Vendor Performance Evaluation Checklist

Pull the vendor's master record from AppFolio, Buildium, or Yardi. Confirm trade category (plumbing, HVAC, landscaping, cleaning, painting, locksmith) and the review window — most firms run quarterly evaluations against the prior 90 days of work orders.

Export every closed work order assigned to this vendor in the review window from your PM software. Capture invoice numbers, dispatch dates, completion dates, and total billed amounts — these feed the timeliness and cost sections.

Locate the master service agreement, recurring service contract, or per-job scope. You cannot grade adherence to a contract you do not have on file — flag any vendor working without one for legal review before renewal.

The certificate must list general liability, workers' comp, and name your firm and the property as additional insured. Lapsed COIs leave the manager personally exposed for vendor accidents on premises — the most common gotcha at evaluation time.

Email the vendor's broker directly — going through the vendor adds a week. Suspend dispatch to this vendor until the new certificate is on file. Do not let a lapsed-COI vendor onto any property.

Verify the trade license number through the state licensing board's lookup — plumbing, HVAC, electrical, and general contractor licenses all expire on different cycles. Confirm a current W-9 supports 1099 reporting at year-end; missing W-9s create scramble in January.

Check the work-order log for any reported injuries, near-misses, OSHA notices, or tenant complaints about unsafe conditions left on site (open trenches, exposed wiring, ladders unattended). One unresolved safety incident is grounds to suspend dispatch.

Pick three closed work orders at random — one routine, one urgent, one make-ready. Drive the units or pull HappyCo / zInspector photos. Document defects, callbacks, or scope gaps against the original work-order description.

Count work orders reopened within 30 days of close — that is your callback rate. Above 10% on a recurring vendor signals quality drift; above 20% is a replacement conversation. Plumbing and HVAC trades typically run lower than landscaping and painting.

Review post-work-order survey responses or any unsolicited tenant complaints in the messaging log. Patterns matter more than one-off gripes — three tenants complaining the tech tracked mud through the unit is a vendor coaching item.

For after-hours and emergency dispatches (no heat, water leak, lockout, sewer backup), measure dispatch-to-on-site time. Most contracts spec 2-4 hours for emergencies; vendors who routinely run 6+ hours need a frank conversation or replacement.

Compare each work order's completion date against the SLA in the contract — typically 24 hours for emergencies, 3-5 business days for routine, agreed schedule for recurring. Calculate the percent on-time and flag chronic late jobs.

For landscaping, pest control, pool service, or HVAC PM contracts, confirm the vendor hit every scheduled visit. Missed visits without make-up are a common billing dispute — the owner statement should reflect actual visits, not the contract count.

Match every invoice line to a closed work order. Flag invoices without a corresponding ticket, duplicate billings, and labor hours that exceed the on-site timestamp from the dispatch log. Catch these before they post to owner statements.

For any job that exceeded the original estimate by more than 15%, pull the change order or scope-creep documentation. Verbal upcharges without written approval should not have been paid; raise these with AP before the renewal decision.

Single-item replacements under the de minimis threshold (typically $2,500) are repairs and deduct in-year; full system replacements are capital and depreciate. Misclassification at invoicing creates owner-tax-return headaches at year-end — fix it now, not in January.

Pull two or three recent quotes from comparable vendors in the same trade. A 20%+ premium needs to be justified by quality, response time, or relationship — otherwise it is leakage on owner returns.

Skim the email and SMS threads in AppFolio or Buildium for the period. Look for ghosted messages, escalations to the owner of the vendor company, and quality of status updates on open jobs. Vendors who go silent mid-job rarely improve.

Branded shirts, ID badges, marked vehicles, and clean job sites build tenant trust. Tenants are more likely to grant entry to a uniformed tech and less likely to file complaints. Note any incidents of crews leaving debris, blocking parking, or operating outside quiet hours.

The portfolio manager or director of maintenance signs off. Renew keeps the vendor in the active pool; probation triggers a 90-day re-evaluation with documented expectations; replace starts the new-vendor sourcing workflow.

For probation outcomes, schedule a call with the vendor's owner or account manager. Walk through specific issues — callback rate, late jobs, lapsed COI — and document agreed improvements with a 90-day review date. Send a written follow-up the same day.

For replace outcomes, kick off the vendor onboarding checklist — solicit three bids, run COI and license verification, check NARPM and BiggerPockets references, and set a transition date. Do not suspend the outgoing vendor until the replacement is dispatch-ready.

Record the evaluation outcome, score, and next review date on the vendor's record in AppFolio, Buildium, or Yardi. Update the trade rate sheet with any renegotiated pricing so dispatchers and AP work from current numbers.