When you live in a house and treat it as if it were your own, you are expected to take care of regular maintenance. Like mowing lawns and trimming hedges, part of regular maintenance involves cleaning gutters. If the lease says “regular outdoor maintenance” or “landscape care”, there is a valid argument that the tenant should clean the gutters. When it comes to maintaining the gutters of a rental property, the responsibility lies with the landlord.
Regular maintenance and cleaning of gutters is important to prevent damage that can result in costly repairs. Although tenants have a responsibility to keep the rented property in good condition, take care of the garden, and address minor repair issues, cleaning and maintaining gutters is often a landlord's obligation. However, if you have specific tree species in your garden near the house that shed flowers and leaves during the summer, inspecting and cleaning your gutters then and later in the colder months will save you from worrying about both fire hazards and water damage to the property. Ultimately, if you enjoy the home you're renting, you want to promote a good relationship with the landlord, so you may end up having to clean them or split the cost of rain gutter protectors.
As a landlord, I fully agree with you Kaylee, that it is the owner's responsibility to clean the gutters. How often your property requires gutter cleaning will vary depending on how many trees you have around the property and, more importantly, how often these trees shed their leaves. How often gutters and downspouts are cleaned depends on the location of the property and its surroundings. But what happens if they aren't clean and damage occurs? Who is responsible for the sewers? We are going to raise both sides of the discussion in today's blog.
If you notice your gutters starting to leak or overflow, it's a sign that they need cleaning (or professional inspection). And to confirm the above, the RTA (the Residential Leasing Authority) clearly stipulates who is actually responsible for cleaning gutters in a rental property, as well as some exceptions to the rule. Late fall is the ideal time for most homeowners to consider hiring a professional gutter cleaning service. It is always advisable to hire a professional company not only to protect your property from damage, but also to avoid any accidents that may occur when trying to clean the gutters yourself.
Many landlords don't want the responsibility of sending a tenant up a ladder to take care of the dangerous task of cleaning gutters. If you are a tenant and want to arrange a gutter cleaning service, it's a good idea to first talk to your landlord to determine when it was last performed and who should arrange this service.
