Numerous things would have to change during the pandemic, including how vacation rental homes are furnished. Travelers' tastes for longer stays changed, resulting in modifications in guest requirements. 

With staycations and workcations on the increase, it's critical to consider which facilities might assist create the ideal home away from home for visitors booking a longer stay.

How much does furnishing a vacation rental cost?

To begin, let us examine the financial implications of your furnishing and design project. To create a more upscale vacation rental, you can spend between $25,000 and $100,000 on furnishings.

If you already own a few things and are willing to compromise for less fancy but still comfortable stuff, you may spend less than $10,000. Hostesses must remember that in addition to large expenditures, there is a lengthy list of minor goods that may rapidly add up. You'll also want to factor in yearly operational costs to maintain your property looking its best.

1. Identify the Guests You Wish to Invite

Finally, the furnishings of your house will be determined by the visitors you want to attract. For example, you might target the following sorts of travelers:

Families with little children

Snowbirds Workaholics Millennials Generation Z

Always keep your vacation rental home's intended demographic in mind while furnishing it. If your short-term rental is geared toward families, they will enjoy essentials such as plastic cutlery and plug covers. Millennials, on the other hand, will be less concerned with the silverware and more concerned with the Wi-Fi speed and other automated features.

2. Develop a checklist

Each room must be completely equipped. While you do not need to provide every conceivable cooking gadget found in the main house, your unit should be completely functioning.

Before making any purchases, it's a good idea to walk room by room and prepare a checklist for each space. This way, you'll avoid forgetting a vital item while also avoiding unneeded duplicates. Therefore, if you have any gently used furniture that is practically as good as new, you may also cross it off this list.

Even better, create two distinct checklists for essentials and extras. The fundamentals are the stuff you must have before renting out your vacation home. The extras are nice-to-have things like artwork or board games that you may add later with additional funding.

3. Decide on a design theme for your rental home.

Before purchasing any furniture, it is critical to choose a style. Fortunately, there are several free internet resources accessible! Inspiration may be found on Instagram, Pinterest, vacation rental blogs, and interior design studio websites.

Whatever your style, you should avoid allowing your preferences to dictate your purchasing decisions. It is preferable to choose a style most passengers will find attractive. However, make an effort to fit your style to your locality. For instance, rustic furnishings would be much more appropriate than a nautical motif if you had a mountain home.

Additionally, it is critical to keep it simple by avoiding excessive accessories. This minimizes the possibility of injury. Additionally, it simplifies the cleaning procedure, particularly during the COVID-19 epidemic. You may start with neutral hues and then add accent colors with items such as a colorful fruit dish.

4. Select furnishings for vacation rental properties that are durable.

One of the most frequent errors made by hosts when arranging their residences is to use furniture that suits their standards. When it comes to vacation rental home furnishings, they should be more than adequate.

Additionally, since your vacation rental property will see more traffic than a typical home, it is even more critical that everything is sturdy and simple to operate. The majority of renters are familiar with the fundamentals of Airbnb etiquette and will generally handle your home with the greatest care. However, the fact is that accidents still happen. Thus, to minimize damage, durable furniture makes more sense in the long term.

For instance, lacquered furniture might be difficult to maintain in excellent condition. Rather than that, you may purposefully produce weathered appearances that will improve with age and contribute to the character of your home.

5. Provide enough lighting

Hosts often ignore the importance of proper lighting. A well-designed lighting scheme may assist in creating the ideal mood for your holiday rental. Additionally, it may aid in the prevention of heinous accidents. Bear in mind that your visitors are unfamiliar with your property. As such, ensure that all areas of the home, including the living room, dining room, kitchen, bathrooms, hallways, entranceways, and outdoor areas, are adequately lit.

Additionally, keep in mind the importance of properly placed lighting. Table lights next to each of your beds are a must-have! Not only are they utilitarian objects, but they may also be attractive.

It is preferable to use energy-efficient lighting, such as LED lights. These will endure longer, and your visitors will appreciate your attempt to be environmentally conscious.

6. Establish a storage area

Even the most minimalist travelers will need storage space. After all, who enjoys living in a suitcase?

Your visitors will be appreciative of enough storage, particularly if you offer prolonged stays. Also, knowing that prolonged stays are a prominent trend, imaginative storage solutions are becoming much more crucial for ensuring the optimum guest experience.

From bedside tables featuring drawers to floating shelves, several solutions for any home (regardless of size) provide enough storage space. All you have to do is examine the storage options used by little residences.

7. Create a pleasant work environment

While your property should provide a gathering spot for visitors, you should also ensure that it offers an isolated space for guests to enjoy the peace and catch up on work. According to Jasper Ribbers, co-founder of STR Legends, more workers will book work-related short-term rentals in 2021. These guests will require high-speed Internet access and a comfortable work area.

This data was corroborated by Vrbo's research on emerging travel trends. According to Vrbo, two-thirds of travelers who mixed business and family vacations in 2017 would repeat the feat in 2021. As a result, having a pleasant work environment for your visitors will be useful.

8. Personalize your outside space (or balcony)

If you are lucky to provide an outdoor area or balcony, make sure that you offer a table and seating outside. Not only can you market it as a highlight, but it will also keep your inside furniture from being moved by visitors (only to forget it there overnight).

9. Incorporate minor details

Small details may make your vacation rental seem more like home. The following are some things you may use to create a memorable home-away-from-home experience:

• At the foot of the bed, a blanket

• A book on the coffee table,

• Art on the walls,

• Fresh flowers on the dining table,

• On a wooden floor, a rug,

• Hooks near a door for securing outerwear

• On the kitchen counter, a piece of paper and a pen

• A few popular children's toys and board games

• Water, food dishes for your precious four-legged pals (if your home allows pets), and a comprehensive welcome book.

10. Take into account the cost of employing a professional designer.

Hiring an interior designer may be a fantastic choice if you're strapped for time and need to have your ad published as quickly as possible. As noted before, you should choose a design that is comfortable for the majority of tourists. Who better to consult than a licensed interior designer with expertise in outfitting vacation rental properties?

Hiring a competent designer can save you time and transform your holiday home into something that will appeal to your target visitor. By maintaining an up-to-date appearance and providing increased comfort, you may attract more high-end visitors and improve your nightly fee.

Utilize Lodgable to position your company for success.

Software, such as Lodgable, is beneficial for ensuring the optimal guest experience while saving you time on common tasks such as communicating or submitting reviews. For example, you may utilize Lodgable to build a template message explaining how to use appliances, or you can use pre-built review templates to automate review send-outs.

Additionally, Lodgable can assist you with a variety of other common activities. These include the following:

• From a single interface, manage various accounts and listings on the leading vacation rental networks.

• Reservations are synchronized across several platforms to avoid the possibility of a duplicate booking.

• Connecting your Stripe account to Lodgable enables you to receive payments and create invoices.

• Using direct booking management tools to handle direct bookings

• Creating critical reports on your business's performance in a matter of minutes.