Upgrading a rental house does not need to be pricy or tedious. There are various low-cost or free methods to take a so-so rental property and boost its appeal to prospective tenants. By adding various effortless touches, swapping out several hardware or fixtures, and doing a little affordable resurfacing, you can make your single-family rental property one that quality tenants will be ready to rent. In reality, with just five easy upgrades, you can inevitably boost your Garner property’s appeal.
Changing Hardware and Fixtures
Replacing small hardware items, namely, doorknobs and light fixtures is at the top of the list among small upgrades that can have a large impact. Over time, hardware and light fixtures can tarnish or look dated. When this occurs, a rental home’s interior can negatively impact prospective renters. Just updating old light fixtures in key rooms, affixing a ceiling fan in a bedroom, or having matching doorknobs, locks, and other hardware can develop visual appeal that is higher than the costs. Hardware and light fixtures don’t need to be fancy or high-priced; a primary fixture that looks clean and modern will frequently do the trick.
Touching Up the Paint
While repainting a rental home’s interior is one vital way to obtain that fresh, clean look tenants adore, it is possible to make a similar effect by doing small touch-ups. Depending on the level of wear and tear, the whole interior may not need a full paint job for every tenant. If so in your rental property, painting an accent, the trim, or a few walls can form the look of freshly painted walls without spending too much time or money.
Resurface the Countertops
The look of a rental home’s countertops can inevitably impact the property’s overall appeal. Possibly more than other features, a splendid countertop can lend a kitchen or bathroom a custom look and an upgraded feel. Luckily, installing granite or other expensive options is not necessary to get this same result. There are several different countertop resurfacing kits available that can endow your old countertops with an instant facelift without the designer price tag.
Don’t Forget the Details
Interior decorators grasp that adding various small touches to a home can make a big difference. Garner property managers can follow that example. Setting up new cabinet handles and drawer pulls to a bland kitchen can add beauty and function, speedily upgrading otherwise tired old cabinets.
Updated and matching faceplates are other details that can create a home interior feel more put together. Cracked or mismatched faceplates can affect a room’s feel and visual appeal. You can make each room in your rental house far more charming by merely replacing each faceplate with new, matching ones.
In addition, remember to add various tech-friendly touches! For relatively little money, you can add smart updates to your rental home that tenants will like. For example, switch quite a few regular outlets in key areas to outlets incorporating USB ports. You can even turn a GFCI outlet into a charging hub. Or, think of getting a video doorbell, smart light bulbs or plugs, or a Wi-Fi-enabled garage door. The money you spend on these updates will add value to your property and make it so much easier to attract quality tenants.
Landscape for Free
A rental home’s landscaping is a really important part of the property’s curb appeal and can even be one of the fundamental causes a tenant chooses your property over another. A clean, low-maintenance yard is best for rental homes, but tenants enjoy trees, flowers, and other beautifying elements. To add various low-cost colors and green to your rental yard, check first with your local utility or city website. Lots of cities give away free trees or other plants to property owners. Furthermore, always keep in mind to check the “Free Stuff” section of your local classifieds. In these ads, people mostly advertise things they no longer need – namely shrubs and trees – to anyone open-minded to come and get them. Thus, you can upgrade your property’s landscaping for no higher cost than a little elbow grease and a shovel.
In Conclusion
Small upgrades can equal big returns concerning standing out in the rental market. With just a little time and several low-cost purchases, you can upgrade your Garner rental property and your ability to invite the kind of tenants you desire.
Tired of doing it yourself? Why not give Real Property Management Excellence a call? It doesn’t matter if you possess one rental home or several; our goal is to protect and maximize your real estate investment. Backed by over 30 years of nationwide experience, our property managers are here to help rental homeowners increase rental income while cutting down expenses and inefficiencies. Contact us online or call us at 919-827-1107 today.
Originally published on January 17, 2020
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