Property Check-Ins for Vacation Homes & Rentals
Property check-ins put eyes on your vacation home, cabin, or rental while you are somewhere else. Rim Rock Property Plus runs scheduled visits across North Spokane County, checking systems, looking for leaks and signs of entry, and sending a written report with photos after every visit. Small problems get caught while they are still small.
What we check on every visit
A check-in is a routine, not a drive-by. Inside, we confirm the heat is holding, run water at fixtures so traps stay wet and slow leaks show themselves, check the water heater and under-sink plumbing, and look at ceilings and window sills for staining that says water is getting in. We verify doors and windows are secure and note anything that suggests someone has been there who should not have been. Outside, we walk the perimeter: roofline, gutters, foundation grade, and anything the wind rearranged since last time. Then you get the report. Every visit ends with a written summary and photos, sent to you, so you see the same things we saw and there is a running record of the property's condition. If something is wrong, you hear about it the same day with photos and our recommendation.
An empty house in a North Spokane County winter
Winter is when an unwatched house gets expensive. If the furnace quits in January, an empty home north of Spokane can drop below freezing within a day, and frozen supply lines follow shortly after. A burst pipe that runs unnoticed for two weeks does more damage than almost anything short of a fire. Snow adds its own list: load piling on roofs and decks, ice dams at clogged gutter lines, and drifts that hide whether anyone has been up the driveway. Cold snaps also find weak points that summer never tests, like a failed heat tape or a crawl space vent left open. Scheduled winter check-ins exist for exactly this window. We confirm the heat is running, water is where it belongs, and the roofline looks right, so a furnace hiccup becomes a service call instead of an insurance claim.
Rental turnovers and remote owners
Rental owners use check-ins two ways. Between tenants, we document condition with photos, confirm systems work, and flag anything that should be fixed before the next lease starts, which is far easier to resolve with a dated record in hand. During vacancies, scheduled visits keep the property from sitting truly empty; an obviously maintained home is a less inviting target, and problems like a failed water heater get caught in days instead of months. For owners who live out of the area, we function as the local set of eyes: if a neighbor reports something or a storm rolls through, you have someone to send. The reporting works the same as our vacation-home visits, written and photographed every time, so your file on the property stays current even when you are two states away.
Why homeowners hand this to us
- Heat, plumbing, and water heater verified on every visit
- Leak and moisture checks inside, roofline and perimeter checks outside
- Doors and windows confirmed secure, signs of entry noted
- Written report with photos after every single visit
- Same-day call when something needs a decision
- Turnover documentation for rental owners
How it goes
- 1
Set the schedule
Weekly, biweekly, or monthly, matched to the season and how long the property sits empty.
- 2
Walk the routine
Interior systems, plumbing, security, and a full exterior walk, the same checklist every time.
- 3
Report with photos
A written summary and pictures land in your inbox after each visit.
- 4
Act on findings
If something is wrong, we call the same day with photos and a recommendation, then handle the fix if you want us to.
What does Property Check-Ins cost?
Check-in pricing follows frequency and scope. Weekly visits through the winter cost more over a season than monthly summer checks, and a large property with outbuildings takes longer to walk than a small cabin. Distance plays a part at the far edges of our service area, and add-ons like snow checks after a storm or extra photo documentation for insurance add time. Repairs we find are quoted separately before we touch anything. Members get a member discount on repairs and seasonal packages.
For members
For members, check-ins fold into a larger maintenance relationship. Home Care members get reminders to book visits before they leave town, and priority scheduling when something we find needs fixing. Summit Care members can pair check-ins with the seasonal visits we already schedule, so the property gets maintained and watched in the same trips.
Compare Home Care and Summit Care →Questions homeowners ask
How often should someone check on my empty house?
Weekly in winter is our recommendation for anything north of Spokane, because a furnace failure can freeze pipes within days. Biweekly or monthly works in milder months. Check your homeowner's policy too; some insurers expect regular documented visits when a home sits vacant, and our written reports give you that record.
What do you do if you find a problem?
You get a call the same day with photos and a plain recommendation. Small things we can often handle on the spot with your go-ahead. Bigger repairs get quoted before any work starts, and you decide. Nothing happens to your property without you seeing what we saw first.
Can you check my rental between tenants?
Yes. Turnover visits document condition with dated photos, confirm heat, plumbing, and appliances work, and flag anything to fix before the next lease. We can also keep an eye on the unit during a vacancy so it is not sitting unwatched. Reports work the same as our vacation-home visits.
Do I get proof you actually visited?
Every visit produces a written report with photos, sent to you and kept in a running file. You will see date-stamped pictures of the interior, the systems we checked, and the exterior walk. Over a season that file becomes a condition history for the property, useful for insurance and resale alike.