to rent out furnished or not?

samuelsmommy

Hi

Will shortly be renting out our one bed flat, we have some "spare" furniture and fridge freezer and cooker are still in there from when we lived in it. Would we get more for renting it out furnished? If so does it include tv, kettle, toaster ect? (not keen on that idea).

Thanks :beer:

ognum

I rent out with white goods, carpets and sometimes curtains.

I have made a choice not to rent furnished or partly furnished but it depends on your market.

If you want students or very young people then furnished may be the way to go.

just remember the more you have in there the more there is to go wrong. if a bed get broken or damaged you have to change it, same with chairs and tables etc. People in rented sometimes do not treat furniture with respect!

I believe that tenants in unfurnished stay longer as they have the hassle of moving furniture if they move on, more voids mean less income and paying out for tenant finding etc.

It really is up to you to know your market.

HappyMJ

If you aren't keen renting out furnished then don't.

Werdnal

When I first started letting my flat 12 years ago, I was told that for the extra hassle of providing furniture, I wouldn't get much more rent.

You need to comply with fire regs for all your soft furnishings. You need to maintain, repair, replace and clean it (replacements may be covered on your insurance).

Electrical items are a pain, as you must to ensure they are safe - although it is not compulsory, small items like kettle, toaster etc, should be annually PAT tested. Even if I did provide small electrical items I would never supply a TV.

You also need to add everything to the inventory to be able to claim for any damages at the end from the tenant's deposit.

Others may differ on their views, but I do not supply anything with my flat, other than floor coverings, curtains/blinds and lampshades! Never had a problem letting it, and if you do get a void, you can claim up to 6 months council tax exemption if it is not furnished!

Kynthia

If you let it furnished you can claim a 10% wear and tear allowance on your tax return instead of claiming for replacements which really reduces your tax liabilty. Also as your letting a one bed flat your potential tenants are likely to be young or first time renters who don't have lots of furniture and will be attracted to furnished. However most prefer to buy their own bed and having lots of small items like kettles and toasters will mean having to replace them and be responsible for them.

Letting the property empty will mean no council tax during voids. Also you won't have to pay to repair and replace items as well as ensuring they are safe. If tenants already have furniture they will be put off by a furnished property and will want unfurnished.

You need to think about which suits your finances and your target market.

thegirlintheattic

It's a lot more hassle to rent furnished with little return. It will also end up with you having either students/very young tenants or being asked to store your furniture.

White goods is a good middle ground as long as you are aware that you will have to repair or replace if it goes wrong.