If you have recently purchased a property in Albany which you will be offering for lease, you may need to decide whether to offer it furnished or unfurnished.
A furnished property will typically appeal to a smaller portion of the rental market however there is definitely a market for furnished properties and furnishings will give you the opportunity to tap into that market.
Location
If the property is located in a suburb or housing complex, it is natural to expect that prospective tenants would want to rent it for the long term. In that case, it would be impractical to furnish the property as the majority of long term tenants will typically already own furniture and wish to use it.
Type of Property
You should particularly avoid furnishing houses because these types of dwellings will most likely to appeal to families who will already own furniture. However, if you invest in an apartment in Albany, it is more likely to attract short term tenants. Such tenants may prefer to lease a furnished unit so that they can use it as a short term home without having to source furniture.
Prospective Tenants
There are many types of tenants who will each have individual requirements.
If the tenants are students or couples, they may want the house to be furnished so that they could start living in it immediately and then leave after the lease expires. In this case, you would need to provide basic furniture and potentially also appliances. This will entail some extra expense on you part however you will be able to recover some of that cost by charging a higher rent. If the prospective tenants are likely to be long-term such as families, then the cost and effort of supplying furnishings is less likely to be not required.
We recommend that you speak to a property manager who has local knowledge of the Albany rental market.
To decide whether to furnish the property or keep it as it is, follow these guidelines and reach out to the helpful team at Wellington & Reeves if required.
