Should you let your properties furnished or unfurnished?
Most new investors assume there is a right answer to this. They assume that either furnished is better, or unfurnished is.
In fact, in my experience, most assume furnished is best.
But the truth is, there is no universal right or wrong answer.
The answer nearly always comes down to what the market expects.
Or, put another way, the market will tell you.
Not a blog post. Not a rule of thumb. Not a YouTube influencer. And certainly not an investor on the other side of the country talking about a completely different type of property.
The market in your area, with your tenant type and your property type, in that location, will tell you whether you should let furnished or unfurnished.
That said, there are a few things I have learned, both from my own experience and from watching investors get this right… or wrong.
Let’s start with unfurnished
If you have the choice, and you are not in a short-let, serviced accommodation or corporate rental market, unfurnished might well be your preferred option.
Here is why.
First, you do not have to spend thousands on furniture, appliances, or replacing things when they break.
You do not have to PAT test your appliances every year either.
So straight away, you are saving money.
Second, as a general rule of thumb, tenants who bring their own furniture tend to stay longer.
Why?
Because it is more of a hassle to move when they have to take their sofa, bed and other belongings with them.
And when they furnish it themselves, it feels more like home.
That is usually a good thing, for them and for you.
Third, again as a rule of thumb, they often look after the place better.
If it is their stuff in there, they are more careful.
And if they leave, you are not arguing over the deposit because of a scratched table or a broken chair, because it is theirs.
But sometimes you do not get the choice
This is the important point.
You will notice I said, “if you have the choice”.
Sometimes you will not.
In some areas, furnished is simply the expected standard.
Not because it is better in some grand universal sense. Just because that is what the local market wants.
In city centres, where you are letting to young professionals, they may not have any furniture at all.
They want plug-and-play.
They are moving for work, or moving on again soon, and they expect the property to be furnished to a decent, sometimes even high, standard.
Think of the classic furniture pack that comes with a city-centre new-build buy to let apartment.
If you offer that property unfurnished, you may be cutting out a huge chunk of your potential tenants.
Do not make lazy assumptions
Here is something that surprised me when I first started in property.
Many of my tenants on benefits wanted the property unfurnished.
It is slightly counterintuitive.
The relatively affluent young professionals in my token city-centre apartment wanted furnished, but many of my tenants on benefits wanted unfurnished.
So do not make assumptions.
This is exactly why these sweeping statements are so unhelpful.
The question is not, “What do investors usually do?”
The real question is, “What does this market want for this type of property in this exact area?”
How do you actually find out?
First, do not guess.
Second, ask.
But do not ask in a Facebook group or at a property networking meeting.
You will hear all sorts of nonsense, usually based on somebody’s limited experience in a totally different location, with a totally different type of property.
The only reliable way to know what your local market expects is to ask your local letting agents.
After all, they are dealing with tenants, showing people around on viewings, and hearing objections every day.
They will know what tenants want and what helps a property let quickly.
So call three decent letting agents in your area.
Even better, call in and ask them face to face.
Ask them:
- what do tenants expect for this type of property in this location?
- what lets faster?
- what gets better rents?
- furnished or unfurnished?
And make sure you are both talking about the same thing.
If you are letting a terraced house, make sure they are not answering as though you mean a city-centre apartment.
They might be in the same town, perhaps even the same street, but they can still be completely different markets.
The bottom line
At the end of the day, this is not about what works in theory.
It is about what works for your property, in your postcode, with your likely tenants.
Get that right and you could save yourself thousands.
And probably spare yourself some very unnecessary furniture shopping as well.
This isn’t advice, of course. Just a reminder that the market usually knows better than our assumptions do.
Here’s to successful property investing.
Peter Jones
Author, property investor and ex-Chartered Surveyor
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