenant, the instruction to the contractor and the update to the landlord. Same facts, three tones. That is the part that eats the morning. With ReciteMail you snip the tenant's email once, say "urgent, Dervla is going between 11 and 1, I will check at 2" and get the tenant reply in your voice. Switch the target to supplier and say "leak under the bathroom at flat 3, tenant is home, send the invoice to me" for the contractor. Then the landlord. About a minute each. This 40 second video shows it. It never connects to your inbox and nothing sends without you. Our property management email templates have all three written out.

Common questions

How quickly should a landlord reply to a maintenance request?

Reply the same working day, even if the repair itself will take longer. For anything involving water, heating, electrics or security, reply within the hour. The speed of the first reply matters more to tenants than the speed of the repair, as long as the reply says what happens next.

What should a reply to a tenant repair request include?

What they reported in their own words, how urgent you are treating it, any questions the contractor needs answered, who is coming and when the tenant will next hear from you. Leave out repair dates you have not confirmed.

How do you tell a tenant a repair is their responsibility?

Say so in the first reply, refer to the clause in the tenancy agreement and give them a practical next step, such as a contractor they can call or a cost if you arrange it for them. Do not assign blame for damage before someone has inspected it.

What counts as an urgent repair?

Anything that affects safety, security or basic living: no heating or hot water, leaks, electrical faults, a door or window that will not lock, a blocked only toilet. Your local rules may set response times for these. Check them and state the time in the reply.

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