What will help us increase rent in 2 bedrm flat good suburb Melbourne

[motivated 5555]

Should we definitely put wooden floor

Rather than carPet

Current carpet is good condition but outdatedyellow and cream patterned

Biggest question is about kitchen its an old white with grey steeks tgrough it laminate but perfect condition .

Should we just replace applianes or if wll looks and works ok should we leave it

Some Lights eg lounge dining
Maybe door handles maybe not
Window shades particularly kitchen

Small Garden beds made nice how ? What type of plants
Will this really help

What about kitchen

 

[zed_kid]

Can you create a 3rd bedroom out of the dinning room (if it’s a separate room) or an en suite out of the walk in robe / closet (if you have one)

Everything else is just cosmetic and wont really increase your yield a lot. Kitchen / bathroom renos are a good start though

 

[vaughan]

Should we definitely put wooden floor

Rather than carPet

Current carpet is good condition but outdatedyellow and cream patterned

Biggest question is about kitchen its an old white with grey steeks tgrough it laminate but perfect condition .

Should we just replace applianes or if wll looks and works ok should we leave it

Some Lights eg lounge dining
Maybe door handles maybe not
Window shades particularly kitchen

Small Garden beds made nice how ? What type of plants
Will this really help

What about kitchen

I'm new to the game, but here's how I have been thinking:

0) Consider whether the property is already rented at market value: if not, put up the rent without spending any money.

1) Determine the maximum rent in the area for similar properties. Compare this to your current rent. Work out the difference. This is the potential extra rent you could get.

2) Work out how much you can spend on the reno based on the difference between the current rent and the maximum. Extra rent of $10 a week will pay back $500 over 1 year or $1,000 over 2 years, work out how long you want to wait for a return on the investment, and hence calculate the size of the investment you want to make.

3) Work out what you can do with the reno money.

4) Work out whether the tenant would pay more rent for the improvements. Imagine the tenant thinking: that (light, door handle, curtain, garden) sure is nice, I'd be happy to pay $X a week more rent to have it. Or: that (light, door handle, curtain, garden) sure is nice, but NO WAY I'm going to pay $X a week more rent to have it.

--

So, for the question of replacing the carpet: assume it costs ~$1,000 for new carpet for a 2 bed unit. To recover this cost in 1 year will be $20 per week extra. Will the new carpet be $20 a week better than the old for the tenant?

 

[The Y-man]

Floating boards can be easily damaged and harder to repair than replacing carpet.

Also, you may have body corp/neighbour issues if sound becomes an issue.

Also look at just changing the kitchen cupboard handles if they are old fashioned.

The Y-man

 

[mary&mat]

Dishwasher?
Euro laundry?
More storage cupboards?
Built in robes?
Pets allowed?

 

[fokas]

Dishwasher?
Euro laundry?
More storage cupboards?
Built in robes?
Pets allowed?

All good suggestions..first thing I thought of also was whether pets were allowed.

 

[The Y-man]

All good suggestions..first thing I thought of also was whether pets were allowed.

Actually first thing I thought of was "can you relocate the flat because location can definitely affect the rent"

The Y-man

 

[motivated 5555]

thanks for all that thats all very helpful

zed kid mentioned kitchen bathrom reno
but if he could rent it for 350 now with nothing done, how much more will he be able to rent a 2 bedroom flat in a good area if kitchen bathroom carpet lights were all changed
how much is the most a 2 bedroom apartment would rent for in a good area.

thanx for the good ways to work it out
and yes i have seen floating floors damaged easily .

the location is ok

its just a matter of how much to spend on
and also that the more he wants to do the longer he will keep it vacant as he seems to take ages to do anything. its already been vacant for a few months with little done to it.

so it may be worth to do
paint
kitchen blind
carpet
lounge dining lights

and not touch the kitchen if it all works and looks ok even if outdated
as he takes forever to do anything and it will be left vacant for a year or 2
and will lose way more than he gains

maybe he should only paint and change kitchen blind then rent it out asap.

his job isnt secure so as a friend i try to encourage him to rent it out asap and get what he can for it maybe 350 a week
rather than leave it vacant for a year or more while he tries to spend a heap on carpet and kitchen to get a bit mroe rent. I dont know ho wmuch more rent he could get anyway for a 2 bedroom flat in a good area.

 

[The Y-man]

how much is the most a 2 bedroom apartment would rent for in a good area.

Go to realestate.com rental section and put in the postcode, and the number of bedroom.

The Y-man

 

[Mick C]

Hi,

Firstly which suburb are we talking about?
If it 's a affluent suburb that can demand a good rent + low vacancy ?

Not all renovations will make your money ....working WITH the location and demographic is a good starting point.

- Does the area have demand for extra storage space?
- Extra bedroom? student living there?
-Professional ? better furniture and modern kitchen etc
- Furnished?
- Family orientated?
- Pets?
- Housing commission?

Generally speaking Melbourne's unit's are relativity small-- probably around 50-70 squ meters? so i would say change :

1. Change lights to down lights to "create a sense of extra space" - ~$900

2. Change the ugly carpets- ~$1,200

3. Kitchen- No need to change if it's in good working order...you can simply paint it with laminate paint + change door handle ...very cheap! something you can do your self less then 1/2 day. ~$200


DW about garden or the rest till the tentant complains and it becomes a problem...right now it's not a issue what so ever.



Regards
Michael

4.

 

[Ms Jade]

I'm new to the game, but here's how I have been thinking:...

For someone new to the game your thinking is spot on! I love renovating, but I often find these kinds of topics impossible to answer. Renovating IPs is not a decorating decision but a business one.

Motivated, it sounds like you're asking on behalf of a friend & if so you should forward him Vaughan's post - and also Y-Man. If he is close to max rent for the type of property he has, it may be no use doing anything; especially if, as you say, it will take months to do it. Make sure he realistically factors in the time & how much rent he will lose in the meantime.

That said, my initial impression would be to paint & change the floor coverings & maybe update the light fittings if they're really daggy.

 

[Melbournian]

spent 6K, floorboards, underlay, downlights, blinds plaster and paint and retile the floor.

that should be enough for some growth with minimal outlay.

 

[Jamie M]

All good suggestions..first thing I thought of also was whether pets were allowed.

This is where you can potentially attract a few more dollars. We allow pets (within reason) in all of our IPs.

Cheers

Jamie

 

[Lil Skater]

Hi Motivated,

Firstly, we can't really tell you what will/will not work without knowing the type of area we are looking at. If he can rent it for $350 now with no work, we can't really tell you it can be rented for $400 pw if we don't know the area.

If it's an older unit, but in a newer area you may look at giving the property a face lift. IE - Painting, carpets (if it's an apartment or has a body corporate you may not be able to do floating floors), blinds (if they are in poor condition) kitchen and bathrooms.

You may be able to do a low cost renovation of the kitchen, if the kitchen has a good set up and is structurally sound, you may consider painting doors/replacing doors and the bench top rather than replacing the whole thing.

If he does take forever to do anything, unless he will get tradespeople in, I probably wouldn't renovate, as you can build a new house in a year!

If the property can already be rented at a good price which is suitable to the situation, and doesn't *need* a renovation, maybe it would be best to not do anything.

The area in which I service, for instance, does not have many higher end properties. It is amazing how much difference that new carpets and painting can do for some of these properties, but in other suburbs that kind of work may not make too much of a difference.

And for what it is worth, light fittings and door handles (unless they are discoloured, damaged or very outdated) are unlikely to make too much of a difference - Whereas other small things, like built in robes are more likely to add value from a tenants perspective.