Onboarding your home with a new manager
The first weeks with a new manager set habits that last for years. A careful handover avoids the classic early mistakes: the wrong fuse, the missing key, the guest who cannot find the bins.
Write down what only you know
Every home has quirks its owner no longer notices: the door that needs lifting slightly to lock, the shower that takes a minute to run hot, the shutter that sticks in damp weather. Walk through each room with a notebook and write these down. They are exactly what a new team will be asked about by the first guest.
The technical file
- Location of the water stopcock, the electricity board and the gas shut-off, with photos.
- Boiler or heating model, how to reset it, and who services it.
- Wi-Fi details and where the router is, so it can be restarted.
- Manuals for the appliances, or at least their model numbers.
- Bin collection days and where the bins live.
Keys, codes and access
List every key and every code, who holds a copy today, and which copies should be collected or changed. If neighbours, a former cleaner or a relative still hold keys, decide now whether that continues.
An inventory with photos
A room-by-room photo record of the furniture, linens and kitchen equipment protects both of you. It makes missing or damaged items easy to spot later, and it gives the manager a reference for restocking.
Your existing suppliers
Share the contacts who already know the home — the plumber, the electrician, the gardener — and say which you would like the manager to keep using. A manager may prefer their own team; that is a conversation to have, not an assumption to make. See building a local vendor list.
The first weeks
Ask for a short report after each of the first few stays: what went well, what the guest asked, what needs fixing. Read guest reviews closely during this period, and resist the urge to correct every detail by message. Agree instead on one weekly call or summary while the team learns the home.