If you’re renting a property, you’ll find there are more restrictions on what you can and can’t do. If you’re a homeowner, you have the power to do whatever you want whenever you want. As such, you’ll need to defer to the property owner much of the time if you want to make any changes. It’s unlikely you’ll be allowed to make big changes. For instance, you’re not going to be able to renovate the kitchen, put hardwood flooring in or relay the roof. But even if you could this will cost an awful lot of money. And being that you only rent the property you wouldn’t benefit from it.
You want to focus on the changes you can make that will also benefit you in the short-term as a tenant. Things like basic DIY ideas or improvements you can make. A lot of these you’ll need to get permission from the property owner before you can do. But they are small changes so there shouldn’t be any issue. Others you can just do on your own initiative. To get you started here’s a list of some of the changes you should be able to make in rental accommodation.
One of the easiest changes you could make in a rental property would be to the furniture. It might be old and worn, and you might decide you want to replace it. Unless it’s damaged, the landlord is not likely to want to replace it. But if you agree to foot the costs for the furniture they might become more agreeable. It depends on how important it is to you to have nice furniture. You could even add extra furniture from your own collection. It might even be the case that the property you’re renting is unfurnished. This is even better as it means you can add any furniture you want without worrying about the landlord removing theirs.
Painting is such a simple but effective way of improving the look and enjoyment of a property. Now, the owner might have plans to repaint anyway. But if you want to do it a bit earlier sit down and talk to them about it. Explain that you’re happy to do the painting yourself to make the property look nicer. Sort out some kind of remuneration with the owner. Make it clear that by repainting you’re saving them a job. And you’re also improving their property and thus their chances of selling. You shouldn’t need too much experience or practice to repaint a few walls inside the property. But make sure you have the right equipment, and that you protect other things in the room from paint.
You might feel like you’re a little unhappy with the bed you have in your room. Perhaps you want to change it. It might be too big or too small. You may find that the style or design of the bed is not comfortable for you. It could even be that your bed had broken for whatever reason. If the room wasn’t furnished when you moved in just go ahead and replace the bed right away. If there was already a bed in there, you might need to explain the situation. There are different types of bed you can use. You’ll want a double bed as it’s larger and thus more comfortable. You could go all out and go for a four poster bed, assuming it will fit. Or you could be more practical and go for a divan.
A useful and convenient change you could make is to put shelves up in the house or flat. It’s unlikely that the property will already have shelves or shelving units. Unless you’ve moved into a place where there are currently tenants. But you might want shelves up in your room to display books or movies, etc. Now you could always buy a shelving unit. But, if you’re short on space the best bet would be to attach shelves to the wall to maximize space. Of course, this will mean drilling into the walls to put up the shelves. So you might need to ask permission before you’re allowed to do this.
Most properties will have curtains already up. A lot of properties come with curtains attached when they’re bought by the owner. Curtains are a classic look for a property but get viewed as quite old-fashioned these days. If you’re in a Victorian house in Lewisham the home will no doubt be filled with curtains. But if you’re in, say, a modern Wimbledon rental property like an apartment it’s more likely there’ll be blinds. If you have curtains, you might want to think about switching to blinds. They’re more convenient, and they give the property a more modern, trendy look.
You’ll be able to come up with small ways to improve the garden too, even if you’re renting. You can mow the lawn and make sure the grass stays short. Trim any weeds, bushes or plants way back. You could even think about planting some flowers. All this will make the garden look much more attractive, and it will add to the appeal of the property. You could probably just do this on your own initiative. You might also want to think about putting in a small garden shed and maybe a compost bin to make things more eco-friendly. These are all things that can get removed if you have to move out.
If you want to get satellite TV like Sky in the property there shouldn’t be an issue with this, but you’ll need permission. Whoever installs the dish will need to make some wiring changes to the property so you’ll need to check with the homeowner. Make sure you do check before you make any changes. Otherwise, you could have to pay for the procedure to be reversed. If you speak to your landlord or landlady, there’s no reason they shouldn’t allow it. But don’t take it upon yourself to do it.