Type of Tenants & Location Consideration

If you are investing in a HMO then you may need to consider that the property is likely going to need to be part or fully furnished, in addition to being up to the right standard to compete with similar HMOs in the same locations.

Consider what kind of tenants you are looking for. You may have young professionals looking for something clean and comfortable, or you may have students, typically looking for some of better value to save their money. With most HMOs it is likely you will need a partly furnished property.

Partly Furnished - A property which supplies its tenants with basic furniture such as beds, tables, chairs, desks and some basic appliances such as a hoover and washing machine.

Fully Furnished - A fully furnished property is essentially the same as a holiday let in terms of what it is suppose to supply. So along with all the basic furniture you also supply the tenant with everything they need to survive short of their own clothes and food. So this would be cutlery, crookery, bedding and small appliances

I would recommend you stick with partly furnished for any HMO, as most tenants will be looking to stay a year or more and likely will bring many of their own small furnishings. And working in a property management company for 5 years myself items such as kitchenware goes missing, and bedding becomes unusable after the first tenant, and can actually turn potential tenants off as such items become stained.

General Décor

Regardless of your tenant, they will not be looking for something to their own taste. After all it will have multiple tenants all of which will have their own tastes, you are not running a holiday home. Keep the Décor simple and plain, white or magnolia walls, commercial grade paint to last longer (less scuffs) and avoid painting every year.

Carpets become stained but hard floors also become damaged. You can either opt for cheap hard laminate or vinyl roll flooring, or even a more commercial grade carpet. If you get carpet try and get something darker to hide stains from tenant to tenant.

Kitchen

Your tenants are likely to supply their own items such as microwave, kettle, toasters, cutlery, pots pans and crookery, however they are very unlikely to bring their own large appliances.

• Fridge/freezer - make sure to get a large fridge freezer as each tenant in a HMO is likely going to want their own food.
• Washing machine
• Dish Washer - this is optional, and probably better for landlords aiming for working professionals rather than students. Also consider how the bills are paid beforehand. If you are supplying bills on the property then maybe avoid this item as you will be paying for it to run.
• Tumble Dryer - only if 1. there is space and 2. the tenants are paying their own bills. Otherwise you will spend far to much having this run, and tenants will take advantage of this luxury item

As for the kitchen cupboards, you will have to access the condition of it to decide if you should have a new kitchen. In a lot of cases you may just get away with new doors and a new kitchen top. Again determine if you are going to have students or young professionals, which will determine how much you spend on making the kitchen look nice. In both cases dark tops will be better..

Don't spend to much on a new kitchen if you need to, MDF tops and basic cupboards are fine for a HMO.

Lounge

Some HMO tenants remain in their rooms and rarely use the lounge, however in most cases it is likely to be a very social area. Think about popular shows on TV like Friends, New Girl or How I met Your Mother, these apartments are all HMO type properties.

• Television - optional but could help you get tenants quicker. IF you do supply one ensure its on a sturdy stand or even firmly attached to the wall to avoid it getting damaged.
• Sofas - If you have students in your HMO then you could get away with clean second-hand sofas. If you do replace them don't' spend too much again as they will be the centre piece of a very social area, therefore spills and heavy use will wear them down fast.
• Digital TV and Internet - This is a luxury extra but can go a long way in getting you a tenants and quicker. You can quite easily add the cost of this to the rental price between all your tenants to.
• Coffee Table - If you have students then don't bother with a coffee table, it will more likely be used as a pong table.  But if you have young professionals then this could be a quick cheap but effective addition.

Bedrooms

As you will have either working professionals or students you will need desks in all rooms. this will be along side the standard furnishings of a room...

• Bed - Always a double bed as long as it fits. Don't get framed beds try and get Divan beds. These are beds where the base is a single or 2 platforms (often with extra storage) These will not break as easy and should last much longer than any framed bed will.
• Wardrobe 
• Bed side table 
• Chest of draws
• Curtains or blinds - if you don't supply these tenants are likely to start drilling their own holes in the wall to install.  Curtains may be better as they last longer,

Bathrooms

Other than your standard 3 piece suite the only other thing you may need is a small cupboard above the sink. If you are installing a new bathroom then opt for a shower rather than a bath. If it doesn't have a shower then have one installed, even if its just a tap fitted one in the bath tub.

Garden

Try not to spend money on garden furniture. A garden is something only home owners or long term family tenants really take care of. The only thing you will need to supply is a washing line. Any thing else will be left to the elements and the weeds and slowly destroyed. It may be worth sending someone round every so often to maintain any vegetation.

If you can you are better of paving over the entire garden and leaving nothing left to grow. 

Additional Items

There are some other additional items that you will wish to supply as tenants will not bring them, and may be essential for property maintenance...

• Hoover - get a half decent hoover, not a £30 one. From experience they break constantly. You may even consider a DIY hoover as student tenants seem to hoover up anything thinking its ok.
• Mop and Bucket
• Toilet Brush
• Dust Pan And Brush
• Broom
• Bins

All these items are for basic maintenance and cleanliness. Probably more essential for student HMOs, as you will need to encourage them to try and clean the property where possible. Make student tenants aware that you will be inspecting the property regularly as part of your tenancy agreement to ensure these items are used.

Cost

Set aside around 10% of your yearly rental income to ensuring all these items and furnishings are available for every new tenant on an annual basis.