If you are already the lucky owner of an investment property, you may be questioning how you need to dress and style it in order to successfully let or sell it.
Think of your property as a product, which has its special characteristics but also needs a wrapping and clever marketing strategy. Therefore, you need to know your potential tenant or buyer. What is their lifestyle, what are their preferences, what they like, what they hate?
You also need to think of your weak property points and address them. Does it lack enough natural light? Perhaps not enough storage? Or, maybe one of the rooms is ridiculously small?
Think of every single objection your potential buyer or tenant could have and try to find a solution.
Declutter, clean and repair
Get rid of broken, run down furniture and decorative items. It’s better to show the property without an armchair than with a broken one, covered with stains. If you have some cool furniture that can be given a second life, think about revamping.
For example, retro armchairs, which are very trendy at the moment, could be repainted and reupholstered and can give your living room a very trendy look.
However, consider if you have time for it, also reupholstering might be more expensive than you think.
Choose the right furniture
Start with bigger items moving to smaller ones, but keep it simple, don’t overdo it.
When choosing furniture and decorative pieces, try to go for finishes which match or work together well. Don’t mix dark walnut wood with light oak, for example. It just won’t look good.
If your table has brass legs, a chrome pendant probably won’t be a good idea. At Temza London, we create furniture packages specially designed for investment properties. Every item is carefully selected for a harmonious look throughout the space.
For rental properties, choose furniture and other objects which are easy to clean and maintain.
Consider a sofa with a removable cover, which can be easily washed. Remember that wooden furniture stains easily and might be tricky to keep in impeccable condition.
Add a touch of something special
You don’t need a lot to complete the look of the property. A standard room styling list will include a rug, a lamp, a couple of pieces of artwork and a few decorative items, perhaps a coffee table and a coffee table book.
All these items should work with each other, not against each other. Consider professional interior designer advice to save time, hassle and potentially money.
Light is more important than you think
Maximise the light potential. Shiny and reflective surfaces can work magic in dark spaces. A mirror and a glass-topped table will allow light to bounce around the living room. A narrow corridor, meanwhile, benefits from a long horizontally hung mirror.
Adding a trendy pendant or wall lights will not only give an extra source of lighting but will also add character to a space. Depending on the interior style there are many inexpensive light fixtures which can become a centrepiece of the room.
Window dressing makes a huge difference
Window coverings complete the look of the room and can make it look cosy and welcoming. Depending on the type of the property choose between roller blinds, roman blinds and curtains.
Roller blinds will be the cheapest solution but might not work for every property, you need to be quite creative here to fit the window dressing into a tight budget, but you won’t regret it.
Go the extra mile
Dress bathrooms. A towel, candle, soap and a small decorative object – these are the details that can create that ‘wow’ effect which will guarantee a sale.
Go even further and add a few plants and flowers. Plants are magic! They brighten up the space and look fantastic on the marketing photos. Also, they create a homey feel, which brings your prospective buyer one step closer to making an offer.
Another small and inexpensive thing which is often neglected but can make the whole difference to the viewing experience is dressing up the bedrooms: make the beds with fresh bedding, an attractive throw and a few pillows. Oh and of course, add a candle…
*Sonia Pash is the founder of Temza interior design and build