Cheap ways to improve your rental
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Increasing the rental income of your investment property isn’t as difficult or as expensive as you may have been led to believe. There are many ways you can increase your rental income for under $1,000.
Increased rental income makes your property easier to afford, it means there is less money coming out of your pocket each week. This increased income can be used to pay down your mortgage, reinvest in more property or even fund your lifestyle.
Here are some tips that you can use to increase your rental income by $5-$20/week for under $1,000. These tips don’t apply to all properties, but I suggest you take each tip and see if you think it will work on your property.
Fresh Paint - When you are renting out your property natural wear and tear will show on the walls. Over time this gets worse until eventually you end up with a property that looks tired and dirty all over. It is also likely that the old coat of paint you put on 5-10 years ago is now outdated. Look at freshening up the worst hit areas between tenancies. Keep a note of the colour mix of the paint so you can get away with only painting the walls that really need it. Select neutral/natural colours that will go with most tenants furnishings and cover the wear best. Don't select odd colours and paint out any odd colours when you first purchase a rental property. Some people simply wont rent a house with odd colours. $200-$300 materials
Commercial Cleaning - A sparkling clean house is appreciated, regardless of its decor. Commercial cleaners should bring the standard up to most peoples expectations and make a move in easy. You will definitely get more applications from a better standard of tenant when the house is clean. Make sure you get a good quote from a trusted source as there are plenty of bad cleaners out there too! Approx $350 - $500 full house clean
Work on the high visual areas first – First impressions last so when you first step into the house a good standard of decor will take the pressure off the currently un-renovated areas. Other important rooms are the kitchen and bathroom. Paint the walls, replace the cupboard fronts, replace drawer handles,remove anything really dated like light fittings and replace with something clean and basic. Dressing an entrance room to show off the potential is a great idea for pushing a good increase in rent between tenants. $400-$500
New Flooring (optional) – If you have old flooring or badly stained carpet then it may be dragging down the price you can command for your property. Families are very conscious of their children's health and very old carpet can be off putting. Getting it replaced is likely to increase the look and feel of a room and thus your rental income. Go for a mid-dark grey and just do the worst room one at a time if possible. $600- $800
There is a lot you can do for under $1,000 to keep your property at a good standard, maximize your rental return and attract good tenants. As you can see from these ideas the return on the investment is huge considering the small cost you need to outlay.
Think about your particular property and if any of these strategies will work for you. Then implement them and see your rental return increase!