What materials would you use to improve a rental property?

[Michael Szypulinski]

Hey everyone,

I wanted to see what recommendations the BP community has when it comes to rehabbing a property in preparation for it to be rented.  

1. What kind of material would you use that is ideal (low cost, durable, etc.)? 

2. Any strategies? For example, putting laminate flooring over hardwood floor for preservation prior to selling the property. 

3. Any other tips/tricks/ideas?

Happy Holidays!

[Jim K.]

Here's a shortlist of what we do for SFR and small multifamily ranging between $650-$1400 in rent:

1. Solid hardwood or tile. Vinyl in all its many forms is the next best alternative. Get rid of carpet wherever you find it. Put in rugs in cold areas. Laminate will not take real tenant abuse.

2. Beautiful interior wood trim has no place in cheap rentals. Resign yourself to covering it in primer and paint.

3. Flat wall finishes hide imperfections best, semi-gloss for trim works best. Bathrooms and kitchens get painted in satin. Cheap paint fades and can't be touched up, expensive paint can take heavy-duty cleaning and repeated touching up, white is the only acceptable color for ceilings in interior residential painting.

4. Blinds on every window unless it's big enough to require curtains, and if it's big enough to require curtains, it's big enough to require inner and outer curtains.

5. A cheap, old furnace is guaranteed to screw you at the worst possible time.  Put in Trane or American Standard if you can find any way to afford it.

6. @James Wise is absolute correct in my area as well when it comes to entry door handles. Defiant deadbolts are ten bucks a pop. That's your replacement cost if things go wrong. And you have to lock them with the key from the outside, so you avoid all Oops-I-locked-my-keys-inside-again" stupidities.

7. I disagree with @Dennis M. about smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. I like the cheap battery-operated ones that need to be switched out regularly. The reason is that it gives you a great excuse to do biannual inspections throughout the house -- ten bucks in batteries gives you trouble-free access throughout the house to check out what the tenant's been doing to your property...you're not poking your nose in their business, really, you're just switching out the batteries. Can't be helped...

8. In the same vein: do not provide tenants with furnace filters and expect them to switch them out. You go in to do the switching ever three months. Another problem-free excuse for an abbreviated inspection.

9. I am a huge fan of shower towers in the bathrooms even in cheap rentals. The ones I use are around 200 bucks. Once you get them in, you'll never need an expensive service call for a plumber or tech for any sort of shower/spigot-related issues. A minimally-competent handyman can go in and replace the whole shebang. And the tenants go bonkers over them.