Home Staging is Important

Before I start on why home staging is important for fellow landlords, let me go off topic a bit. I have been busy with business development and a lot of new ventures, but property investing remains my lifeline and main hustle. It has been a hectic period with short stints at part time employment. It is great to be back here.This is the space that keeps me focused. I share for my own benefit here too.

property cleaned up

 For about three months I have been revamping properties for new tenants and restructuring the rental types themselves. I turned a commune into a single-family property, installed prepaid meters in a multiple family property and worked quite hard at ensuring that the properties look amazing. You must have heard it before...I only let a property that is good enough for me and my family to occupy. I will provide details of the work I have been busy with in the next few blogs. Today is introductory to that with regards to why home staging is important.

Home staging is important

A number of people cant take the stress of fixing stuff and dealing with contractors. This is true with tenants too. A number of people who do not prefer home ownership prefer a simple stress free life without the pain of replacing broken tiles. I on the other hand am one of a few people who makes it a point that stuff is fixed each time it breaks. Sitting with a problem distracts me. If a cabinet drawer is broken, it should be fixed or replaced within a few days. Maintenance is one of the most important aspects of home ownership and being a landlord. The longer it takes to fix a problem, the higher the cost.

This also helps with upgrades on the property in between tenancies. Prospective tenants never see potential. Frankly, potential is not in their interest. All they want is a “ready-to-move-in” home. That is probably the reason they avoid the stress of building their own homes themselves. I shy away from showing a place before it is completely turnkey. You’d be lucky to show a house to a prospective tenant twice. They take the first impression and take their decision based on it. Avoid showing a property prematurely with statements such as: “the cabinet will be fixed; we will replace the cracked glass; the electrician is coming tomorrow;" etc. This is why home staging is important.

I have also viewed properties that are packed with stuff resembling some kind of a storage facility. Some with those thin and shallow cracks that take minutes to fix.  Properties that are sometimes fixed but not cleaned. Its worth taking a week extra to go through fixing those nuisances and hiring a cleaner for one day to remove the dust.

I always take a minute to imagine myself living in the place. Once again, if the place is not good enough for me and my family, it is not ready for my tenant. This has little to do with the value of the finishings but neatness and state of repair. I will go through ways of ensuring easier maintenance in the coming posts. This was just to welcome myself back to the space that has given so much back to my life.

Expect diversified investment posts and guest bloggers with real life wealth building posts.

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