Everyone’s after luxury living, no matter what their budget happens to be. Whether you’re renting out a luxury property in Los Angeles or you want your tenants to feel like they’re living in a luxury home, the vibe usually comes down to amenities. What kind of lifestyle are you suggesting to your residents by the amenities you’re providing?
We have a number of luxury rental homes in our management portfolio at Bell Properties. If you have a high-end home in a great neighborhood with all the comforts and amenities that well-qualified residents are looking for, make sure the amenities match.
If you’re trying to attract tenants who are drawn to luxury living, make sure you’re offering the kind of amenities that will get their attention.
Here’s how Bell Properties sees the value of amenities in attracting California residents to your rental property.
Earn More with Luxury Amenities
Why invest in great amenities for your rental property?
You earn some pretty great return on investment (ROI) when you’re willing to make tenants feel like they’re living in luxury.
Earning as much as you can on your luxury rental property means setting the bar high.
Every real estate investor wants to increase the amount that’s earned every month, and the amenities you offer will influence what kind of rental value you’re able to attach to your property. Why leave money on the table? Why chase well-qualified residents off to other rental homes?
Luxury rental properties with the right amenities will bring in top dollar, and you don’t want to hurt your cash flow now and in the future by not charging enough rent. Make sure you have the sort of amenity package that pushes your property to the top of what the Los Angeles rental market demands.
Bell Properties can help increase revenue by:
Pricing your property correctly
Attracting and retaining excellent tenants who are impressed with luxury amenities.
Collecting rent on time. When tenants love where they live, they pay rent when it’s due.
Protecting your property. Again - tenants will take care of what they love. Give them a reason to care about your investment property.
The best properties need the best amenities and the sharpest details.
As your property manager, we’ll recommend any necessary or recommended improvements that will drive up your rental price and keep you competitive with other attractive homes on the market. These upgrades will also increase your sales price when you’re ready to sell.
Granite Counters and Stainless Appliances
Your residents won’t find luxury living in a kitchen with faded cabinets, chipped counters, and mismatched appliances.
This is the easiest and most important place to provide your best amenities. Stainless appliances look better. They’re more attractive and they bring in more money.
They also cost a little more, but your investment is worth it.
Stainless appliances look outstanding. This is the most logical option when you want the kitchen in your rental property to look modern, sleek, and trendy. It looks like luxury, and that’s why stainless appliances are almost universally recommended by kitchen designers.
By providing a stainless steel refrigerator, oven, dishwasher, and even washer and dryer, you’ll also protect your appliances against rust, fire, and heat. It’s incredibly durable and easy to maintain. There will be a lot less wear and tear, so even if you’re moving in new tenants every year, you won’t have to worry about replacing your appliances too frequently.
In addition to stainless appliances, you want them to be energy-efficient as well. This is an increasing concern for well-qualified residents who are looking for luxury living. They want the finer things that they can afford, but they also want to feel good about themselves and the way they live. Make sure you’re choosing models that have an Energy Star rating. Look for sustainable products and materials.
Granite counters are a good idea for a luxury kitchen as well. Granite is durable and it will hold up well in a high-traffic kitchen that gets a lot of use. Your tenants looking for luxury living are likely going to entertain friends and family members in their homes. They’ll need a kitchen space that is not only durable and functional, but aesthetically pleasing. Granite counters will provide that.
Granite counters won’t scratch easily and they’re resistant to heat. Like the stainless appliances, they’ll cost a little more, but the money you spend is going to come back to you in higher rental values and better tenant satisfaction.
Hardwood and Tile Flooring
When you decide to focus on luxury living and high-end amenities, you can forget the worn and dirty carpet.
New carpet may have its place in bedrooms, as long as it’s a high-end carpet grade with wool or nylon fibers. However, make sure it’s new carpet if you must use it; simply steam cleaning is not going to be enough. Tenants looking for luxury living will want everything new, including carpet and paint.
We like hard surface flooring better than carpet, especially when you’re looking for luxury. Skip the laminates and the vinyl stick-on surfaces. Invest in hardwood floors and ceramic tile.
Let’s make the case for hardwood floors as a luxury amenity in your Los Angeles rental home:
Wood floors are durable and last long. This means that your long-term costs will actually be lower. They’re easier to clean and less likely to be damaged by tenants. You’ll have fewer cleaning and repair costs from year to year. You can expect good floors to last for generations. This makes them cost-effective, even if you’re spending more upfront to install this amenity.
Wood floors make a great first impression on tenants. There’s a lot of elegance to the look and feel of a solid wood floor. It also provides warmth to the property, setting up a vibe that’s welcoming and inviting. Many tenants will feel like their space is bigger when hardwood floors are in place.
Luxury tenants will love that hardwood floors are easier for them to clean and maintain. They can be swept, steam-cleaned, or vacuumed. These floors are far more stain-resistant than carpet.
Hardwood floors are healthier, and tenants who want luxury living are looking for wellness. Unlike carpet, hardwood floors will not carry and trap dust, dirt, animal dander, pollen, particulate matter or other common allergens. Air quality is better in your home.
Tile floors are also a great idea. They’re luxurious and great for the environment. They have all the same benefits as those hardwood floors, but might look better in a space that longs to be lighter and brighter.
Smart Home Technology is a Luxury Amenity Tenants Want
Ease and convenience lead to luxury living, and tenants are looking for ways to get more out of their living space. Have you considered providing smart home technology in your Los Angeles rental home? It’s a great way to stay competitive, and it can also help you increase your rental values. Tenants will find this type of technology to be an attractive feature in a rental home.
But, there’s so much. What should you install and how important are these things to making your rental property more attractive to qualified tenants looking for luxury? These are some of the most common smart home devices found in rental properties like yours:
Smart locks. A keypad or a digital lockbox or even a code punched into an app on a phone allows you to grant access to tenants remotely. You can change the code between tenants or when you have a vendor showing up to complete work.
Video doorbells. These are more popular than ever, and they’re a great way to keep your rental property secure. Tenants will be able to see who is at the door and who is approaching the property. Exterior cameras like those on a doorbell can also help keep a home secure when it’s vacant. They can create recordings in case something happens and you need to know who was outside the property and when. This is more than a luxury amenity; it’s a resource for both owners and residents.
Smart lighting. Your tenants can set the lights in the property to timers or control them on their smartphones. Exterior lights can also be motion activated. This is good for security, and the interior lights will help tenants keep electricity costs down. It’s more intuitive and a greener way to keep the lights on in your rental home.
Voice-activated assistants. Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Siri are features that many tenants are already using. Including them in smart homes can help streamline and centralize all the other technology that may be available.
Smart thermostats. Like lighting, the smart thermostats you install can intuitively decide when to cool or heat a room, depending on its temperature and whether anyone is home. These can be programmed for time of day as well. It’s great for keeping energy costs down and conserving electricity.
This is just a collection of highlights. Smart home technology also includes vacuums and appliances that seem to think for themselves.
Luxury living is actually becoming more common. Make sure you have the amenities to make tenants feel like they’re getting the most value possible from their rental home. If you’d like some help deciding where to invest when it comes to amenities, please contact us at Bell Properties. We’d be happy to serve as your Los Angeles property management resource.
