Home & Condo Rentals, Siesta Key Florida

I thought I would take some time now that the rush of our busy season (Jan, Feb, March, April) is over and cover a few pointers for people considering renting out their property on a seasonal basis.

If you keep in mind a few very important factors it will make decorating and furnishing your rental a breeze.

Think about what you would like when you stay away from home; good quality sheets, a comfortable bed, plenty of towels, etc. Last October I stayed at a hotel in Tampa for my birthday and will definitely make a return visit to that hotel because of the very comfortable mattress. I have found that the nicer the places are furnished the more friendly the guests are if something goes wrong.

Before property management I owned a consignment furniture store and would hear over and over “It’s just a rental property, I don’t care what I put in there”, or, “I don’t want to spend a lot of money because the tenants will not take care of it”. I am sure there are horror stories out there but I have found that most of the seasonal tenants have very nice homes up north and they are spending a lot of money to stay in our tropical paradise.  If you furnish your place like a garage sale reject they will move on to the next place where the owner took the time and effort to make their home more inviting. I am not suggesting that you buy top of the line, new everything. As a second hand business we got in some very beautiful furniture and it sold for much less than you’d find in a new furniture store. Sarasota and Venice both have some wonderful second hand furniture stores.

Another suggestion that I have is to send or leave a welcome basket for when the tenants arrive. We have several of our owners that do this or have us do this. It makes the new tenant feel welcome and it personalizes their stay. It becomes more of someones “home” they are renting and not just a hotel. We leave guest books in all of our properties and encourage our guests to leave comments about what they enjoyed doing while they were here. The front of the book is a good place to suggest local dining favorites and a little about yourself.

Extra cleaning supplies and toiletries are appreciated by everyone. Tenants are more likely to keep the home clean if they have the supplies to do it. Who packs cleaning supplies in their vacation luggage? Our cleaning teams do leave paper towels, toilet paper and trash bags but extra supplies would be a wonderful idea.

Keep your units up to date. Siesta Key is tropical and the pastels of the 80′s will always be in style because it is in our landscape here, but when that sofa starts looking a little tired it is time for a make over. The goal is to get the guests to want to return over and over. I know personally that if a unit was looking worn and tired I would not come back to that unit, I’d ask for something else the next time. Comfortable chairs, plenty of cooking supplies (pots, pans, cookie sheets, etc) are also important when furnishing a seasonal rental. Plastic cups are great for beach days, but keep in mind that some of our guests may plan to entertain while they are here and will need a little nicer set of glasses and dishes for company. We suggest a serving set of at least 8 for dishes, silver ware, etc.

Something I’ve done that has helped my bedroom furniture stay looking new much longer was having glass tops cut to fit on my night stands and dresser. It is not very expensive and it saves your wood furniture from “rings” if a wet glass is set on them. Table cloths and place mats are great ideas as well for the dining room/kitchen table.

I hope that you’ve found my suggestions helpful. Happy May ya’ll..time to get geared up for our summer crowd!

Holly Lingley

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