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Latchel FAQs

latchel, maintenance, how latchel works, set up latchel, add latchel

Crystal Abing avatar
Written by Crystal Abing
Updated over 7 months ago

What is Latchel?

We’ve partnered with Lachel to offer you a convenient way for handling maintenance requests from your tenants. Instead of waking you up at midnight or interrupting your workday, your tenant calls Latchel and they handle the request from there.

What if I already have an on-call person?

Don’t get caught in a bad situation where your on-call person misses an emergency call that causes property damage. Latchel has a fully staffed call center with the process and technology needed to successfully dispatch when there is an emergency. Latchel protects property investments from damage and liability.

What qualifies as an emergency issue?

As a rule of thumb, anything that can cause property damage or is a tenant habitability issue. Latchel has set emergency protocols to meet legal requirements in all 50 states. See their specific emergency criteria below.

  • Leaks that can cause property damage. This includes roofing leaks, lawn/sprinkler leaks, toilet leaks, and overflows, sink leaks, and HVAC leaks.

  • No functioning toilets in the house.

  • Sewage backups or sewage on-premises.

  • Water issues like no water, dirty water, or no hot water.

  • No heat in cold weather (under 45F; 55F if young children, elderly, or sick people are present)

  • No AC in hot weather (over 95F; 85F if young children, elderly, or sick people are present.)

  • Security and safety issues (broken windows, broken/open doors).

  • Cars blocked in by broken community gates.

  • Electrical outages (not caused by the power company) and loss of power to medical equipment.

  • Life-threatening emergencies like gas leaks, carbon monoxide leaks, and fires are directed to 911.

How do you control costs and protect budget limits?

You choose your budget limits and Latchel enforces them. If any work will be over budget, they escalate to you (or someone else that you designate) to get approval.

Who will be troubleshooting and dispatching my maintenance calls?

An experienced property manager or contractor troubleshoots and dispatches your work. Everyone on Latchel's troubleshooting team has at least 2 years of experience in property management and maintenance. Many of Latchel's employees come from a general contracting background. They understand maintenance and know a good priced contractor from a bad one.

Can I set hard and soft budget limits?

Yes!

Soft budget limit: Preferred budget shared with Service Providers

Hard budget limit: Latchel calls you if a quote is above this value

Note: Minimum limit for soft budget is $200, the minimum limit for hard budget is $500.

Why is it taking so long for Latchel to source a technician?

Latchel is at it's best when you bring a preferred vendor, this way Latchel takes over the communication and scheduling aspect, but you know that your preferred vendor is working on your investment property.

In cases where Latchel is required to source the technician, the largest limiting factor is the set budget. Latchel's goal is to find a vendor that can do the work within your determined budget. Be sure that your budget is not overly limiting as this will minimize the number of technicians available and increase the back-and-forth required between you and Latchel for quote approvals.

How Can I Contact Latchel?

You can email Latchel at [email protected] or text/ call Latchel at (917) 909-4211.

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