In order to keep your vacation rental property fresh and attractive to prospective guests, renovations and upgrades are occasionally necessary. Regular updates can mean more bookings and bigger revenue numbers.
We argue that the perfect way to start the day is with a tall stack of egg stuffed between two pieces of properly boiled and baked bagel. Warm colors, lots of interesting décor, and no shortage of comfy seating make this out-of-the-way eatery a perfect place to warm up to the world in the early hours. Wasatch Bagel and Grill offers plenty of options when it comes to breakfast bagel sandwiches, from classic egg and cheese to more ambitious combinations, like the spicy Wasatch Huevos, with jalapeños, bell peppers, and grilled onions. Not everything on the menu is between two slices of starchy goodness, but all the best things are.
Flooring
Beneath everything, both literally and figuratively, is your floor. By updating your flooring, you can change the entire feeling of a room, lightening dark spaces, updating an aging color palette, or adding a sleek appeal by swapping carpet for wood. Updating your floors is one of the larger projects in this list, but also provides huge impact and long-term bang for your buck.
If your unit just doesn’t quite have that contemporary look, your floor covering could be one of the biggest culprits in your outdated appearance. Carpet, in particular, has a short lifespan compared to wood or stone floors, and carpet styles can go out of fashion quite quickly.
Hospitality grade carpeting will stand up to repeated abuse much better than residential use carpeting, being specially designed for heavy wear scenarios. Wood and stone flooring are both more durable than even the best carpet, but do lose some of the warm atmosphere and sound absorption that comes from a beautifully carpeted room. Wood is vulnerable to scratching and gouging that wouldn’t usually affect a carpeted surface, and true stone floors are decidedly more expensive than either carpet or wood.
Countertops
The kitchen is the center of the home, even a vacation home. Aside from appliances, the countertops are the most noticeable feature in any kitchen. In days gone by, linoleum may have been enough for the discerning guest. But in this modern age of travel, updated materials like granite and quartz are the order of the day.
Bringing your countertops up to speed gives guests an overall impression of contemporary luxury for minimal alteration. In addition to the aesthetic change when switching to granite, quartz, or other hardy stone surfaces, the exceptional long-term life of more natural materials will pay dividends over the years as you avoid the nicks, cuts, and wear in the veneer that cheaper counters would suffer over time.
Furniture
Many homeowners make a critical mistake when furnishing their vacation properties. They buy furniture as if they were shopping for a primary residence. Most couches are great for routine family use, but they do not hold up to the sort of rigorous wear commonly inflicted by rental guests. The average rental guest will not exercise the sort of care and concern for the furnishings in their host’s unit that they would for those in their own homes. As a result, spills, rips, and other excessive wear are common on rental unit furniture.
The best way to combat abnormal wear and tear is to purchase institutional furniture, designed for the rigors of hospitality use. Designed to be sturdy and covered in durable fabrics and materials, hospitality-grade furnishings will last for years longer than the average consumer couch, chair, or table.
Thinking ahead and choosing timeless styles will save you buckets of money in the long run by keeping you ahead of trends in furniture design. By avoiding the pitfall of trendy furniture, you won’t feel compelled to buy all new furnishings every couple of years.
Lighting
Nothing transforms a room faster than light. Lighting makes all the difference! A beautiful room may appear washed out under bright bulbs or drown in the darkness of poorly lit space. Adjusting the number, intensity, and color of lights can drastically alter the nature of your space. Adding lights can bring new highlights to your layout, while updating the fixtures in your unit can change the character of the décor.
Even if you aren’t interested in changing or adding fixtures, a new style of light bulb may be just the thing to brighten up a dim space or bring down the mood in an intimate space. In addition to wattage, color balance can produce new effects by making a light produce either more stark, blue-leaning daylight hues, or warmer, more orange tones. The former is more active and alert, the latter more warm and intimate.
Mattresses
More than anything else, guests want a comfortable bed. They have come to your home for a good night’s rest, and the quality of your mattress is the biggest single contributor-or hindrance-to that goal. Comfortable guests are happy guests, and are not only more likely to enjoy their current stay, but are more likely to book return trips, which means more revenue in your pocket.
Remember, as always, that hospitality-grade mattresses are designed to stand up to the high stresses placed on them over time by guests, and will save you plenty of cash in the long run by spacing out the time between replacements.
General Style Tips
Whenever undertaking upgrades, renovations, or replacements, remember that your home needs to hold contemporary appeal for as long as possible. Avoid styles or objects that will become dated quickly. Chasing trends will leave your unit locked into a single moment in style, left behind as the market’s tastes change. Buying sturdy, timeless articles will minimize the number of alterations you make over time, as your furnishings and décor remain relevant and attractive for years and years to come. Fewer upgrades and renovations mean better returns over time.
With help from our team, your renovations can get you further for less. Our assistance is available to all homeowners in the All Seasons Resort Lodging rental program. Be sure to also check out our other Park City vacation rentals for inspiration.
See if All Seasons Resort Lodging is a good match for you.
If you are not an existing owner with All Seasons Resort Lodging and are interested in learning more about our portfolio of services, please contact us at 435-615-0176.
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