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Services Service 3 of 6

Maintenance & technical care

Two climates, both hard on buildings. Sun, salt and permanent irrigation on the coast; frost, snow load and a short violent season in the mountains. A maintenance calendar built for one of them is useless for the other, so we run two.

Reactive maintenance is the most expensive way to own a building. A pool pump replaced on a Sunday in August costs several times what the same pump costs in March, and the damage caused while it was failing costs more than either.

So we work from a calendar. Every property gets its own, built from its age, construction, systems and exposure, and the trades are booked against it months in advance at rates agreed before the work is needed rather than in the middle of an emergency.

What this service covers

01

The preventive calendar

Each property has a twelve-month schedule listing every recurring task, when it falls, who does it and what it costs. You see the same calendar we work from, and it is costed a year ahead so nothing on it is a surprise.

  • Schedule built from the building's own age, systems and exposure
  • Every task priced twelve months ahead
  • Seasonal tasks anchored to the right week, not the right month
  • Statutory inspections tracked to their legal deadlines
  • Completion logged with photographs against each line
  • Calendar reviewed and re-costed annually with you
02

Building fabric and systems

The parts of a building that fail slowly and expensively: roofs, terraces, drainage, joinery and everything mechanical behind a hatch that nobody has opened in three years.

  • Roof, terrace waterproofing and drainage inspected before each wet season
  • Air conditioning and heat pumps serviced, filters and gas checked
  • Boilers, water heaters and softeners maintained and descaled
  • Electrical distribution boards, RCDs and outdoor circuits tested
  • Plumbing checked for leaks; stopcocks and valves exercised
  • Windows, shutters, external doors and seals adjusted and lubricated
03

Outdoors: pool, garden and irrigation

On the coast the garden is where most of a maintenance budget quietly goes. Done properly it is a contract with a schedule; done badly it is an open-ended bill and a dead lawn in July.

  • Pool: water chemistry, filtration, pump and cleaner under contract
  • Irrigation controllers, zones, valves and leaks checked monthly
  • Garden maintained to a written specification, not to whim
  • Palms treated preventively against weevil where the risk applies
  • Terrace, driveway and boundary structures inspected annually
  • Water consumption monitored — a hidden irrigation leak is the classic silent cost
04

Emergencies and out-of-hours

Prevention reduces emergencies; it does not abolish them. When something does happen we make the property safe first and account for it afterwards.

  • One number, answered outside office hours, all year
  • Trades on call for water, electrical, heating and lock-outs
  • Property made safe immediately — isolate, contain, secure
  • You are informed the same day, with photographs and a cost
  • Insurance claim opened at once where one applies
  • Follow-up until the permanent repair is finished and signed off

How it runs

  1. 01

    Technical survey

    A full walk-through of the fabric and every system, with ages, service history and remaining life recorded. Anything already failing is separated from anything merely due.

  2. 02

    The plan and the budget

    The survey becomes a twelve-month calendar and a costed budget, split into what must happen, what should happen and what can wait.

  3. 03

    Scheduled works

    Trades booked against the calendar at agreed rates. We attend, supervise, check the work and photograph the result.

  4. 04

    Defects and warranties

    Everything found is tracked to closure, and anything under warranty is claimed rather than paid for twice.

How this works country by country

Costa del Sol, Spain

Salt air corrodes fixings and outdoor units; ultraviolet destroys seals, timber and render; hard water scales every heating element; and irrigation runs almost year-round. Maintenance intervals on the coast are shorter than the same equipment would need in northern Europe.

  • Corrosion checks on railings, fixings and outdoor condensers
  • Descaling of heaters, softeners and pool equipment
  • Pre-season and post-season pool servicing
  • Render, sealant and external timber inspected annually for UV damage

Central Switzerland

Above 1,300 metres the enemies are frost and water. A pipe that freezes in an unheated flat in February will not be found until someone opens the door, and by then it has run for weeks. The calendar is built around the two changeover weeks at either end of the season.

  • Autumn winterisation: drain-down or frost-protection heating verified
  • Roof, gutters and snow guards checked before the first snow
  • Heating left on a monitored minimum curve through the closed season
  • Spring opening: full systems restart and post-winter damage survey

What you receive

  • Twelve-month calendar

    Every recurring task, dated, assigned and costed.

  • Service records

    Per system: what was done, by whom, when, with photographs.

  • Comparative quotes

    For any significant work, more than one price, presented side by side.

  • Warranty register

    What is still covered, until when, and by whom.

Questions about this service

Talk to us · info@m13property.com

Can I use my own contractors?

Yes. If you already have trades you trust we will work with them, book them against the calendar and supervise the work as we would our own. We will tell you if their pricing is out of line with the local market, but the choice stays yours.

Do you mark up contractor invoices?

No. Invoices are passed through exactly as issued and we take no commission from any supplier. Our income is the management or contract fee that appears on your statement.

What counts as an emergency?

Anything actively damaging the property or making it unsafe: escaping water, loss of power, a failed lock, storm damage, a heating failure in freezing conditions. We deal with those immediately and inform you the same day.

Can I have maintenance without full management?

Yes. The maintenance calendar can run as a standalone contract for owners who handle the rest themselves. You still get the calendar, the service records and the comparative quotes.

Other services

All services

Not sure which of these you need?

Describe the property and how you use it. We will tell you what it realistically needs — including the parts we would not charge you for.

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