Curtains or Blinds in a new rental?

General Landlording & Rental Properties
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Curtains or Blinds in a new rental?

Mike Gordon
San Jose, CA · Member since 2020 · 42 posts · 25 votes

Do you put curtain rods or blinds in a new rental? I have another LTR coming on line soon and I think I’m going to install curtain rods and let the tenant buy or choose curtains.

I have blinds in other rentals and they get dirty and break often enough that they can be a headache.

Do you also add the curtains?

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Bruce WoodruffPro Member
Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
3y

Blinds. Yes they get dirty, but there are tools that attach to your vacuum that can clean them. And you'll probably get cheaper ones anyway, so if they get damaged, just replace them at the end of the lease.....

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  • John UnderwoodPro Member
    Investor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
    3y

    Blinds.

    3Reply
  • Bjorn AhlbladPro Member
    Investor · Shelton, WA · Member since 2017 · 6k+ posts · 6k+ votes
    3y

    Curtains-never, no idea what colors tenant wants. Just blinds.

    1Reply
  • Scott Mac
    Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    3y

    Not all renters can or want to afford curtains.

    In those cases they tend to hang blankets, big thick heavy ones with big rusty bent 16 penny nails pounded into the walls holding them up.

    What I am saying is not everyone is a decorator or has expendable money each paycheck for decorating when they move.

    You should think about if you renter base does or does not (need) want blinds.

    I can NOT pick which renters will, but from my knowledge they tend to be on the lower spectrum of the income scale.

    Or maybe it's just a Texas thing, and you won't find this happening in California.

    Just something to think about.

    Good Luck!

    0Reply
  • Bruce WoodruffPro Member
    Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
    3y

    Blinds. Yes they get dirty, but there are tools that attach to your vacuum that can clean them. And you'll probably get cheaper ones anyway, so if they get damaged, just replace them at the end of the lease.....

    4Reply
  • Amanda Janes
    Real Estate Broker · Nashville, TN · Member since 2022 · 45 posts · 34 votes
    3y

    @Mike Gordon - we recommend blinds always for ground level and then upper levels are only recommend needed for bathrooms or bedrooms that are in close proximity to other buildings.

    Installing curtain rods for windows you do not have blinds for is a great idea! This way the tenant does not do any drilling into the walls, potentially causing several drill holes - we all know they won’t get it right the first time! :)

    3Reply
  • Terrell Garren
    Rental Property Investor · Concord, NC · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    3y

    1" vinyl blinds from Home Depot. 

    2Reply
  • Bruce WoodruffPro Member
    Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
    3y
    Quote from @Amanda Janes:

    This way the tenant does not do any drilling into the walls, potentially causing several drill holes - we all know they won’t get it right the first time! :)

    The tenant will screw it up every time!
    0Reply
  • Callaway Pate
    Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2022 · 37 posts · 15 votes
    3y

    I'd say blinds. Tenant might put up tacky curtains but from a looks perspective you can't go wrong with standard vinyl blinds. Think it's best to make the decision for them in this case. 

    1Reply
  • Theresa HarrisPro Member
    Member since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes
    3y

    I prefer curtains, but most renters won't want to buy window coverings even at a thrift store.  Buy some blinds. If you want something more durable, get the thicker blinds (heavy plastic slats) not the cheap aluminum ones.

    1Reply
  • Richard F.
    Honolulu, HI · Member since 2008 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    3y
    Aloha,

    For average or lower rentals, we generally have a good medium quality curtain rod installed. The rods we use have a baton pull (no rope system to break), and roller bearings for the drape hangers to clip into. Properly and securely mounted, these will last for years and be trouble free. Tenants provide their own curtains and are free to take them when they leave.

    Vertical blinds are the worst...always blowing in the wind making noise and ultimately breaking and dropping slats due to their constant motion and cheap plastic parts. Also, people are not careful with them when opening and closing, creating additional stress when not properly operated. Miniblinds are better, but tenants NEVER clean them, and often they need to be discarded due to the time and effort to actually get them clean...only to have the string controls break.
    1Reply
  • Stanley Joe McFall
    Investor · Columbia Heights, MN · Member since 2017 · 4 posts · 1 vote
    3y

    Hey Mike,

    I have 8 rental units and I prefer blinds. I rarely have to replace them, they are reasonably priced, and do the trick of providing privacy. 

