Set Up Maintenance Categories, Priorities & SLAs in Property Meld

Set up maintenance categories (what the issue is), priorities (how urgent it is), and SLAs (your promised response/repair time) in Property Meld by creating a clear category list, mapping each category to a default priority and due time, then applying automation so new requests are tagged, routed, and timed consistently. If everything is already set up, validate it by testing a few sample requests and confirming assignments, due dates, and escalations behave exactly as intended.

 

Key terms (plain English)

 

• Category: The type of maintenance (Plumbing, HVAC, Electrical). Used for reporting and routing.
• Priority: The urgency (Emergency, High, Normal, Low). Controls speed and escalation.
• SLA: “Service Level Agreement” = your internal promise like “respond in 4 hours” or “complete in 3 days.” In software this is usually a due time plus overdue alerts.

 

Step-by-step setup in Property Meld

 

• Open Admin/Settings: Go to the settings area (often under Admin, Company Settings, or Configuration).
• Create Categories: Add a short, non-overlapping list. Example: Plumbing, HVAC, Electrical, Appliance, Pest, Locks, Water Leak, Safety, Grounds.
• Define Priorities: Keep 4 levels max. Example:
  • Emergency: active leak, no heat in freezing temps, fire hazard
  • High: partial loss of essential service
  • Normal: standard repair
  • Low: cosmetic, non-urgent
• Set SLA targets per priority: Configure default first response and resolution time (or at least a due date rule). Example:
  • Emergency: respond 1 hour, resolve 24 hours
  • High: respond 4 hours, resolve 3 days
  • Normal: respond 1 business day, resolve 7 days
  • Low: respond 2 business days, resolve 14 days
• Map defaults: For each category, set a default priority and SLA. Example: “Water Leak” defaults to Emergency; “Pest” defaults to High.
• Routing rules: Assign categories to the right team/vendor. Example: HVAC category routes to HVAC vendor group.
• Automation: Turn on auto-tagging, auto-assignment, and overdue notifications/escalations if available.

 

Common setup mistakes to avoid

 

• Too many categories (people pick the wrong one). Keep it simple.
• Priorities without clear definitions (everything becomes “Emergency”). Write examples in internal notes.
• SLAs that ignore weekends/after-hours. Decide if SLAs are business hours or clock time and configure accordingly.
• No escalation path. Ensure overdue items notify a manager, not just the original assignee.

 

Test and validate (even if already configured)

 

• Create sample requests for 3 categories (one Emergency).
• Confirm the request auto-fills category, priority, assignee, due time.
• Check notifications: new request, approaching due, overdue.
• Run a report/dashboard view to confirm categories and SLA performance are tracked.

 

Troubleshooting

 

• Wrong due dates: Check SLA time unit, business hours setting, and timezone.
• Not auto-assigning: Verify routing rules order and that the vendor/user is active.
• Staff still choosing wrong priority: Lock defaults by category and limit manual overrides.

 

When to contact Property Meld support

 

• SLAs need business-hour calendars, holidays, or complex escalations and the settings are not visible.
• Automation rules conflict and you need rule-order guidance.
• Integrations (AppFolio/Buildium/Yardi) are not syncing categories or statuses correctly.