How much for curtains for a development?

I'm confused about how much to spend on curtains for townhouses we will be holding for rental. I can choose off the shelf curtains, but our taller than average windows limit our choices. Initial ballpark quote is going to be about $8k per townhouse (12 large curtained areas), fully installed, or I can spend about $4k at Spotlight (including rods) and pay for the rods to be installed and then iron and hang 48 curtains myself. We might lose two weeks of rent doing that.

I'm guessing say $500 for the installation of the rods for 48 curtains. Then I iron and hang them all, and if I measure wrongly, I get to fix it.

So, I'm coming around to having to spend more than I'd like to in order to get a high end look.

I'll trim down where I can, choose a cheaper fabric where I can get away with it (secondary bedrooms) and may look at blinds in secondary bedrooms, depending on pricing.

Another option is blinds online but there really isn't much of a saving when I compare like for like in size and quality, and I still take on the risk (and installation) myself. The bigger saving is with Spotlight, but I have to choose pinch pleat or eyelet, and don't think these are the right feel we are after. We also have a few tricky stack back issues that a bendable, bespoke track will solve, but not a rod.

I'm trying not to fall into the trap of installing curtains that I like, but I also don't want to put in eyelet curtains on rods, when I can have curtains made and installed on tracks that almost disappear. We would end up with a high end look, but of course, at double the price if I go with Spotlight. (I think I'm hoping someone to say "yes, get them made, they will look better".)

Thought these will be rented for years, I don't want to go "off the shelf" because it is cheap now, only to feel we need to replace them with more sleek curtaining when it comes time to sell, with all the patching and fixing that would mean. That's false economy.

Am I crazy to spend more for the bespoke curtains?

We've gone with higher quality timber floors to enable re-finishing if necessary, and we've doubled our budget on decorative laser cut privacy screens that are visible from everywhere rather than look into the back of horizontal slat privacy screens. All this helps make these a bit less "average" and hopefully bring in more rent (or allow for point of difference) when compared to average townhouses in the area.

To me these photos are chalk and cheese. Would love to hear other opinions.

 

Hmmmm... some food for thought. Windows are 4.3m wide in the living room so I'm not sure blinds would work.

Main bedroom window is 4m wide, and the Juliette is 1.8m wide. Honestly, I think blinds might be almost as costly as sheers for such large openings.

I've pondered leaving off sheers to the al fresco, and that might be what I do, and add them for sale down the track, but even in Brisbane, plain glass at night feels cold.

We have a meeting on site this week with the designer, builder and project manager. The look I want definitely is sheers, and whilst the large living area windows (and main bedroom) are north/north west, and cop afternoon sun, there are huge trees that will block some of that (not in our yard), plus the privacy screening means sheers might work without blinds due to not having the whole expanse of the windows being hit by the sun. We can add blinds if we need to later behind the sheers.

I'd like to save some money. But not at the expense of losing the classic feel we would get with S track sheers. So confusing.

 

Thanks all. I'll get quotes on blinds as well and see how I go. And I may leave off the alfresco and add that later if I need to.

 

Checked Blinds Online and I could do two of these on the main bedroom window for under $500.

Add a full height 2400 for the Juliette at $234 and for a total of $734 (plus fitting - not much more) compared to $1,614 for blockout curtains.

I may do "wow" curtains in the living room and alfresco (only three openings) and the rest could be blinds.

I'll look at the whole job and see what I'd save. This could work.

Still not what I'd really like, but I'm not living there, and I could always add luxurious curtains to each individual townhouse as and when we sell if we think that will bring a better sale price.

Thanks for the different ideas people.

 

Thanks Mel. I'll take a look.

 

I called No Bull Blinds (thanks @Mel Morgan) and they will come and quote once we are advanced enough to do so. They also said they can install, so I'm thinking I'll do blinds and add curtains if and when we sell the first of these (at least five years away).

I'd like the polished look, but realise we don't need to spend that sort of money at this stage.