The Year-Round Preventive Maintenance Calendar

Nearly every expensive maintenance surprise I've investigated had the same root cause: nobody was looking at a schedule. Preventive maintenance isn't complicated — it's a short list of tasks, done at the right time of year, every year. Here's the calendar.

Winter: protect against the cold

• Service heating systems — filters, thermostats, and a professional check before the coldest months hit hardest.
• Inspect for drafts: weatherstripping, window seals, and door sweeps. Tenants crank the heat to compensate for leaks you could fix for dollars.
• Check vacant units weekly in freezing weather — a burst pipe in an empty unit can run for days before anyone notices.
• Test smoke and CO detectors in every unit (do this quarterly, but winter is when it matters most).

Spring: recover and prepare

• Roof and gutter inspection after winter — look for lifted shingles, clogged gutters, and water stains in attics.
• Service air conditioning before cooling season. A $150 spring tune-up beats a $600 emergency call in July.
• Exterior walk: grading and drainage away from foundations, caulking around windows and doors, deck and stair condition.
• Flush water heaters — sediment buildup shortens their life, and this is the easiest life-extension in the business.

Summer: inspect while it's easy

• Mid-year interior inspections (with proper notice): look for slow leaks under sinks, caulking failures in bathrooms, and appliance condition.
• Pest control review — summer is peak season; a preventive treatment plan is cheaper than an infestation response.
• Landscaping and tree limbs: keep growth off roofs and siding, and trim anything threatening power lines or structures before storm season.
• Dryer vent cleaning — a leading cause of residential fires and a fifteen-minute job.

Fall: winterize

• Heating system check round two, plus pipe insulation in crawl spaces and attics.
• Clean gutters after the leaves fall — clogged gutters cause ice dams and foundation water.
• Shut off and drain exterior hose bibs; store or cover outdoor equipment.
• Review your snow/ice removal plan and vendor contracts before the first storm, not during it.

Make it automatic

The calendar only works if it runs without you remembering. Put every task on a recurring schedule with an assigned owner — you, your manager, or your vendor — and a completion check. Review the year's results each December: what broke anyway, what the preventive work cost, and what to adjust. Within two years, you'll have a maintenance program tuned to your actual properties instead of generic advice.

Want help building this into a real operations playbook for your portfolio? Start the conversation.