Every empty week between tenants is rent you'll never get back. In a city like Exeter, where a big slice of the rental market turns over as students and young professionals move on through the summer, the properties that re-let quickest are the ones that show well from day one. The good news is that getting there is rarely about big, expensive work. It's about a tidy run of small repairs and a proper refresh, done in the right order before the new photos go up. Here's the checklist we work through.
Start with the check-out report
Before anything else, walk the property against the inventory and check-out report. Note every snag: the sticking door, the limescaled tap, the scuffed hallway, the silicone going black around the bath. Grouping these into one job, rather than chasing them one at a time, is what keeps a void period short and the cost predictable. It's also far easier to recharge against a deposit when the work is itemised clearly.
The repairs that matter most
These are the jobs that quietly decide whether a viewing turns into a signed tenancy:
- Doors, handles and hinges. Sticking doors and loose handles read as "neglected" even when everything else is fine.
- Dripping taps and slow drains. Cheap to fix, but a viewer who sees them assumes worse is hidden elsewhere.
- Cracked tiles and failing silicone. Re-sealing baths, basins and worktops is one of the highest-impact small jobs there is.
- Extractor fans and mould. Bathrooms and kitchens with poor ventilation grow mould between tenancies. Sort the cause, not just the stain. (Our damp and mould guide goes deeper on this.)
- Smoke and CO alarms. A legal must, and a quick win to tick off while you're there.
Then refresh the look
Once the property works, make it feel cared for:
- Paint the high-traffic areas. Hallways, stairwells and the main living room take the most wear. A fresh, neutral coat photographs well and signals a property that's looked after.
- Fill and make good. Nail holes, picture marks and minor plaster damage from the last tenancy disappear in an afternoon and lift the whole finish.
- Tidy the finishing touches. Easing a sticking window, replacing a tired toilet seat, straightening a wonky shelf. Small things, but together they're the difference between "fine" and "move-in ready".
When to do it yourself and when to call a pro
A handy landlord can manage a fair bit of this. But the summer turnover window is tight, and the maths usually favours getting it done in one tidy visit rather than spread across your evenings and weekends, especially if you've got more than one property turning over at once. Work at height (stairwell painting), anything involving plaster repair or re-tiling, and jobs where a poor finish shows forever are the ones most worth handing over. The faster the property is back to its best, the sooner it's earning again.
A note for letting agents
If you're managing properties on behalf of landlords, the value of one reliable local team is mostly about not having to project-manage three different contractors for a single turnaround. One quote, one visit, one invoice, finished to your re-let date. That's the whole point.
Getting your Exeter rental tenant-ready?
Devon Home Maintenance handles end-of-tenancy repairs, painting and property refresh for landlords and letting agents across Exeter and the surrounding towns, from a single room to a full void-period turnaround. Clear, itemised quotes, a tidy finish, and we work to your re-let date.
Got a property turning over this summer? The quickest way to a quote is to message us on WhatsApp or email with a few photos and the postcode, and we'll come back to you the same day. You can also call 01392 343874 (office) or 07391 092619 (mobile), Monday to Friday, 9am–5pm.