Smart renovations are important for rental properties because they contribute to the value of your home and affect your ability to attract and retain tenants. Property owners can often over-improve their investment homes or under-improve their investment homes. In some cases, they make really bad repairs. Today, we’re sharing some factors to consider when renovating or repairing your property.
Paint Color
Select a light, neutral wall color with a flat finish. If you have done any wall repairs, a flat finish might hide those imperfections. Choose a trim color that has a semi-gloss or gloss finish because you want light to reflect off it. The ceiling should also be gloss or semi-gloss. Don’t let the light get sucked into a ceiling because it makes a room look smaller. At Doud, we use Toasted Cashew, which is a light tan, on the walls and an ultra-pure white for the doors, windows and trim. Most rental properties are all white, but when you step into a property that’s managed by our Norfolk Property Management team, there is a contrast. That adds a dramatic effect to the property, and you get people interested a lot faster than if it was all one color. When you identify the color you’re using, you can use the palette throughout your entire portfolio. This allows you to reuse paint and three years from now, you’ll know what color to put on the wall. There’s no need to do a full paint job, and instead you can do just one wall at a time. That saves you money.
Flooring
When you think about flooring in your rental property, think about purpose and traffic patterns in each room. Hallways and stairwells should be hard surfaces. Carpet cleaners will charge $2 - $5 a step because it’s hard to keep cleaning those areas. If hardwood floors are on the steps, you can sweep them and wash them. That keeps them clean and sanitary. They are easy to maintain. In any hallway, you want to use a ceramic tile or wood. In highly trafficked areas, carpet will not stand the test of time. So use a hard surface.
In living rooms and any room where the television is used, you also want to use wood or wood laminate. It’s important to create a warm and cozy environment, but when people eat food and watch television, food will drop and a hard surface will be easier to clean. Bedrooms can be carpet. One room of carpet is easy and inexpensive, and most people don’t take food and drinks to their bedroom. If you have hardwood throughout your property, then you can keep hardwood in the bedrooms.
Kitchens and bathrooms should be ceramic tile. We always use tile because we don’t know when there will be water leaks in these rooms. The tile helps to seal the bathtub to the floor and water won’t go under the tile. Use a light tile with dark grout. The light will reflect off the tile and allow the room to look bigger. Dark grout is better because it gets 
dirty and can change color over time. A kitchen needs tile because there is always water splashing on the ground. Put a hard service on the floor so water doesn’t ruin your kitchen.
Consider your paint and floor when renovating your property. If you have any questions about this information, please contact us at Doud Realty Services.