    I like your idea of just putting up rods and letting tenants put the actual curtains up but I am not sold that they would in the end.

    0Reply
  • Richard F.
    Honolulu, HI · Member since 2008 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    3y
    Quote from @Stanley Joe McFall:

    I like your idea of just putting up rods and letting tenants put the actual curtains up but I am not sold that they would in the end.

    You can also include a clause in your Rental Agreement limiting what can be used. It is common for MF properties to require all window coverings to be white or beige on the exterior facing side, specifically for better overall appearance.
    1Reply
  • Colleen F.Pro Member
    Investor · Narragansett, RI · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    3y

    @Mike Gordon it depends on the windows but in most cases blinds. I do have historic shutters on some windows that I will not remove. I also provide pressure Cafe rods and curtains for some unusual windows. I say I will take my curtains back if they find something they like better but they never do. I always provide curtains if it is a window without a blind. I require that they request install if they would like a curtain rod in addition to blinds and I have only had one request.

    0Reply
  • Todd Jones
    Member since 2023 · 243 posts · 199 votes
    3y

    From my experience, I say blinds. Here is why:

    - Blinds provide the benefit of letting light through while still providing privacy.

    - If you put up curtains, they may want blinds for the reason above. That means they’re drilling. Then they can mess up leaving the inner window with several holes. They may fit it anyway which will lead it to falling, tearing the wood more. If you later want to install some later, you will have a lot more work.

    Recommend getting darkening blinds in case the tenant works nights. Add a curtain rod as well in case they want a valance or actual sheer curtains. Mostly so they don’t try to install it themselves and leave you with patch work.

    Hope this helps!

    1Reply
  • Josh YoungPro Member
    Rental Property Investor / REALTOR® / Property Manager · Gilbert, AZ · Member since 2023 · 385 posts · 421 votes
    3y
    Quote from @Terrell Garren:

    1" vinyl blinds from Home Depot. 

    These are great, but I spring for the 2” vinyl blinds from Home Depot, they even cut them right in the store to the exact size you need! Highly recommend!
    [email protected]802-274-8121
    1Reply
  • Thomas NordbergPro Member
    Realtor · Tucson, AZ · Member since 2019 · 29 posts · 17 votes
    3y
    Quote from @Josh Young:
    Quote from @Terrell Garren:

    1" vinyl blinds from Home Depot. 

    These are great, but I spring for the 2” vinyl blinds from Home Depot, they even cut them right in the store to the exact size you need! Highly recommend!

     I agree, I have 2" blinds in most of my rentals, and although they usually are dirty after a tenant vacates, I rarely have to replace them. The box box brand ensures the new ones will match if / when I do

    1Reply
  • Patty C.
    Homeowner · CA · Member since 2014 · 125 posts · 33 votes
    3y

    For sliding glass doors, I've had curtains and vertical blinds. How they hold up is up to how conscientious and respectful the tenants are to the property (and how they care for their pets). Most of my tenants are respectful and conscientious so generally, either window coverings work. 

    That being said, I did have a tenant who broke some of the slates in all the blinds. If they were curtains, there is no doubt they would have been stained and torn (so I like the idea of having the tenants pay for the curtains or think about building the cost of buying curtains into the monthly rent.)  

    On another property, the owners had a dog that obviously brushed up against the sheers and curtains. They were very soiled when they moved out and all of them were replaced. In this situation, it would have been better to have vertical blinds because they can be knocked around and soiled, but they are easy to replace and generally cost less.

    I use aluminum or polycarbonate blinds for windows (that are not sliders) make the most sense if there is direct sun exposure. They are less prone to fading, getting "sunburned", and more durable.

    Do what is easiest for you to get up and running again when the tenants move out. 

