Preparing to Decorate a Short Term Rental

When it comes to decorating your STR, there are a myriad of options. Good ole Ikea standby, go luxury, crawling Facebook Marketplace. But Whatever option you go with, it needs to make sense for your market. Once you’ve determined your target market, you will need to create a goal and decide on a style for the space. Having a clear and concise vision for the space will keep you on track and on budget.

Before you decide on a decorating scheme, you need to know your target audience. Are you focused on families with children and pets, large groups of younger renters, multi-generational families, single couples, or solo travelers to name a few. Each of these groups will have different needs and wants, so knowing your target will help you avoid extra costs and determine the things you want to invest good money into.

One of our properties is marketed specifically towards families with children and pets. When it came time to decide on how to decorate this property, we had to keep in mind that all furniture had to stand up to a great deal of wear and tear and that decoration should be minimal. Pets are rough on items like duvet covers (their nails will pick), doors (scratching & jumping & nose prints), rugs (tracking in mud, scratching), breakables at low levels (no glass or ceramic decorations that a tail can knock over), and exterior landscape (holes get dug & yard cleanup has to happen). Kids are rough on all that pets are rough on and more! All rentals will have wear and tear, but when it came to allowing kids and pets, we needed to develop a strategy to minimize. This meant not spending huge amounts of money on luxury couches and dining room tables. We sourced as much as possible second hand, got many basics from Ikea, and purchased new only items that would receive minimal wear but provided enough impact to modernize the space. Our goal with this space was comfortable and clean.

Another property was marketed towards larger groups, so we focused on multi-generational families and larger child-free groups. In order to appeal to both groups, we had more new furniture that was in style, was still had bunk beds, and updated the space with new bathrooms, new kitchen, and new lighting fixtures. The goal for this space was upscale, but not luxury, new and clean. (You may start noticing a trend here that clean always makes the list) In order to achieve this, we focused on trendier main pieces, such as beds and couches, supplemented with classic pieces for the kids’ room and dining area. There was definitely a balance to be struck with trying to hit 2 target audiences. We needed items that would hold up to kids, but would still grab attention in the online photos.

When it comes to the goal of a space, clean is king. A space that is cluttered will not present as clean in pictures and will be difficult to keep clean in person. Items that are easy to clean will always take precedence over items that are trendy or a bit cheaper, they are worth the investment.

Setting your intention for the space, including market group and goal, will help you make the thousands of decisions that come with furnishing a space. It will help you set and keep to your budget. It will also create a more cohesive space that feels intentionally designed.

Now to the fun part, deciding on style. For many, this will be the easiest part of initial decision making process. For most STR, the location will play heavily into the style of the home. Rentals close to the beach will want to play up a coastal style. Rentals in the mountain will play to the rustic cabin aesthetic. Downtown city locals will lean towards modern and sleek.

The firsts of many decisions:

-Market group (families, couples, large groups, etc.)

-Goal (remember to include clean)

-Style (modern, coastal, etc.)

Once you’ve decided on your market group, set a goal for the space, and selected a design style, you will have set yourself up for success when it comes to decorating your short term rental. These three items will keep you on track to creating a unified space that is attractive, easy to clean and on budget.