Furnishing a mid-term rental (MTR) is no easy task. Especially if you are doing it yourself – by yourself – like I did. FOUR times! It’s definitely doable, and I recommend it for anyone looking to save some money during the furnishing process. Also, you don’t have to do this alone! Grab a buddy, partner, or spouse and make it a fun weekend project. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at what it actually entails.
Deliveries start to arrive on your porch
You spent hours painstakingly picking out the perfect pieces for each room of your mid-term rental (or you saved yourself all that time and pain and followed our MTR Furnishing List), and now all those boxes are starting to show up at your property. If you’re operating remotely like us, then you’ll want to hire a mover on Thumbtack to bring those boxes inside (and if you downloaded our MTR Starter Guide, you’ll already have your smart lock and doorbell camera installed to make this part a breeze).
Sorting and unpacking
There should already be a good number of packages inside the unit when you arrive, and more will likely be in transit. Start by taking inventory of what’s there and what’s still to come. If you can identify what’s in a particular box, I suggest moving it to the room where it will go once it’s assembled.
I like to start by unrolling any area rugs and let them flatten, but avoid setting any boxes on them or walking on them with shoes (I suggest bringing some crocs or flip flops to wear around the house while you work) as you’ll want to keep these as clean as possible. It’s also not a bad idea to keep some carpet cleaner on hand for when the inevitable scuff mark lands on your brand new rug.
Next, unpack all the memory foam mattresses to allow them to begin the inflation process. Most manufacturers say to let them sit for a couple days so they can expand to their full shape. So lay them out and let them do their thing while you work on the rest of the boxes.
Assembling
Time for the nitty-gritty part – assembling all those pieces of furniture. Start with one room at a time, and one box at a time so you don’t mix up any parts. Follow instructions carefully and do an inventory of parts before you start. There’s nothing worse than getting ¾ of the way finished only to find out you’re missing “part K.”
This is also where doing your upfront due diligence will pay off because you read reviews and prioritized furniture that was easy to assemble and not cheaply made. I had a few pieces that fell apart during assembly because they were made of saw dust instead of solid wood. I didn’t make those mistakes twice!
Clean Up
You’re going to accumulate an enormous amount of trash during the furnishing process. I recommend compiling it in one corner of a room so it’s easier to throw out at the end. Locate a dumpster that will allow you to dump large amounts of cardboard (this can be tricky since many are privately owned and don’t allow public trash) or find a recycling center where you can take the items. I’ve also just piled up boxes and left them on the curb but make sure to secure them so they don’t blow away and litter your street with trash (happened to me!). Neighbors will hate you for this.
Another alternative is to compile the boxes in the basement or backyard then call a junk removal service (again, use Thumbtack) to come pick it up. I did this once when I was pressed for time and couldn’t find a place to dump a living room’s worth of boxes.
Once the boxes and debris are out of the way do some light cleaning, vacuuming, and organizing to get the place photoshoot ready. Snap some pictures of your newly furnished unit and post those bad boys on your Furnished Finder listing.
Congratulations! You just made it through furnishing your first MTR. Now get it booked so you can get ready to do it all over again in your next unit!
