Do you want to attract reliable tenants quickly - tenants that will be more likely to remain long-term and who will maximize your rental income? If so, you want to instantly draw people’s attention and interest by ensuring your property has a ready appeal that looks better than comparable properties.
PERSPEKTYWA-it, freeimages.com
It’s really difficult to do this if potential tenants find themselves staring at blank floors, ceilings, and empty walls when they view your rental. That first impression is always important and many people lack the vision to see the potential of a house.
WHY FURNISH This is why placing some temporary furniture and accessories the right way can be so helpful, whether someone is viewing in person, or via advertising. Home staging a room can show the renter how to use a space, especially if it is an unusual floor plan. It can provide a means of highlighting the positive features of your property, or draw the eye away from the negative.
A home-staged rental can have an immediate appeal, creating an inviting warmth and enabling people to visualise their own belongings there. A tenant wants to feel proud of where they live. If renters can't picture themselves living in your house they are not likely to sign up, but if they love the look and feel of your rental then ultimately the long-term result will mean less tenant turnover with fewer problems further down the track.
COST Naturally as a landlord you don’t want to be spending large sums of money, time and physical energy on placing ultimately unwanted furnishings throughout the house and then removing them. You do need to invest money and effort in your rental though, if you want to reap the benefits at the other end, so if you can stage a rental for less than the cost of one month’s rent and gain the right tenant quickly as a result, it will definitely have paid off!
Rogelio Nunez, freeimages.com
To save the costs of buying and storing furniture (and to ensure it's always contemporary), you can rent it just long enough to get great professional photos taken of your rooms before you list/relist your property. You can even do a virtual tour for marketing purposes, which can continue paying for itself for some years to come.
It’s definitely a good idea to take quality photos of the grounds and external approach to the house too, showing you take a pride in maintaining it.
freeimages.com
IMAGE Home staging is about illusions – about creating personality and moods. It’s about adding the small details. Knowing simple ways to make your house look bigger, brighter, cleaner and warmer, providing appeal to a wide number of renters.
The best place to start is to use neutral and complementary colours wisely. An important tip – if you decide some walls need a paint, don’t paint first! You can buy paint in every imaginable colour so decide on your floor rugs and fabric first.
With our next blog we’ll give you lots of practical tips on how to successfully home stage and use colour….. see you then!