Home improvements for renting? Material choices matter.

When it comes to making home improvements with renting in mind, there are certain choices that can help reduce your maintenance costs. One of the important choices is the type of materials to use. The most common are found in the flooring department. The initial costs for “upgrading” may not be attractive at first glance. But if you run the numbers on how much longer it should last, that is where you see the value.

Here are a few areas where material choices matter:

Carpet vs. LVP (Luxury Vinyl Plank)

• Life Expectancy of Carpet = 5-10 years
• Life Expectancy of LVP = 15-25 years

Treated Lumber vs. Composite Decking

• Life Expectancy of Deck = 10-15 years
• Life Expectancy of Composite Deck = 20-25 years

Carpet vs. High Traffic Carpet

• Life Expectancy of Carpet = 5-10 years
• Life Expectancy of High Traffic Carpet = 15-20 years

While most of the “upgrade” options should last nearly twice as long, they generally don’t cost twice as much… which means you come out ahead!

Replacing a deck with a concrete patio

Another area that we’ve been helping investors reduce maintenance costs over the long haul is by way of replacing decks with concrete patios. If the deck is low enough to the ground that it wouldn’t require a long flight of stairs to reach the patio, we recommend tearing off the deck and installing a concrete patio. 

As I’m sure you know, wood decks require annual maintenance and deteriorate much more quickly than concrete patios. Surprisingly, they cost about the same to install.

What other areas of home improvement do you consider “upgraded” or “alternative” material choices to reduce your maintenance costs?

If you have any questions about making a property rent-ready, please feel free to give us a shout!