How to make your rental a haven this spring
Ahh spring…it’s the perfect time of year to undertake a little house cleaning, rearrange your personal space and cast off the gloom of winter with a bit of a home refresh.
But how can you do that when the home you live in is a rental?
Well, there’s lots of ways to personalise your space and give it a mini-makeover, so here are our top tips on how to make your rental a haven this spring.
The famous spring clean
We know, we know it’s almost a cliché, but spring really is a great time to dust off, declutter and clean the cobwebs away.
After protracted lockdowns in many states in recent months, a little spring clean this year might also be all the more alluring.
The best advice is to take it room by room, working your way through each, giving it a good clean, including going through your cupboards to get rid of any items you no longer need.
Then, turn your attention to all the little things like dust on fans, dirty windows, and any marks on walls.
It’s also an opportune time to wash those curtains or have them dry-cleaned. Oh, and here’s a pro tip…if the curtains have rubber backing, you can gently rinse them outside using a garden hose.
Think storage, storage, storage
You know the old saying ‘a place for everything and everything in its place?’ well, the key to this philosophy is adequate storage.
While your rental property might only have limited storage options available, there are some nifty ways to get around this problem, including decorative bookshelves where you position storage boxes, or savvy furniture like coffee tables and side tables with storage built in.
Meanwhile, underbed storage hides all manner of sins, so consider using it to great effect with matching stylish storage boxes or dedicated underbed drawers.
Some spring soft furnishings
Soft furnishings can quickly transform a room from lifeless and dull to sumptuously seasonal. If you’re looking to give an interior space a lift, consider changing up soft furnishings like cushions, throws, rugs and pillows.
If you want to take it a step further, you could also swap the existing curtains with something more personal.
All these are items you can take with you when you leave, making them a long-term rental investment.
A little garden magic
Spring is the time when any garden really comes back to life, so now might be a great time to exercise your green thumb and give it a bit of a refresh.
That means tending to any weeds and giving select plants a little trim, but as the garden is part of the property be mindful about going too far.
Great temporary options to add life to a rental property’s garden include outdoor pot plants, annual flowers, hanging plants and portable vegetable gardens.
These also work beautifully if your rental property lacks a garden, but instead has outdoor spaces like courtyards or balconies.
Some quick rental rules
As a general rule of thumb, you should return any rental property in the condition in which you found it. But all of the above tips are ones you can quickly implement and reverse when the time comes to leave.
Meanwhile, if you’re considering more permanent alterations, such as hanging pictures or installing wall mounted shelves, you will need to ask permission from your landlord via your property manager.
How we can help
Our experienced property managers pride themselves on establishing great relationships with both rental occupiers and owners.
We manage every property as if it were our own and you can learn more about our property management services here.
Alternatively, if you are looking to rent a property, you can view the properties we currently have available here.
