What would you do for a bathroom reno in an investment property?

Hi everyone,

I, as we all are, am a big fan of investing and also happen to sell tiles and bathroom products.

What tips do you guys have for bathroom renovations (or even, all renovations) for investment properties? Perhaps its a tip about never using a particular type of bath, or avoiding showers that are nice because tenants might literally unscrew them and steal them while replacing them with a cheap imitation.


This will be really useful so I may continue to add to the article I recently wrote regarding choosing the right products for an investment properties bathroom. Or perhaps it will help me out with future articles.

If you would like to critique my article that would also be really really helpful, as I have not had enough practice writing these! I am sure there is value in it for many of you as well

 

It's a bit of an infomercial for you biz so maybe you should pay Sim the $$ for business membership? But great info, thank you

 

Thanks for the feedback and I'm glad you thought the info was good! Its true that it might come off too commercial, should I tone that down in the article? Do not want to write an article that comes off salesy.

 

great info! esp for someone who does not know anything about reno

 

Thanks Samiam, glad you enjoyed it. I want to make a more in-depth guide in the future, as well as continuing to add to this.

 

Can I say.... I found it really hard to read the font you used.

Re: baths... Go for quality, even in a rental.

 

There are actually some great looking products in there, its just a shame you aren't a Full service firm eg handle quotes and installations as well.

 

1. White
2. White
3. White
4. Brand name toilet (keeping it cheap still, as seals etc can be replaced), no name Chinese ones that may look good soon enough will break but good luck funding a part
5. Cheap taps arnt always the better option
6. Ensure the exhaust fan is adequate for the bathroom to avoid mould and the need to prematurely paint the bathroom
7. Mirrors are cheap now. 1m x 1m mirror will cost $45 at Bunnings and glued to the wall.
8. If doing a full renovation having a recess in the shower for a soap holder and one at knee height for putting your foot on is useful. Sometimes tenants can snap the tile soap holder insert, creating the need to dig out and replace that tile.
9. If your hot water service is very old you may find that the crap in the tank will affect the showe head and over a month or so will start to block the water disbursement in the head.
10. Ensure vanity is sealed correctly to the wall.
11. Don't use wood skirts in the bathroom, especially mdf ones, they will swell in no time
12. The cost between generic tiles for a bathroom and half decent ones will only be $2-$300 difference. End result will be ten fold better result. Worth the extra investment.
13. I don't agree on other comments about bath tubs and spending good coin on one.
14. Everyone wants a bigger shower these days. 1200x1000 or 900x1100 etc. but smaller houses it means the bath will no longer fit. Do not remove the bath all together.
No one really uses baths. Tenants will use them to wash children in and use it as a dirty clothes basket. Plus for re sale of the house having a bath tub is seen favorably.. So you can get a small tub, yes fibreglass like most of them these days, but it will allow you to have a sexy looking shower while not loosing a tub. Win win. I think they are only a couple of $100 also.

I'm rambling now writing this One eye open in bed. Even if my comments arnt 100% spot on I hope they help stimulate conversation..
Cheers

 

How would I renovate a bathroom for a rental?

• White white white.
• Sturdy toilet. Some people break them. And the toilet should be... you guessed it... white.
• All choices made on the basis of sturdiness and easiness to clean. I do not like tiles, especially in the shower cubicle. I myself am too lazy to clean grout so it is reasonable to presume everyone else is too. Tenants are not going to be experts on cleaning. I had a tenant think he was doing the right thing cleaning shower tiles with pure bleach and leaving it on for ages. He was mortified to learn that was eroding the grouting and causing expense.
• I think that the glass panels in the shower cubicle are too pricey for a rental but am a big fan of the acrylic panels. No grout (tick). Cleanable with a sponge (tick). A little bit more hassle to install in the first place, but worth it.

 

If your selling the stuff, do what people buy the most of (if your going to sell), otherwise.....all white it is I guess.....hope they can find there way around in that blindingly bland bathroom (use a white frame and tapware etc as well... lol

In all honesty, if I was doing a bathroom, I would do in light or maybe white, but do borders etc, so it is also something I would like and the boss would like & potentially more people would like if we were to decide to sell.

Keep spare tiles, I usually keep some in corner of garage, or a rear shed, or in roof

 

My feedback on the article you linked is that it is too long, way too long. And quite repetitive, too. On the plus side, some parts are nicely 'chatty' and approachable.

I suggest you review it and check that each sentence contains a meaningful idea - if not, delete it.

Overall, however, I felt tricked. Your post advertised the article as suitable for investors, but most of the article was very general and not aimed at investors.

You need to be very careful not to trick your potential audience, as once a viewer loses confidence, you may never get them back.

 

What ever happened to showers in the bath?

 

Some people like showers, others baths. If you can do both in a glamorous way, great. I'd rate a good qulity bath over a shower. I like Maria's bathrooom.
But is there a Maria?
Way too long.
I like the eucalyptus oiI l thing coz I do it anyway.
Just repeating what's already been ssid - ppor different to ip.

 

This is awesome thank you . Its nice to learn even more from investors, may improve this article dramatically and future ones.

Love this, thank you.

Very valuable point and something I should point out, Thanks!!

Thank you for critical feedback, I need this the most. I will make an effort to cut it down, the hard part will be finding whats unnecessary and what is. Maybe I can break it into two parts?

In regards to being tricked, how can I better gear it towards investors. I need to provide as much value as possible rather than tricking, thank you for understanding that my first won't be the best

Yes, there is a Maria of course, its a photo from our "inspiration" section where we use customers' bathroom pics. What did you think?

 

I have not read your article but will do so after you rehash them

As a PM, I'd like bathrooms and toilets that are easy to maintain and replace. Often when exiting, grouts, showers, bath etc are the biggest argument points. I wish we can do away with tiles and have glass throughout! Also depending on the demographic, we can even remove bathtubs.

Another pet hate of mine is tiny units / apartments having a laundry tub and hand basin in combined bathroom/laundry. So we have a total of 5 sets of taps in one tiny cubicle! Might be good for you as you are selling them but I see this as a first world country problem. I actually saw in some USA magazines of a combined laundry/ basin. Maybe you can start importing them.

 

Quick question for everyone: How bad is the shower over bath thing?
We are likely renovating one of our properties in the next 8 weeks or so. Current bathroom looks amazingly like the attached photo. I want to get rid of the separate shower/bath arrangement to create a bit more room for the bench etc. I was thinking of putting in a relatively classy screen like the attached to go with it.
Thoughts/opinions? The property is an unfurnished long term rental, so we will be catering for small/young families (3x1 villa in Balcatta).
Apologies for the topic diversion, I didn't think that my query warranted a completely new thread.

 

Anyone...?

 

I do not like them, but heaps of places I see have them, some are worse than others.

If it was low and flat mainly inside and had a decent screen, that would not be too bad.

 

I installed one in 2009. it was good as it replaced the shower curtain.No one likes those bad boys any more.

I am redoing the said bathroom now properly, seperate shower and all.

 

Thanks dabbler. I must admit I generally loathe them myself, but we really do need to keep one in this property :/