Most properties for rent come furnished, although a landlord could spend a fortune fitting out a place only to discover prospective tenants want to move in their own furniture. Many corporate clients coming in from abroad assume they will be bringing their own belongings with them - and are happy to do so since someone else is generally picking up the tab for removal costs.
Unfurnished properties can also appeal to returning emigrants with a van-load of worldly chattels, or indeed to people caught in that time-warp between selling one house and buying another and wanting to avoid the added cost of putting furniture into storage. Mind you, it's not something the average landlord will want to do either.
When a property is let fully furnished, tenants are not allowed to bring in their own furniture and so crowd out a small bedroom. Amanda Davis, of Christies, says many of the people coming in from the continent want properties unfurnished - and there is also a demand for wooden floors. "It is more usual in many parts of the continent to rent property unfurnished and it is assumed the same practice applies here. They also ask for wooden floorboards and in the long term, they are often more manageable for the landlord who might otherwise have to change carpets in between tenancies."
Apartments are nearly always rented furnished and the unfurnished properties tend to lurk at the £2,500-plus end of the house market. But standards are high whether it's a one-bedroom apartment being rented out or a majestic pile.
"Everything has to be modern, clean and work efficiently," says Amanda Davis.
Whether a property is furnished or unfurnished has little impact on rents. David Lewis, of Sherry FitzGerald, says there's demand for both. "Apartments tend to be furnished and about one-third of houses are unfurnished and two-thirds furnished," he says. "There is a market for both, with the overseas people tending to bring in their own furniture. When people are renting a furnished property, they expect a good standard with all electrical appliances in good working order."
An unfurnished property generally includes carpets, curtains, light fittings, cooker, fridge, washing machine - and a lawnmower for the garden. A furnished property has all of the above, as well as a three-piece suite and table, chairs, beds, and wardrobes.
Fitting out a property doesn't come cheap. Kings and Queens Ltd are long established in the field and the very basic cost of equipping a three-bed semi starts at £5,495 for the furniture alone. This normally includes two double beds, a single bed, lockers, three-piece suite, coffee table and a kitchen table. An electrical package for the kitchen costs another £950, to include an oven and hob, dishwasher and fridge.
Landlords aren't generally expected to provide cutlery or crockery, bed linen or blankets, unless by prior arrangement.
In all cases, an inventory should be provided and agreed before the tenancy begins. Tenants at the upper end of the market will expect new mattresses or will want to bring their own.
Occasionally, a landlord will provide some service with the properties, such as a gardener. It's often in their own interests, after all, to ensure that growth is kept in check. Lisney currently has a detached mews on Lad Lane with a cleaner and gardener included in the monthly rent of £2,500.
Joan Fogarty, of Lisney, admits this is quite unusual, but says some landlords are anxious to keep service staff on - and to ensure their property is well maintained.
The emphasis is on "good, smart, contemporary" furniture. "Old stuff doesn't work in the modern homes," she says, "while in the older houses, a mix of old and new works better than all old."
SHE says there is little difference in terms of rents. For instance, a two-bedroom townhouse in Northbrook Lane, Ranelagh, can be let either furnished or unfurnished, and either way, the rent is about £1,200 a month. Landlords sometimes hold off buying furniture for a property according to Eithne Wall, of Hamilton Osborne King. Partially furnishing a place is another option, she says, since landlords are not that keen to put in furniture and then take it out again, thereby incurring costs in storage. The internal decor is crucial when letting a property. "Modern houses tend to be done up in creams and terracotta and light greens," she says, "but a period property is decorated in its own style. Standards are very high."
HOK have fully furnished apartments to let in Beaumont Hall, part of the Beaumont Woods development, near Beaumont Hospital. The interior design company Insitu Design Ltd are responsible for the decor and high-quality fit-out. The one-bedroom apartments have all been let, but two-bedroom units are available at £700 a month, twobedroom duplex units at £750 a month and three-bedroom duplexes at £850 a month.
Katherina Cahill, of the Home Locators agency, recommends that clients carry out extensive refurbishments in between tenancies. "The corporate clients who comes in for a four- or five-year stint bring their furniture lock, stock and barrel," she says. "Most of the unfurnished properties are at the higher end of the market." The agency has a large detached 4/5 bedroom property in the heart of Enniskerry, set on three-quarters of an acre. It is for rent at £2,500 a month - and is unfurnished.
Also out of town is a Ganley Walters unfurnished property in Lismore, Co Waterford. Castle Farm House is a late Georgian two-storey residence with five bedrooms, also set on three-quarters of an acre, and with stabling for 11 horses and a paddock. The rent here is £1,250 with a minimum one year's lease required.
