Budget, middle or luxury market?

Secondhand eclectic furniture, Target, Ikea, basic Sears, upscale consignment, new luxury furnishings or something else?

Do you have a budget range in mind for furniture plus kitchen equipment, sheets, etc. ? Appliances?

Often the sellers of a vacation house are willing to sell the furnishings, too. Is that an option?

Yes- thank you for asking some clarifying questions! I would say higher end budget and into the middle market. Since it's an island- getting all the furniture over there is going to be a hassle with the ferry etc. so was thinking of trying to focus on 1 or 2 stores that would deliver much of the big stuff- otherwise secondhand furnishings would be great option.

Appliances are included in the sale of the house. The sellers are taking all their furniture. So, we need to furnish at least 4 bedrooms, the 5th room could be an office or another small bedroom, plus the living room and then kitchen table and bar stools + some patio furniture for outside.

Just remember, no matter what or where, they're going to treat it like a hotel room. That's why I never rented out my beach house. Assuming you will, I wouldn't go higher end, more basic, attractive things.

Right, would be hard to justify splurging on anything too nice as it would be very disappointing if it gets ruined. For the couches- do you think I should get something along the lines of sunbrella fabric? Or is there another fabric that is durable yet comfy?

Sunbrella is great, both inside and outside . I have a retractable awning , etc. outdoors, lifetime warranty re fading, btw, have you considered keeping your master locked & not for use??? That's what one of my friends do with their beach rental , had a lock installed, rest of place open for renters' use. They don't want strangers sleeping in their bed & using their master bath (ugh).

I hadn't thought of locking the master but it's a great idea. Actually, the attic is a walk up and could make for a beautiful master suite down the road and would be very easy to lock that portion of the house off.

well, hmmm when people rent a higher end home they do expect to get a master bedroom with ensuite bath as part of it (i sure did!) but locking a 'normal bedroom' to store your own breakable items in isnt crazy and honestly having fewer bedrooms available might save a lot of damage from huge crews of people renting, the more people there are in the house the less they feel individually responsible to not wreck the place. you could store the master bedroom bedding you'd like for your own use in there.

we rented the same house in nantucket for several years, and it had a locked bedroom.(unfortunately it also had a fax machine in there that made all sorts of noises in the middle of the night, that was pretty enraging...) it also had a locked garage with a car but that wasnt part of the rental. i thought that was so over the top, having an extra car at your vacation home. then we bought a vacation home of our own in RI and by golly if we dont have a mini cooper convertible kept there to go to the beach with... ah well, joys.

when we bought our vacation house we bought all of our furniture at once at Jordan's, this is in new england. they charge a flat rate for delivery so wow did we get our money's worth it was $99 at the time for an entire truckload of furniture.

i recommend either slip covered couches or else at least with an 'organic' type of pattern (as opposed to chevron or stripe) as it hides wear from a lot of dirty feet.

we decided not to rent our home but do let our married children use it... but they have to sleep in their old childhood rooms when they do, LOL.

Have done this once before, albeit in a mountain location that was 4-season busy. Snow sports/skiing in the winter, hiking/golf/swimming and fishing in the other months. Because of that, we chose very easy care fabrics- leather for the main sofas, nubby, neutral fabrics on the chairs. I suggest that you go for a high end-look with furniture that is fairly inexpensive- not rickety, but this stuff takes a beating, if the rental is "hopping" with traffic.

Something to consider, that we found valuable: A locked storage closet with personal gear of ours. Things that we'd want when we were there, but wouldn't necessarily want to share with others.

EDIT: Your attic sounds perfect for that.

Lots of great advice above. In addition, I would suggest getting good quality bedding & towels that are all colour co-ordinated. Quality sets the tone and will hold up better with laundering and if all the same colour families, it's faster to make up the beds and switch stuff around as it wears out. Duvets with washable covers vs bed in a bag or bedspreads that have been around the block a time or two. Go with the most flexible arrangements around beds (i.e. 2 twins can be separated or combined into a K size) to accommodate a range of guests. Luggage racks so suitcases don't end up on the bed..

And price point is key. If you are too cheap you will get inundated with party types, too expensive and people will fuss and complain about everything. You want to strike the balance where guests are amazed at the great place they are getting and take good care of your home.

Re the expectation of master suite: we go to a very high end rental in Kauai every year, it doesn't bother me in the least that the master is off limits, I go there for other reasons. I have a master suite @ my home in Laguna Beach.

Thank you for all the great tips! We plan to keep the master bedroom available as part of the rental. I think down the road, the attic could be converted for just our use. We definitely will keep 1 or 2 of the closets locked and stocked with things just for our use. Jordans is a great tip- we are in NE too and I see that it is part of their delivery area. I love the idea of luggage racks too!

Coffee maker (with filters & some coffee to start with) or Keurig with some K cups to start.

Think comfort and convenience. Remember, people on vacation want to relax, stretch out, enjoy! As a frequent vacation property renter, here's my list:

Definitely good mattresses, (and bedding) and comfortable sofas and chairs. Some comfy throws and extra blankets are always welcome. A collection of games, books, a deck of cards and jigsaw puzzles is a nice touch. A decent TV for the kids with CLEAR instructions on how to operate it. Wi-fi. Good lighting in every room.

Second the well-stocked kitchen suggestion -- decent cookware, serveware, dinnerware, utensils. If you don't cook much, ask a friend who does to help you stock the kitchen. Provide some pantry basics -- salt, pepper, sugar, coffee filters, paper towels, tp, etc. Maybe some olive oil and a few herbs. Don't forget a good corkscrew!

