JunkBossPro Blog — Property Managers & Commercial

Before-and-After Photos for the Property Manager: Proof Every Trash-Out Was Finished

Property managers almost never see a trash-out happen. They hand over keys in the morning and hear from the painters the next day. If the painters find a mattress still in the back bedroom, the manager calls you, not them. Before-and-after photos settle those calls before they start.

Photos Pick Up Where Access Leaves Off

Getting into the unit is covered in Lockboxes, Leasing Offices and Gate Codes: Access Notes for Property Manager Junk Jobs. Once the crew is inside, the first thing they do, before touching anything, is take the before photos.

In JunkBossPro the crew takes photos right in the crew app on the job card, and the photos stay with that job. The office sees them as soon as the job is completed. Months later, they are still on the job at that address.

What to Photograph Before

A good set of before photos shows the whole unit, not just the pile. Walk it in the same order every time:

• The front door from inside, looking in.
• The living room from the corner, showing the whole room.
• The kitchen, including inside the fridge and cabinets if they have things in them.
• Each bedroom, with the closet door open.
• Bathrooms, including under the sink.
• Balcony, patio, storage closet or storage cage.

Photos of damage are worth taking too, like a hole in the wall or a broken window. The crew did not cause it, and a photo from before they started says so. Mention it in the job notes so the office can pass it along.

What to Photograph After

The after photos should match the before photos, from the same spots, in the same order. Matching angles let anyone flip between the two and see the difference in a second. The shots managers care about most:

• Open closets. Empty closets are the most common question.
• Open cabinets and the fridge. Food left behind is the thing cleaners complain about.
• Balconies and storage. Easy to forget, easy to check with a photo.
• The dumpster area, if the complex has rules about vendors leaving things there.

Take the after photos before tapping Complete. Once the truck is gone, the chance to show the unit as you left it is gone too.

When the Manager Asks

Calls about a trash-out usually come a day or two later. “The painter says there was stuff in the storage closet.” Without photos, that is your word against the painter's, and the easy way out is to send a truck back for free. With photos, the office opens the job, finds the after shot of the open, empty storage closet and shares it with the manager however you normally do. Most of the time that ends it.

Sometimes the photos show the crew did miss something. That is useful too. Own it, send the truck back, and make the habit stronger. Managers forgive a miss that is handled quickly far more often than they forgive an argument.

Photos That Are Easy to Read

A photo only helps if someone can tell what it shows. Turn on the lights before shooting. Stand in the doorway or a corner so the whole room is in frame, not a close-up of carpet. Take the closet shot straight on with the door fully open. If the unit number is on the door, a photo of it at the start of the set makes it obvious which unit the photos belong to. None of this takes long, and it turns a pile of pictures into a record anyone in the office can read.

Photos for Realtors and Executors

The same habit works for other commercial clients who are not on site. A realtor clearing a house before listing wants to know it is empty before the photographer shows up. An executor handling an estate cleanout for family members who live out of state benefits from a record of what the house looked like before and after. Those jobs are covered in Pre-Listing Cleanouts for Realtors: Getting the House Empty Before the Photographer Comes and Estate Cleanouts for Attorneys and Executors: Keeping the Paper Trail Clear.

Making It a Crew Habit

Photos only work if they are taken every time. A few ways to make that happen:

• Put “Before and after photos of every room” in the access notes on each commercial address, so it shows on the card.
• Teach it on a new crew member's first ride-along.
• Have the office glance at the photos when commercial jobs come in completed, and say something when a set is missing.

It takes a few minutes per unit. It saves a free return trip more often than you would think.

For the rest of the tools JunkBossPro gives you for property manager work, visit the commercial junk removal software page.