<p>My H and I have an inherited property that we are getting ready to rent out. It’s completely furnished … but the furniture is very worn, old, stained, although it has been cleaned. To me it looks like dirty junk. Cheap, old, dirty, junk furniture. It is actually clean however, as a professional firm cleaned the house two winters ago after a furnace puff-back and it has not been lived in since. </p>
<p>He is loathe to junk the furniture (as in: toss into dumpster). We looked at it today, and do not want it for the second nest. He’s concerned that prospective tenants would want us to furnish the house – I think that most people expect to furnish a rental themselves. </p>
<p>This is not in a college town. It is commutable to NYC.</p>
<p>We will be stripping all the wallpaper and painting the entire house, replacing flooring in the foyer and kitchen, replacing some of the bathroom fixtures, and buffing and refinishing the hardwood floors. (This will only make the furniture look WORSE.)</p>
<p>i suggested that we move all the furniture into a storage room in the basement. Anyone that <em>wanted</em> the furniture would be welcome to it, but the house would be fresh and clean, vacant.</p>
<p>Most people renting houses own their own furniture. And I don’t know anyone who would want to have stained and worn out furniture in their house…stains that they didn’t create…and wear that they didn’t wear out. </p>
<p>Either put the furniture in the storage room or leave it on the curb and put an ad in the Craig’s list free to take away (maybe you won’t have to pay to take it away). Unless the house was in a place where transient people want a furnished place, it is unlikely that the stuff would add to the marketability of the property. </p>
<p>(I once read an anecdote in Reader’s Digest that when an old couch said “free” on it no one took it, but once the price changed to $10, it was taken off the curb…FWIW)</p>
<p>This gets my vote, and it’s exactly what the landlord of my son’s current apartment did. My son and his roommates furnished most of the empty, clean apartment with their own furniture, but they used several pieces of the landlord’s furniture (stored in the basement) to fill in a few empty spots. It’s worked out great for them.</p>
<p>It depends on what kind of landlord you want to be. DH and I rented a fully-furnished small house (with new Ikea junk but a Tempurpedic bed) while we were moving to Portland. We knew it would be a while before we could buy. It was a short-term lease–3 months before it went month-to-month–and we certainly paid extra for the convenience of having a fully furnished house on a short-term lease. Still, it was cheaper and nicer than a hotel.</p>
<p>cnp, do yourself a favor and carry the stuff to the curb. Do not put it in the basement, it just attracts mice and other undesirable elements, and at some later point you will end up carrying it out of the basement, probably in a worse state than it is now. Trust me, we own 75 rental units - only college kids want furniture, and even they can be pretty picky. Most of our basements have seen water or backed up sewage and some of the attics have had bats or squirrels. </p>
<p>Mice, cockroaches, wasps, bees, spiders - you don’t need the headaches, and chances are the stuff will never see use in your rental or your own home again. Carry it out or if there is anything at all usable give it to the salvation army. Then breath a sigh of relief and have a glass of wine :). </p>
<p>Most people furnish themselves when they rent.</p>
<p>I’d offer it for free on Craigslist . . . Also, some charities will pick up furniture for free. I had Habitat for Humanity pick up a table I no longer had room for / wanted.</p>
<p>When renting think about the kind of tenents you want. If you are supplying old stained furniture you are likely to get tenents that will take little care of the home.</p>
<p>Get rid of it. Esp. anything upholstered…smells live in fabric and come back even if it has been cleaned. If anyone smoked in the house, double the recommendation. Tables and such could be painted or refinished but why bother? Don’t you have enough to do already? Give the ‘hard goods’ to Goodwill; junk the rest.</p>
<p>Call your the local Goodwill or other local charity/church. They may know of people that are just starting out that may consider your junk their treasure. Send me a PM if the house is in Essex or Union county, as I can stear you to several agencies that would be grateful for used furniture.</p>
<p>As a personal representative who started with 14 rental houses or condos to get rid of, I highly recommend the Craigslist option. Definitely get rid of the stuff.</p>
<p>Give it away. It’s unlikely that you’ll make any money from selling furniture when you yourself admit is too ugly to allow someone to use for free, and I think that you might get some kind of tax benefit from that if you save the receipts of the donation.</p>
<p>We are currently renting out our house in another state, as it is not a good market for selling it. It is beautifully and currently furnished (our own stuff) and the top-notch furnishings and “showability” help to rent it quickly.</p>
<p>However, our excellent rental agent explained to us that the place would not command a higher rent furnished - for exactly the reason so many have said: More long-term renters want an unfurnished place, so we have to wait for someone to come along who wants it furnished for a long term. </p>
<p>I can’t even imagine what dated, tired, worn but “clean” furnishings would do in the way of attracting/discouraging potential tenants. You would not get the quality tenants, that is for sure.</p>
<p>That crappy furniture (let’s call a spade a spade) will simply hide the fact that you have freshened up and refurbished the place - making your investment of time and money a waste.</p>
<p>“Stained but clean”… I don’t think so.</p>
<p>Get rid of the stuff. Cart to curb; put on craigslist as free or for small $$.</p>
<p>I was going to suggest you go with the basement idea. But the other posters have convinced me otherwise.</p>
<p>“Freecycle” (need yahoo id) is a neat program for keeping salvageable items out of the landfill. Essentailly it is a Craigslist idea, with everything free. But if you have a lot of items, charity pickup may be best.</p>
<p>You could also call a women’s or homeless shelter. Or see if anyone in your location has suffered a fire. This may be more than you care to take on. The hardest part will be convincing your husband to let it all go. </p>
<p>I have already told my child that, when her dad and I are gone, that she has my full permission to get rid of anything she wants to without feeling an ounce of guilt. If it has no intrinsic value (save or sell the silver!) or she has no individual memories of the object that she cares to recall, dump it. I intend to get rid of a lot myself – this last move was a big help – but I seriously don’t want her to have to deal with my stuff after I’m gone.</p>
<p>Our local charities are willing to come to a home and collect big items such as furniture if it is in good condition. Sounds like the way to go is to rent empty, sell furnished. From what you say saving the poor quality furniture will not help you sell later so opt for the current wisdom of getting rid of the furniture and worry about an empty dwelling when the time comes to sell (by then you may have some discards to stage it with).</p>
<p>Definitely call a social service agency for referrals. (Not sure about what town the house is in, but ours has a part time social worker - she mostly deals with Sr Citizen issues, but she could make referrals). I would hesitate to put it on Craigs list or put it out at the curb, as it will likely end up in the hands of people that will fix it up to resell it. (Not a bad thing, but why not help someone who needs it at this time of year). </p>
<p>If you are anywhere near Morristown, a wonderful charity is the Market Street Mission (973-538-0427). They have a thrift store and will send a truck to pick up whatever you have. </p>
I hate to point out the obvious, but if someone is enterprising enough to pick up junk furniture and reupholster or refinish it to sell (lot of work, my aunt used to do this), then you are helping someone who needs it.</p>