A commercial property manager’s job is a perpetual balancing act. You must maximize your property’s profitability while also providing an environment that supports that profitability. Maintaining the building and grounds is part of that equation, and while skipping the expenditure of regular parking lot maintenance and using those monies elsewhere may seem like a smart idea at the time, it’s a move you may come to regret later.
Why Can't You Avoid Parking Lot Maintenance?
Maintaining the parking lot of your commercial property is far more critical than you might imagine. You can’t look at the expense as just another line item to mark off your asphalt maintenance list, because doing so will cost you more in the long term. This is because an improperly managed parking lot may quickly become an expensive, and even deadly, eyesore.
Asphalt is an excellent paving material, but it is not without flaws. It begins to wear with time and exposure to the environment, allowing moisture to infiltrate the surface. This wetness can eat away at your lot, causing ever-widening cracks that can evolve into enormous, ugly potholes that not only appear unsightly and unwelcoming but can also turn a visitor’s ankle or damage a vehicle’s tires, presenting you with a potential liability nightmare!
Low maintenance does not have to have an impact on your bottom line
The last thing you want to do is waste money on insurance settlements or big parking lot repaving. Fortunately, if you just perform routine parking lot maintenance, the impact on your bottom line will be considerably more manageable. This is because the cost of preventative maintenance, or even modest crack repair, is significantly less expensive than having to fill an enormous network of potholes throughout your entire lot.
Patching minor cracks as you uncover them keeps them from becoming a bigger problem later on. Yes, regular maintenance entails paying for your paving provider to come out and inspect your lot every few months or so, but this is just another cost of doing business, similar to paying for monthly utility costs for your building. You wouldn’t go months without paying your power bill, so don’t neglect parking lot maintenance either.
Defending Your Investment
You wouldn’t put off fixing a leaking roof or replacing a broken window, so you can’t put off maintaining your commercial property’s parking lot. You have an investment to safeguard, and ignoring damage for too long can only lead to bigger, more expensive problems down the road. Make wise decisions and safeguard your investment by relying on frequent parking lot repair to keep your asphalt lot in good condition.