    0Reply
  • Alex L.
    Rental Property Investor · Youngstown, OH · Member since 2023 · 128 posts · 124 votes
    3y

    I personally install cordless blinds, as well as a curtain rod (or at the very least, curtain rod brackets) so that tenants have the choice to hang curtains if they so choose... and also because that's one less **** up I have to fix. Back before I was "good" at installing curtain rod brackets or blinds, boy howdy did I leave a hot mess. So far, my method seems fine.

    1Reply
  • Nathan GesnerBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes
    3y

    I install metal 1" blinds from online stores, custom fit to the windows. The average home is less than $300 and will last for 3-5 years. If tenant abuses them, they pay for the replacement.

    If you don't put anything up, Tenants will hang blankets, sheets, football banners, political signs, or some other thing that looks like crap and they'll probably damage the walls.

    The DIY Landlord Book4.7247 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
    1Reply
  • Jim K.
    Handyman · Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2018 · 5k+ posts · 13k+ votes
    3y

    We install 1" vinyl blinds from Walmart and a department store called Roses, curtain rods, and at least a pair of sheer panels for every window. During the pandemic, out $5 curtain supplier ran out, and my wife ended up resorting to having to sew the sheers herself for one property. That's where we learned that you can buy sheer fabric by the yard so much cheaper than sewn curtains and it only takes a little time and work with a sewing machine to turns the fabric into correctly-sized sheer panels.

    Women really notice when they're apartment hunting which landlord did nothing for the windows and which provided basic window treatments. In addition, if you provide little in the way of window treatments, as has been indicated on this thread, people will always cover the windows with something, and nine times out of ten what they use really won't add to the perceived value of your property.

    2Reply
  • Jay ThomasPro Member
    Real Estate Agent · Houston, TX · Member since 2021 · 1k+ posts · 715 votes
    3y

    While I personally prefer curtains, it's unlikely that most renters will be willing to purchase window coverings. Therefore, it's advisable to invest in blinds instead.

    [email protected]832-889-5607
    1Reply
  • James Hamling
    Real Estate Broker · Minneapolis, MN · Member since 2011 · 5k+ posts · 6k+ votes
    3y

    @Mike Gordon I have found best success in having a good quality blind, and having a curtain rod, leaving curtains themself up to tenant's to provide and maintain. 

    Now before anyone want's to talk tenant damage to blinds, keep in mind, tenant damage is, well, tenant damage. This is an enforcement action is it not? Why we have security deposits? So it would be the tenant paying for such, correct? 

    I have also found the cheapest blinds not only look junky, but they damage very easily and a ton more then a decent quality blind. I rarely have damage to my decent blinds, and when I do it's 1 here or 2 there, never a whole home of them like with the junky aluminum ones. 

    Now if your doing sec8, that's a whole different story right, actually everything is different in that case so it's a thread of itself on how to "Bullet-Proof" a property for sec8 tenancy. And I mean "Bullet-Proof" in the Ford Diesel terminology, not as in actual bullets from guns. 

    0Reply
  • Dawn P.
    Rental Property Investor · Sumter, SC · Member since 2015 · 334 posts · 531 votes
    3y

    I put the 2 inch faux wood white plantation blinds up (from Lowes), nobody's managed to break, bend, or otherwise hurt them in the 7 years they've been up. It's a bit of an expense at first but better than someone tacking up their kid's Star Wars sheets across your window.

    2Reply
  • Bryan F.
    Member since 2020 · 38 posts · 22 votes
    3y

    2 inch white faux wood blinds from Home Depot. If you buy them 1/4 inch down in size (so 29.75 instead of 30) you can often get a discount and you generally can’t tell the small difference in size. Walmart curtain rods (or any other cheap rod) that can be replaced on each turn so the tenant doesn’t try to staple a bedsheet to the window, ormount their rod brackets directly to your freshly filled and painted window casing.

    0Reply
  • Henry T.
    Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    3y

    Blinds. With blinds you will have the least amount of damage after the perp leaves. Even if the blinds are toast, that's ok, main thing is you don't want them putting 16D nails thru your wood trim. Supply them with cheap blinds.

    1Reply
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