One of the biggest barriers Shift by Design have in gaining new vacant property styling projects are developers who wish to buy their own furniture for their display home instead of renting stock for their marketing campaigns.

While I can completely understand their viewpoint, some furniture packages are quite inexpensive these days, there are many good reasons why renting stock is far smarter than buying outright.

In fact, there are 10 really good reasons why a builder, developer or property manager should look at renting rather than outright purchasing stock to stylishly present their property for sale.

1) Accessing furniture stock to furnish your display home

Most furniture retailers will not have landed stock available at the exact time you need it, you’ll most likely have to wait for it to arrive in anything from 4 – 8 weeks after ordering. This can push back marketing campaigns affecting your time to get to market. Alternatively, the landed stock that they have available may not work well together in rooms and may not carry a theme. These delays cost you money. Shift by Design have a fully stocked warehouse containing every item you need to stylishly present property for sale.

2) Big initial financial outlay

Even if the retail outlet has furniture available, there is still a big initial outlay to get the stock which will have an effect on your cash flow. Even the cheapest package furniture will cost you anywhere from $2500 – $3000 and that only covers the base furniture alone without accessories, installing the furniture, hanging artwork, ironing linen etc. Buyers will also recognise the cheap furniture and it does not create the wow lifestyle factor or the engagement buyers want.

3) Building stock

Most retailers these days offer flat pack furniture, so you’ll have to build the furniture before you can even place it in the property. This increases the amount of time needed to be spent on the project. Shift by Design’s stock is largely built and ready to go and has been put together by those with experience and knowledge in flat pack assembly.

4) You’ll need more than just furniture

Once you have purchased the furniture, you will still need a whole host of other items to get the property to the point where it is ready to present to the market. These items include:

- mattresses

- bed linen

- pillows

- cushions

- artwork

- vases and decorative accessories

- plant stems

- kitchenware

- rugs and

- lamps

This is an area where costs really add up very quickly. In order to furnish a 2 bedroom house you will be looking at a minimum of around $5000 to do this at retail prices plus the running around to coordinate the whole project.

5) Co-ordinating a look to create the “wow” factor

Why waste your time trying to create the look in the property once you have paid for all of the above items? A Shift by Design team of four can take up to 6 hours to completely style a 2 bedroom property and we do it each week (and that does not include preparation time and uninstalling of the job!). How long would it take you to create a look in your property that appeals to buyers and could your time be better spent elsewhere? We know how to present a vacant property to the market, it’s what we do.

6) How many times will the stock be used?

Buying a houselot of furniture will provide you a base level furnishing of the property, but how many times will you use it? Once, twice, maybe three times? Is the initial outlay worth it when you can simply phone and let Shift by Design know you want the property styled? Then instead of the same furniture in your next property, we can mix and match our range to suit your next project.

7) Flexibility on what you want, when you want it

When renting and styling property through Shift by Design you have complete flexibility to make decisions on when you want stock installed, extending contracts and having the items removed.

With initial packages starting at four week rentals, we can extend contracts by 2 or 4 week increments or collect the stock when you need it removed. While it is in your property, you have first right of refusal making our options very flexible.

What do you do with the items once the property has sold??

What if the property sells, what will you do with the stock once the buyers move in? Storage costs are expensive, styles and trends change and how likely will it be that the furniture you have purchased for this property will match the next property you develop? For example, the sofa you get for one property may not go in the next one due to colour changes, size and even fading due to UV sunlight. Putting together a stylish display home takes some time, and so does taking it all apart once the job is done, especially if you need to knock-down flat pack furniture. Why bother when you could engage someone else to take care of all the hassles.

9) Tax benefits in hiring furniture and accessories rather than buying outright

Furniture depreciates over a ten year period at 10% per annum whereas renting furniture is 100% tax deductible. It makes a lot of business sense to rent.

10) Insurance

Are the items covered in the vacant property while you are selling and have you factored this into your costs for the marketing period? Insuring a vacant property for furnishings can be a difficult process given that there is no one residing at the property.

Why involve Shift by Design to assist you sell your property?

Shift by Design are the property presentation experts in Tasmania. We review each vacant property on its own merits and address the issues that will create the least negative impressions for buyers.

We custom our furniture and accessories for each and every project we undertake for our clients, meaning each project looks different and meets the specific requirement of the prospective buying audience.

Presenting property is what we do and we can help you get the most for your property at sale time.

Call Adam from Shift by Design on 0408 744 381 or email enquiries@shiftbydesign.com.au to talk more about the benefits of renting to furnish your display home.

To see our examples of our vacant property home styling click here

To read testimonials from developers and home owners click here

To view our base furniture and styling package click here