Appliances in rentals....to do or not to do?

[Christine Mwai]

Hey All,

Please help me on this... in your view or experience, is it a plus or minus to provide appliances to tenants? And do you take care of issues or not if you provide these.. Thanks!

[Nada Mohamed]

I think it is nice to provide at least some appliances, but I think, as previous posters have written, that it is a matter of custom and what goes on in your geographic area. Here in Cleveland, tenants expect a stove/oven and refrigerator at least, so I do provide at least those and repair/maintain/repurchase as needed. However, if I happen to purchase the rental property with more than those basic appliances, I simply provide in the lease agreement that these are "courtesy appliances" and if they go bad, need repair or maintenance, I will not be responsible for that. You can mold your lease agreement to your particular needs/circumstances so that repairs and maintenance will not have to be a burden to you. The lease contract is everything.