Increasing rental yields revolves around a pretty simple philosophy, and that’s giving the tenants something they want and that they would be happy to pay extra rent for. Of course, not all of these ideas are suitable for every landlord, but you can look them over and weigh up the possibilities of each in relation to your own circumstances.
Furnishing the Property
It’s often exactly the sort of people who prefer to move into a fully furnished property who are willing to pay a little bit more for it. These kinds of people will usually be short-term renters, or young people moving out of their parents’ home, divorcees or even people who have just arrived in the country. Their priorities will be securing a place to live rather than a space they can build their lives into.
The type of furnishings you choose should be the essential items such as beds, a fridge and freezer and washing machine. Other less essential items are also good, such as wardrobes and a dining table. Always go for a modern and contemporary style, ignoring your own personal taste while trying to appeal to as broad a cross-section of tenants as possible.
Additional Items Can Boost the Rent
As well as those non-essential items which can help your rental yields increase, there are certain luxury items which can do the same thing too. The best item like this is a dishwasher, which will pay for itself within a year and last ten times that long at least (with proper care). A television is another luxury item which will pay for itself quickly enough and help bring in a higher rent yield for many years.
Temperature Control
Tenants will be impressed by a good heating system, especially as the UK can get very cold during the winter (and spring, summer and autumn for that matter). However, be aware that there’s nothing more annoying for a tenant than having no control over the heating system. They should be able to turn it up or off at their leisure, so they don’t end up sweating unnecessarily or wearing extra jumpers while they wait for the heating to turn on via a timer only their landlord has control of.
An air-conditioning system might be useful as well, certainly during hot summers. Of course, this is a judgement call as properties in the UK are rarely struck by heat waves, but they do happen so it’s worth seeing if it’s worthwhile installing an air-conditioning system as well.
