What to do if you have an empty rental property over winter
A drop in temperatures as we get into the depths of winter can be catastrophic for vacant properties. Read this article if you are a landlord with an empty property this winter.
As the temperatures drop and we wake up to frosty mornings, we are likely cranking up the central heating to stay warm and scraping the ice off the car window before heading out to work.
But what about an empty property? What happens if we have a frosty night? There is no one to crank the heating up, and you might not even know how cold it is in this empty house.
It is widely documented that empty houses during the winter months can deteriorate quickly, so these tips will help you manage your vacant property effectively over winter so that you have no issues.
- Keep it warm - The key during the colder months is to keep the property warm as much as possible. Of course, running the central heating in an empty property has financial implications, particularly with energy prices the way they are. An alternative option would be…
- To drain it down - the main issue with empty properties during winter is a burst pipe. The water that sits in the pipework freezes and then expands, creating a crack in the pipework, and as the frozen water thaws, the water can then flow freely through the newly formed crack and into the property. The damage caused could be catastrophic if the water is left to flow for a prolonged period, which is quite likely if no one is visiting the property regularly.
This is the general advice on handling an empty property from a safe position during winter. But what if you are trying to sell this property? A house will feel progressively colder as time passes until, eventually, it will feel colder inside than out. With absolutely no heating facilities, a property will soon start to feel very unloved, and a freezing cold house is not very welcoming to a viewer, making your plan to rent the property all the more tricky.
You are, of course, going to be limited. No one is living in the property, so unless you have the budget to keep the heating on all of the time, it will naturally be cooler in the property. So, what can you do?
Well, first consider the temperature of the property. You won't need to keep the property as warm as you keep the house that you are living in. The average home temperature is between 16 and 20 degrees. There would be no need to keep an empty house this warm. Instead, you could aim to keep the property around 5-10 degrees, and it is actually cheaper to keep a property at the same ambient temperature rather than letting it get cold and then using the heating to warm it up just to let it go cold again. So, you could set your boiler to come on as soon as the temperature drops below 5 degrees.
If you don't live far away from the property, you could go around a few hours before the appointment to turn the thermostat up to give it a boost, too, so that the viewers are welcome.
Other tips to help empty properties through winter:
- Open the hatch to the loft to allow warmer air to circulate into the loft space.
- Open cupboard doors under the sink to allow the warmer air to get into the water pipes and help against freezing.
- Put extra insulation tubes on exposed pipes. These can be picked up for a couple of pounds at discount stores.
- Disconnect hose pipes from external taps and cover them with insulated boxes or insulated caps.
- Know where the stopcock is for the main water supply on your property. It is usually in the kitchen but can be elsewhere.
- Finally, ensure there are no dripping taps, including outside ones, as an external tap with a slow drip will freeze very easily.
If you are considering renting out a property and have been worried about leaving it empty, don't wait until the Spring before you try to market it. Get in touch with our property experts today.