General Repairs and Maintenance
Small repairs and ongoing upkeep at rental properties, handled on a fixed round and logged for your managing agent, instead of a different tradesperson for every fault.
Every rental property builds up a long list of small things nobody is quite responsible for. A cellar door that sticks, a handrail that has worked loose, a seal in the laundry room that has been dripping for months. None of these is large enough on its own to justify calling out a specialist tradesperson, yet together they cost a managing agent time and patience, and they are the kind of thing an owner living abroad only hears about when a tenant finally complains loudly enough.
General repairs and maintenance is deliberately broad: everything a property, a Liegenschaft, needs day to day that does not require a licensed specialist or a formal permit. For managing agents and owners across March SZ, the Zürcher Oberland and the Wil SG area, we take this on as a fixed round, so a new tradesperson does not need to be found for every small job. This is one part of Hauswartung, the standing property maintenance arrangement that is the normal way of running a Swiss rental building, and it is exactly the kind of coverage a facility manager based outside Switzerland cannot easily arrange from a distance.
What we do, in order
On each round we work systematically through the property and fix what falls within a small repair: a sticking door gets adjusted, a loose screw on a handrail gets tightened, a worn silicone joint in a shared bathroom or laundry room gets replaced. Cellar, bicycle and pram storage rooms are checked for tidiness and obvious damage, letterbox and intercom systems for function and correct labelling. Minor repairs to paths and driveways, a loose kerb stone or a crack in the surface, are handled directly as long as no civil engineering firm is needed. Anything beyond that scope, a larger patch of damaged render or water damage, is documented with a photo and reported to the managing agent before anything is carried out. Small painting touch-ups in a stairwell, tightening hinges on cellar compartments, and checking playground equipment where a property has any, all fall into this same category of ongoing upkeep.
Where this typically goes wrong
The most common mistake is letting small defects sit until they become large ones. A dripping seal in a laundry room costs almost nothing as a five-minute fix. As water damage behind the panelling, it costs considerably more. The second mistake is organisational: sourcing a separate tradesperson for every small job creates an amount of coordination for the managing agent that is completely out of proportion to the repair itself, three quotes for a new door spring being a fairly typical example. The third issue is one of scope. Not every repair can legally be carried out without a licence. We mark clearly in every report what was handled directly and what needs to go to a licensed specialist, so the managing agent is never unclear about who is responsible for what. A fourth point shows up often in older buildings: many small issues have been patched temporarily over the years rather than properly fixed. A fixed round uncovers these provisional fixes gradually and replaces them step by step, instead of them only coming to light after a bigger failure.
Who this is for
This is aimed first at property management companies and managing agents who want one fixed round across several properties instead of a long list of individual tradesperson bookings, and who want a clear, budgetable line item to show at the owners’ meeting. It also suits owners’ associations and private owners of multi-unit buildings who do not have the time or the tools for ongoing small-scale upkeep themselves, including owners managing a Swiss property remotely.
Process and quote
After a short walk-through of the property, we agree with the managing agent which work is included in the regular round and which is quoted separately as additional work. From that we set a fixed price per round or per month, the Offerte, which fits directly into the service charge statement. For properties that already have another contract with us, garden maintenance or snow clearing for example, the general maintenance round can be folded into the same visit, which saves the managing agent coordination effort.
Service area
We handle general repairs and maintenance for properties in the March SZ district and the Höfe area from Siebnen, in the Zurich Oberland from Hinwil, covering Gossau ZH, Bubikon and Dürnten, and in the Wil SG area from our third location in Wil. For properties further out within the service area, we schedule the round so several properties are served on the same day, which keeps the fixed price predictable for the managing agent.
Frequently asked questions
What actually counts as general maintenance?
Anything that keeps a property running day to day and does not need a licensed specialist: a sticking door, a loose handrail, a failed seal, an untidy cellar room, or a small patch of repaired driveway surface. Larger work is reported separately to the managing agent.
Do you come on call or on a fixed rhythm?
Both are possible. For most properties we agree a fixed round, usually every two to four weeks, where routine small jobs are dealt with directly. Urgent issues are also taken by phone in between.
Why is a standing contract better than booking separate tradespeople?
A different tradesperson for every small job means constant coordinating, quoting and scheduling for the managing agent. With a fixed round, most of that small work happens automatically, with one contact and one invoice per period.
How is completed work documented?
Every round produces a short report listing work completed and anything still open. That gives the managing agent a clear basis for the service charge statement and for questions from owners.
What if a repair turns out to be bigger than a small job?
We stop on site and report the finding to the managing agent with photos and a rough cost estimate. Nothing is carried out until they approve it, so no unexpected costs appear.
We take a look and give you a fixed price.
The inspection is free and without obligation. After that you know the price, and the price stays.