Equipping your rental with attractive, durable, and high quality furniture is the best way to make it look fresh and appealing. And while this may seem like a daunting and expensive process with all the interior decorating and sourcing work involved.
At the end of the day, there are a ton of hacks you can use to make the process easy, affordable, and one that’ll end up looking amazing.
Let’s start with the decorating aspect.
The easiest way to ensure that you end up with a great look is to go to the Ikea site and look at their showroom images and design ideas for inspiration. Ikea is a great way to go as their furniture is generally pretty affordable, and if you get the right stuff, it can be fairly durable.
Another benefit of going with an Ikea look is that everything tends to mesh together nicely, and you’ll have a theme that’s universally attractive going through the whole space.
Bedrooms
If your rental has multiple bedrooms, one should be designated as the ‘Master Bedroom’. It should have a queen sized bed, and perhaps a couch which can fold out into another full sized bed.
Other bedrooms and secondary bedrooms should have multiple beds each, generally a queen/full and a single bed, or 2-3 single beds. Especially if it’s in an area where groups of 4 or more will probably be renting your unit.
Metal frame beds with strong headboards are generally the best option. Particle board beds can look really appealing and nice, but their quality and durability leave a lot to be desired. They tend to fall apart after less than a year, and you’ll be replacing them much more often than you’d like.
Living Rooms
Sofas in living rooms should be durable and simple. The surface material doesn’t really matter much, as long as it’s not something velvety or velour-ey. Alcantara is out of the question as well! These stain easily, get sticky easily, and very quickly end up feeling dirty and unpleasant.
Leather or fake leather is a pretty durable option, but it really depends on the space. Some rooms can handle a leather sofa / couch while others can’t. It all depends on the theme choices you make.
A couple of armchairs are a must-have, as are end tables and a coffee table. Coffee tables should be really durable, and large enough to accommodate board games, drinks, etc.
If you don’t want to deal with real plants, Ikea makes realistic looking fake plants which can really spruce up the atmosphere of a living room.
Kitchen
For tableware it’s often best to go with hard plastic plates and bowls. Ones that are machine washable and microwavable.
Forks and knives should be simple and cheap. Amazon Basics has good options, as do places like Ikea, Ocean State Job Lot, and Home Goods. It’s good to have at least 10-15 of each (knives, forks, spoons) as you don’t want to give your guests a reason to run the dishwasher after each meal!
If you’re able to, install an in-sink disposal unit. This will help keep messes to a minimum.
Leave your guests 2-3 large cutting boards, as well as mixing bowls and salad bowls.
Pots should be really simple stainless steel ones, and pans should be non-stick. There are affordable and replaceable options on amazon. Know that your pots and pans are for all intents and purposes disposable and will need to be replaced at least once a year.
You don’t need to have a whole knife set. Usually one or two chefs’ knives is sufficient, as is a ladle, and a set of steak knives.
Outside
Outdoor seating and amenities are important. Really important. Even if your rental has a limit of 6 guests or such, don’t just include 6 seats. If your guests have people over or if there’s a situation in which you have more guests staying than your stated limit, it’s better to have more chairs outside than less. This eliminates the possibility (which happens surprisingly frequently) of your guests taking furniture and chairs from the inside of the rental and bringing it out. Morning humidity and condensation, rain, and all the other elements will undoubtably ruin indoor furniture. If they bring it out, they’ll without a doubt forget to bring it back in.
Have a grill – a simple and durable one. The grills typically found in places like Home Depot and such are low quality, expensive, and have way too many features. Your best bet is a Weber spirit. These grills are basically commercial grade and indestructible.