It goes without saying, whether you're selling or renting your property, you need to dress your property to achieve a good price. Remember, not everyone has your visionary superpowers when it comes to space, so a little nudge (or dressing) in the right direction might just help! All this being said, if you're looking to do the bare minimum, what five things are non-negotiable to dress your property with? Let's take a look...
1. Window dressings
For that lived-in look
Many landlords will say 'don't provide curtains in your rentals, it's an extra cost you don't need'... but you're not the many, you're a Modern Landlord. On viewing days it will make your space look less inviting and cosy with no window dressings. Curtains especially have the ability, when placed right, to make your ceilings look higher and rooms look wider, plus can add some subtle homely colour.
Also, imagine being your tenant who's just moved in and utterly exhausted from the move, forget that curtains weren't included and has to spend their first night in their new place with street lights glaring down at them or a sheet taped to the window - not the best first impression to a great long lasting tenancy!
tml top tip - avoid curtains that only just cover your windows (they make them look teeny), instead hang curtain rods closer to the ceiling and slightly wider than the window to make them look bigger! Depending on the look, curtains can skim the floor or pool slightly.
2. Mirrors
To increase space
Whether used to amplify natural light, create visual interest, or simply as decorative accents, mirrors undoubtedly play a pivotal role in enhancing the aesthetic appeal and marketability of a property. Aside from the practical, mirrors are great for bouncing light around a darker room and making spaces feel more open and connected. But where should you hang them? If you have the space, hang your mirrors opposite or adjacent to a window to maximise your natural light.
tml top tip - by putting up mirrors and other things on the wall like art for viewing days, you're *hopefully* avoiding the need for your tenants to DIY their own holes as the screws will already be in place, instead they can just replace them with their own pieces.
3. Clean white bedding
To give a fresh feel
We'd recommend putting a bed in every bedroom so the prospective tenant or buyer can see that the room's big enough for a bed - you'd be surprised how small rooms can look without one! If you don't want to lug and set up multiple real beds, buy a deep blow up mattress that's bed height and make sure your duvet is large enough to cover all sides. With the bedding, white is always best - not only does it look fresh, clean and inviting but it goes with everything, meaning you only need one set to dress all your rooms for photography. Incorporate texture and layers for a casual, effortless look.
tml top tip - If your plan is to continually invest and you're going to be renovating frequently, Keeping your dressing kit duvet and pillows in a vacuum pack bag, with the covers already on makes it so much easier to store and reuse again and again keeping you organised and less stressed (just don't forget that handheld steamer for shoot days!)
4. Cushions
For pops of colour
To avoid your space looking too stark with your white bedding, and to tie in your interior scheme through your furnishings), cushions are a must! Mixing and matching different sized pillows creates both a relaxed and a curated feel. Choose two or three pillow styles to layer, creating height at the back then sizing down. Experiment with colour, pattern and texture! We know that the layout of cushions can be a nightmare to get right, but fear not we have a formula - check out our post here on IG and make sure you save it to refer to again & again.
5. Plants
To bring in life
We’re all about the interiors at TML, but sometimes you need to bring the outside in. Besides, who doesn't love a plant? They instantly say 'someone lives here' which is the impression you want to make when doing viewings, so hopefully they feel that they want to live here too. When it comes to plants, less is often more (especially with bigger varieties!) but mixing up textures, colours, shapes, and heights helps adds visual interest if you’re looking to incorporate more plants into your space. Complement your existing decor with planters and pots to help add life to a room.
We have a great blog (even if we do say so ourselves) that gives the 101 on plants and which ones to use in your investment properties. We have even recommended some faux plants for those who can't be trusted with the real deal. Read it here.
We hope we've convinced you enough to dress your property, even if it is just with the five non-negotiables. Trust us, there's evidence that dressed properties achieve more! If you wanted to go further with your dressing, check out our HMO Staging Guide - it's totally customisable to suit your project and can be reused over and over.
Show us your dressed properties over on IG - we love to see them!