Basic cleaning supplies. A washer and dryer is fantastic. A supply of firewood is a real luxury, especially during the winter. Inviting outdoor spaces with decent seating is a real plus.

Last but not least (a pet peeve) is to leave some empty drawers and closets for your guests. There's nothing worse than trying to get comfortable in a vacation rental where every available space is full of the owner's personal property. Feels weird.

Congrats on the new house. May you and your family have many happy times there together.

Hmm, well I have rented numerous beach houses at the mid to upper price point.

I like upmarket stuff and a bit of character. I have rented places with daggy furniture and décor but only if they had an outstanding view.

Does your place have an outstanding view? If not I think you need to put a big effort into furnishing your place well. Look at the competition in your area.

I don't like to stay in a place that appears like a hotel room. Mid range or upper furniture is great but throw in a few character pieces, e.g. antiques or retro.

A bunch of flowers and a bottle of wine on arrival can be a nice touch.

I like to see quality books and magazines left for guests to read, a sound system, tv, washer, drier. If you have a fireplace leave plenty of wood.

If you want a good return you don't want your place to look like you dumped your old wanted odds and ends there. e.g. a leather chesterfield looks out of place ( I went to one beach house with a brown leather chesterfield and a purpole fake suede couch!!). Certainly would not have stayed there but for the saving grace of fantastic views directly opposite the beach

A few beachy things are good but make sure they are not tacky mass produced stuff. Personally I like the odd large glass of seaSHELLS.. I have a lampshade covered in seashells and an old wicker fishing basket hanging on a hook. I have an old wooden printers tray and someone has put a seashell in each compartment and I have it hanging on a wall. These items are all inexpensive things you can do yourself,which are in keeping with the beach theme.

I was in an opportunity shop today and someone had donated old surfing competition posters which had been attractively framed and certainly 2 looked great and were worthy of being on someones beach house wall.

I appreciate going somewhere where the kitchen and laundry cupboards are well stocked. e.g. matches ,serviettes, fire starters, plenty of plates, pots, a torch, batteries, cleaning materials ( if you want guests to be clean, facilitate it)

I appreciate quality matching plates. You can pick up quality cups and plates very cheaply at yard sales or auction rooms or on ebay. if the guests smash a few just get over it and buy some more, it wont break the bank. I notice these things and expect them if I am paying a lot to stay somewhere.

Don't rent your place to teens or young people in their 20s and you should be ok

I have rented quite a few vacation rentals and generally agree with what everyone said (particularly about mattresses and towels. I would like to put in another plug for slip covered furniture. I have been in a few where the furniture was rough, so much so that I hesitated to sit on it sans towels. It just seemed like being able to wash or replace slip covers would have been a blessing.

A few yrs ago we were faced with the same thing when we purchased our beach condo, the thought of buying all the items u need can get overwhelming, but for us we found Craig's list to be a big help. The thing is u really don't want to purchase expensive furniture because renters can be brutal with ur things. U might have to really check out the items that r for sale but u really can find some great deals out there. Esp when some people need to get rid of things fast because of a move. Good luck

If you are interested in renting to families, a washer/dryer pair is a must in beach areas. Don't buy breakable knickknacks for decoration, don't use breakable wall decor, no parent wants to spend time putting that stuff away or paying for it when it gets broken. Good white bleachable towels and linens are appropriate for middle-high rentals. Include a half dozen terrycloth kitchen towels and a half dozen "garage towels" or simply put a paper towel holder in the garage as well as the kitchen. Comforter covers can be easily washed by the cleaning service, you'll need two sets. Avoid decorative pillows for beds; they just get thrown on the floor. Two luggage racks per bedroom. Two electrical power strips per bedroom.

Also, know your market. For example, even very high-end rentals in the area I go on the Jersey shore expect you to bring your own sheets and towels, so I was surprised that so many expected to have those (and "high quality" versions!) provided. If that's the norm in your area, definitely do it, but if it's not, don't make your job more difficult than it needs to be.

in new england its the norm to provide sheets, towels, and beach towels. it was also the norm (til 2000 in Nantucket, anyway, when we stopped being renters) to expect the renter to throw the sheets and towels into the wash as you got ready to leave, and the cleaning crew put them into the dryer and remade the beds.

We did this for a while. We found it quite challenging. A lot of work, and in the end cost more than the payback. We decided we were better off vacationing in great places every other year instead of the work, stress, and other downsides. I hope you can have a better experience, but if you haven't closed the deal think hard about your tolerance level for damage and careless handling of your property and your privacy. Good luck. Go sturdy on furnishings because they might last better.

As an aside, I really appreciate the rentals that have sheets and towels. I am generally flying in, so bringing a ton of linens is not super practical for me.

i know Flo, its a hard task to deal with the public. friends have a home that they only rent to friends/friends of friends, you get a lot more reliable behavior that way but things still happen, floors get mysteriously scratched. when we bought our home we bought small enough to not need the rental income.

In Australia, renters have to sign a contract re breakages/damage and give their credit card and even pay a bond upfront. You break it you buy it. I would think that should stop people from trashing your place. Some rentals request the age , names and drivers licences of attendees too.

Re: the linens and towels- we have been renting in this area for many years and the norm is the tenants bring their own. There are linen and towel services the renters can utilize if they do not want to bring their own.

We will also have a rental agreement to address potential damages to the house + receive security deposit with each rental. I know it's a gamble dealing with general public. I believe the vast majority of people will try to be respectful of the property but I am also not going to sweat the occasional damage that might happen as I view it as a cost of doing business.

I definitely agree though that good mattresses and comfortable couch can really make the difference in the home. Anyone have a recommendation for a moderately price couch brand/line that is durable and comfortable?