Mini blinds and your tenants.

Question:  As a landlord, do you provide mini blinds in your rental homes or do you make the tenant install them?

I love mini blinds in my own home but loath them in rental homes. I have never understood how they can be damaged so badly by tenants!  There is no denying that mini blinds make a home look more finished and make tenants happy.  Installing cheap blinds makes sense given that they typically have to be replaced every time a new tenant moves in. However, the older they get, the more impossible they get to clean.

The nicer, more expensive wooden mini blinds seem to stand up better to tenant abuse. But, the expense is a consideration when you have to install a lot of them.  Some tenants do not like the look and remove them which is very frustrating.

Mini blinds are an amenity that many tenants expect but they can be expensive and typically must be replaced for each new tenant. Click To Tweet

 

Old Mini Blinds Case Study

I have a tenant who moved into a property that has old blinds that are in perfect condition.  Now the tenant is unhappy because she takes outstanding care of the house and the blinds won’t come clean. She is asking for new mini blinds and has offered to install them herself if we reimburse her.

 

I have three options.

Option one: Tell her no.  Why should I spend money to replace perfectly good mini blinds? If she wants new blinds, she can buy them herself.

Option two:  Spend the money to pay someone to replace the blinds. I want the tenant to be happy and this particular tenant is going to complain endlessly if I don’t replace them.  Professionally installing the mini blinds will ensure that they are installed properly and reduce the chances that the wood work will be damaged.

Option 3: Allow her to purchase the blinds and install them herself and allow her take the cost off the rent.  This makes the tenant happy, adds value to the rental home and is cheaper than paying someone to install them.

 

 

What Would You Do?

This is one of the many decisions that I face on a daily basis with my tenants.  I am inclined to allow her to just purchase them and give her credit on her rent.

What would you do?  I would love to hear your opinions!