How to do a furnished suite?

[markbrad]

Hi Everybody,

I possibly have an opportunity to rent one of my units to a company. They have been putting up their employee(s) in a motel for the last couple of years. I was wondering about renting to them and what to include. I would furnish it with beds, sofa, tv, cable, internet, table/chairs and appliances. How much further do I go? Dishes? Towels? A cleaner once a week? Mow the lawn/shovel the walks? And how much of a premium should I charge?

Also what is the best way and place to go to buy all this stuff, and approx what would it cost?

Thanks in advance for your replies!

Mark

 

[albainstar]

i would go all the way as furnished units aimed at companies want the convinence of a hotel with less cost
so dishes, towels etc
cleaning is to both of your advantage - you can have some one go in and look around while cleaning adn you know the property is being maintained
you could also offer alundry service too - at a charge
depending on where you are renting you could take to a place that does it all for you and charge a premium

i would consider the cost of a hotel vs what you are offering when you are choosing a price, a price lower than a hotel rental is what the comapnies want, and this is not for normal renters so the price is much higher than un unfurnished unserviced unit

 

[darrellfluet]

Be careful with the furnished option. I thought it sounded like a great idea and had a decent lead on a company that needed space in Edmonton NE. After furnishing it (furniture, dishes, mirrors, pots and pans, etc) they did not rent the place. I did find a tenant who is willing to buy the furniture over time by paying an extra $amount per month, but I think I was lucky with that.
My advice would be - don`t spend top dollar furnishing the place, but don`t buy cheap stuff either. And most important - have the renter sign something that ensures they will actually rent the place after it is ready. You might want to get them to offer opinions on the furniture before you buy it, and maybe tell them the price could vary depending on how fancy they want the place to look.
I agree with the other response as far as what to include in the furnishings. Companies want a place where the person walks in, drops their bags and does not have to do anything else except cook their meals, if they even do that. You need art on the walls, some shelves with books and magazines, clocks, garbage cans, dishes, towels, soap, shower curtains, tea and coffee pots, etc. Check out the website of companies that do this all the time for a list of what they include. One such company is Imperial Suites out of Calgary. Link is below:

http://www.imperialsuites.ca/SampleInventory.aspx


Darrell

 

[GarthChapman]

Go to The Brick and ask for their Contractor Pricing - that will make a big difference. And then be prepared for a bigger management worload. Make sure that if you are getting into a long term large capital investment that the returns justify that investment - in other words analyze the ROI on the extra capital, depreciation and your time.

Hope that helps,

 

[markbrad]

Thanks for your input!

Mark

 

[michless]

QUOTE (markbrad @ Feb 28 2008, 07:35 PM) Hi Everybody,

I possibly have an opportunity to rent one of my units to a company. They have been putting up their employee(s) in a motel for the last couple of years. I was wondering about renting to them and what to include. I would furnish it with beds, sofa, tv, cable, internet, table/chairs and appliances. How much further do I go? Dishes? Towels? A cleaner once a week? Mow the lawn/shovel the walks? And how much of a premium should I charge?

Also what is the best way and place to go to buy all this stuff, and approx what would it cost?

Thanks in advance for your replies!

Mark
Hi Mark, were you able to get information that you required? Mostly for where to buy the stuff? Have a look at a new company I have started www.suddenstyle.com that would be able to help out. I`m in the process of fixing up my showroom and warehouse and would love to meet up with you to discuss.

Thanks... Michelle

 

[markbrad]

Thanks for the website. That deal never flew and i found "regular" tenants to fill my suite. At this stage I have nothing that I am looking to furnish. Will keep you in mind in the future.

Mark

 

[greg12]

The Brick regularly emails me deals like this $999/per room package deal http://driveit.clickspace.com/linkTo/1222626/1000540/4842435 . Their credit card also offers a "no payment for 15 months" which is really tempting. Is there anyone who has done this? I am especially interested for Fort Mcmurray because I get many prospective tenants looking for furnished suites.

 

[albainstar]

i am in fort mc- h
suites get much higher rent - a hotel is about 5k per month so you can charge about 3900 for a 2 bed unit adn still the company is ahead

the brick deals are great
I furnished a suite b4 for about 5k
all in - you just have to be willing to look around for deals
zellers, walmart etc are great you can get a dish set for 20 buck a pot set for 50, a cheap silverware set, ok towels for 9 each and they really only need a few.....2 sets of sheets per bed -1 to have on the bed while 1 is washing
coffee pot, tea towels
a mixing spoon, mixing bowls that double as seving bowls
a few cheap pics - ikea is great 4 that
a cheap living room and bed room set
a tv
dvd

the basics not what you would put in your home, just the min for them to be able to cook KD and watch some tv then go to bed.

 

[seanverret]

Has anyone done this in Grande Prairie? We`ve had a similar situation present itself to us and we`re wondering about pretty much all the same questions as markbrad asked. If anyone out there is doing this - could I see a copy of your lease? What are you charging? Does anyone know what the average hotel in GP charges by the week/month? (We will be doing our due diligence - but of course anyone with experience in this would be helpful) Also what does an average cleaning service in GP cost per week?

Thanks for your responses in advance