Renting or selling your Hamptons home may seem simple enough, right? There is a hug influx of people visiting for the summer season (or longer now as the pandemic continues) and it should be very simple to put your home on the market and find a tenant or buyer.
Just like any business, you want to make sure that you are appealing to your customer base and presenting a great product. In real estate, this is done with home staging. In The Hamptons, this means creating a luxe but comfortable coastal style with everything your guests need for an amazing summer. I truly believe this can be accomplished in any size home—with or without a pool.
Let’s take a look at my top tips for ensuring your home is set up to be a great rental:
declutter
This may be the most difficult step. It can be the most time consuming but it is also the most rewarding. The brain registers clutter as chaos so when a buyer or potential tenant enters your home, they immediately register the chaos and not the tranquil, beach vacation vibes they’re hoping for. Go through each room in your home (even the bathroom!) and get minimalist.
Picture a hotel room. What is on top of the dresser? How about the bathroom vanity? Usually, next to nothing. Avoid storing things on the floor in baskets or large appliances on your counters like mixers or blenders. It’s best to tuck these away or get rid of unnecessary items entirely.
If you’re renting your home, you can designate a closet in your house to keep your belongings. Just change out the lock to have a key and you can stow away all your beloved pieces until you move back in.
2. Depersonalize.
Tuck away important family heirlooms and remove family photos from bookcases, dressers and nightstands. Take down large family portraits or wedding photos hanging on the walls and replace with ocean photography or abstract artwork in ocean tones.
Depersonalizing also means taking an objective look at your furniture and decor pieces. You may love that dark leather lazy-boy that is super worn in, but it screams “very personal” and not luxury vacation home. Assess your color palate in each room as well as linens. What adjustments do you need to make? Is it time to swap that bold wallpaper for a simple, light colored paint? Do you need to refresh the beds with all white linens and a new comforter? Do you need to change out some artwork on the walls? Try to put aside your emotions and look at everything through your potential tenants eyes.
3. Choose Beach Decor Carefully
It is very easy to go from classy beach decor to tacky. Not every piece in your home needs to scream “WE’RE AT THE BEACH’’ There is a subtle art to coastal decor and the elegant, peaceful vibe comes from a less is more mentality.
Avoid too much signage that say cliche phrases like “Life is better at the beach” and “Toes in the sand, wine in my hand.” If you love signs, go for 1 or two signs that emphasis the town you’re in. For instance, a handmade wooden sign that says Sag Harbor if your house is in Sag.
A surfboard can be a great piece of decor if you have a huge blank wall and don’t know what to do with it. If your budget allows, Grain surfboards are literal pieces of art that bring in the warmth of wood.
Again, keep things as clean & minimal as possible. Opt for white or light wood furniture. Keep any linens, bedding or pillows in ocean tones (white, light neutrals, blues) without buying towels that actually have seashells or starfish on them.
4. Don’t forget the outside
A great rental does not need to have a pool, but it does need to have a comfortable outdoor space. Fire pits, grills, patio seating— these are all essentials in a summer home and are fairly simple to create even if you don’t have a patio. My top tip for outdoor spaces is to make sure there is ample lighting. The most charming way to do this is with garden lights. These make summer nights magical and will make the outdoors feel like bonus square footage.
5. The “extras”
If your home is bike-able to the closest beach, included 2 beach cruisers. If you’re around the corner from the bay, buy a paddle board or kayak. Do you have an empty basement? Add a ping-pong table. These “extras” elevate your rental at a minimal cost to you. Think of all the fun summer things you enjoy and do your best to ensure your guests have access to these as well.
