Day in the Life

Preparing a Space to Rent

I have been staging my listings since 2012. That year was important as it marked a significant upturn in real estate sales following the housing market crash of 2008. I was looking for any extra marketing push for my listings to get them noticed, quickly sold and for the highest money. As I have shared many times, it has been proven that staged homes tend to sell much quicker than unstaged homes, often 73% faster, according to the National Association of Realtors. A staged house is a SOLD HOME.  With that mission, I have built up over the years a sizable inventory of staging materials including furniture, light fixtures, curtains, carpets, bedding, pillows, artwork and dishes. If it could make an impactful statement to potential buyers, I was using it to stage the property. You can check out some of my Before and After photos. 

So when my old college buddy and BFF Patti announced that she wanted to turn her un-used accessory dwelling unit (ADU) or in-law apartment into a monthly rental, I jumped on the opportunity to design and decorate the space. Patti was hopeful to find traveling medical professionals such as travel nurses that work at hospitals or facilities for an average of 13 weeks at a time. That was our target tenant, typically women. The goal was to make the space comfortable, the decor modern and neutral to appeal to the widest audience possible. 

Monthly rentals, as the name suggests, are properties that are fully furnished and available for rent for 30 days or more. Essentially, in a monthly rental, you are providing a move-in ready space that includes furniture, electronics (such as a microwave, iron, Wi-fi and Smart TV), towels and linens, basic kitchen supplies, dishes and any other extras like a grill. This allows travelers to come with nothing but their suitcases full of clothes and toiletries. Being furnished with basic living essentials, tenants don’t have to have to worry about hauling their possessions all over the country as they travel. 

These rentals offer the best of both worlds: the flexibility of a short-term rental (think Airbnb) with the hassle of constantly obtaining tenants, and the stability of a long-term rental with a year-long lease. For quite some time, travel nurses & medical professionals were the go-to tenant for monthly rentals. Although they still comprise a significant portion of the monthly tenant population, other groups including corporate contractors, displaced and/or relocating families, academics and other travelers are powering monthly rentals to be the fastest growing rental type in the US. 

It took several months of heavy renovations and repairs to the apartment before we could begin with the fun part of decorating. The last tenants had trashed the place before finally being evicted in a grueling year-long legal process. This experience was the impetus of making the apartment a monthly rental. The overall color palette was in soft blues and grays in different shades and values. The paint was purchased at Habitat for Humanity's Re-Store. The line of paint is Recolor Paints, a women owned business that recycles old paint to new products sold at a fraction of the cost. A quart of paint is $12 and a gallon is only $20 compared to the $48-$78 price range in other stores. 

Once the tools were put away and sawdust swept, I went shopping in my storage unit for items to furnish the apartment. Again, I have curated quite the inventory of furnishings. A large abstract print in dark blues and grays over the couch makes a dramatic statement as you enter the front door. It is one of my favorite pieces and was the inspiration for the curtains, furniture, and carpet. Since the room is small, the couch shares the space with a high-top that provides sufficient area for dining and is situated in front of an expanse of windows making it a pleasing spot to dine. The table has been used many times in my staging, especially when dealing with small/limited kitchen space. The bedroom is wrapped in a combination of soft gray and yellows for bedding and decor. The pillows used, along with the 2 coordinating carpets have been in at least a dozen staged homes. Always a safe color combination that I accented with jet black. The matching bedside lamps and tables had both been lawn sale finds. The bathroom took its color cue from a large peacock print and was a delight to decorate. I always have solid bath towels and face cloths to match in any color bathroom. Once completed, the space looked homey and ready for its new occupant. 

I am thrilled to say that by using my staging inventory and personal design skills, I completely took a blank apartment and made it into a move-in ready, furnished home, for a traveling nurse. All of this was done for my best friend to be a much needed source of supplemental income. Were these items to have been purchased, it would have cost her thousands of dollars. I am pleased to say that the space has been rented with the new occupant moving in next week. Welcome home.