Rental Upgrades During Tenant Changeover?

Question

I'm a low experience investor, I've had my rental since 2015.  My current tenant is moving out spring 2021.

I'm wondering, should I:

1) Take advantage of the move to perform upgrades?

2) Perform light changes? (i.e. carpets, paint?) Secondary question, is there a standard list of items investors follow for every tenant change over?

3) Leave it as is.

House details:

3bd 2br 1200 sq ft

Location: Middle GA

Cash flow after vacancy, prop management, cap ex: $300

New as of 2015: Kitchen (stainless, tile, laminate counter tops) / Flooring (Laminate) / Carpet / Windows / Doors / Paint

Ian Verzoni · Answer

@Anthony Wick @Adam Martin thanks for the responses I really appreciate it!  I think I'll look into paint and possibly new hard surface flooring.  I hate the laminate I have in there now, it is extremely glossy and you can easily see every single spec of lint and dust.

Anthony Wick · Answer

@Ian Verzoni. Well, it is hard for us to say, as we do not see what your unit looks like. As a matter of fact, you might not even know until the tenants actually move out. But, between tenants is a fantastic time to get in those upgrades, and to raise the rent! One month of vacancy can easily be made up for within a year with raised rents.

Some of the small things I like to improve at turnover or purchase, mostly at little cost if you do the work yourself....

Paint everywhere, new flooring if needed (LVP is great, but Home Depot free tear out and install of carpet is cheaper in the short term), new toilet seats and handle, new lighting in bathroom, new handles on all doors (I like brass nickel), new fixtures on sinks and showers, ceiling fans, change all outlet and light switch covers, cabinet hardware, replace appliances if needed, supply washer & dryer if appropriate, clean up and improve landscaping, new blinds, supply curtain rods so they don't destroy your drywall, paint the front door and or entryway.

It sounds like a lot of these things have already been taken care of about five years ago? So it might just be time to do touch-ups and clean up, and rent out asap at market rate rent.

Adam Martin · Answer

I would say you will be due for a new coat of paint at a minimum and possibly new flooring depending on how bad the carpet looks.  Tenants seem to prefer hard surfaces especially in high traffic areas so you may look into a lvp which should outlast carpet and looks better but I would only do this if needed otherwise wait.  I like to do a smaller upgrade at every turn to keep me from getting too far behind like changing out an appliance that looks like it’s on it’s last leg, replacing a banged up doors, or upgrading lighting but don’t overdo it.  Also if everything looks decent just post it and see if you get any feedback that something looks off but if you upgraded recently no need to upgrade just for the sake of it make sure it will improve rents or shorten vacancy.