Maintenance plan for rental Property

[salmp01]

I own several rental properties and have had them under a repair plan through Xcel Energy (our local utility company).  I had been paying $14/month and they will cover most repairs on my furnace and three appliances for this cost.  I live in MN and I primararly get this plan so that my tenants can call in an issue with their furnace and have a tech out there in a matter of hours (this is needed when the temps drop below 0).   I just got a notice that they are increasing their cost to $20/month and I'm considering dropping this or changing to another plan.

I just got off the phone with American Home Shield and it sound like they offer more of a cadillac but the cost is $40/month and they charge $125 per call.   Does anyone out there use this or anything else like this?  If so, what has been your experience?

Thanks!

[afox]

this sounds like insurance.  insurance is generally a bad deal for things that you can afford to take the risk on yourself.  Certain you will come out ahead of if you self-insure by putting some furnace repair/replacement money in a savings account and making sure there is enough to cover emergency repair or replacement.

[sol]

I have a couple of rentals, and do not use any plans like this.  When a tenant calls me with a problem, I usually go over and have a look and if it's not something I can fix I call a repair person right then.  Furnace repair people are always available on short notice, but plumbers usually schedule for 2-3 days out unless you have an emergency.

I don't see the advantage of paying someone to call a repair person for me, except that it spreads out the cost over every month instead of hitting you with big bills for occasional repairs.  I maintain enough of a cash buffer in my rental accounts that it's never been a problem.

[SeaWA]

I have a couple of rentals, and do not use any plans like this.  When a tenant calls me with a problem, I usually go over and have a look and if it's not something I can fix I call a repair person right then.  Furnace repair people are always available on short notice, but plumbers usually schedule for 2-3 days out unless you have an emergency.

I don't see the advantage of paying someone to call a repair person for me, except that it spreads out the cost over every month instead of hitting you with big bills for occasional repairs.  I maintain enough of a cash buffer in my rental accounts that it's never been a problem.

+1 to this.

I only have one rental, but I enjoy fixing things myself, and learning to fix things. I believe it will help me with future rehab/rentals.

Last week I fixed a plumbing issue in about 1.5 hours that would have cost ~$400 for a plumber to fix and required a 3 day waiting period during which the rental would only have one shower.