With the summer season commencing in May, now is the time to start planning your home staging strategy to ensure your property is designed appropriately before your marketing campaign starts to kick in for the summer. 

Here are my top tips for a successful Home Stage:

1. Identify your ideal client

Now this might seem obvious but it would surprise you how many people try to cater for families when offering a tiny apartment, with a mezzanine bed and no living space! Know your market! Know your client! 

If you are looking to attract families, ensure that your property is adequately equipped with the essentials: cot, high chair and changing table. 

What are your client’s likes and dislikes? What are they looking to achieve when staying in a Holiday Rental in Italy? What kind of experience are they looking for? The more you can tap into the psyche of your ideal client, the easier it will be to tailor your property to their needs and generate repeat and recurring bookings. 

2. Don’t cram in too many beds

Now as much as the temptation to get as many sleeping spaces in your property to enhance your rental income may be, you may actually be damaging your holiday rental business in the long run. People do not want to feel on top of each other in a property, less is more. Create beautiful living spaces where you want to enjoy and relax in the property rather than feeling like you are all squashed in! 

3. A welcome basket is key

Imagine this. You are arriving into your holiday rental after your plane has been delayed for a few hours, you are arriving late and your holiday rental’s kitchen is empty. Nothing creates a better first impression than a welcome basket. It doesn’t need to be extravagant. But a little basket of water, a bottle of wine, pasta, tomatoes to make a sauce, olive oil, coffee, milk and basic breakfast essentials are key. 

You want your guests to feel looked after, that you are having their best interests at heart. Remember happy guests lead to excellent reviews and or repeat customers! 

4. A well equipped kitchen

Treat your guests to a beautifully equipped kitchen. It does not mean that your kitchen has to be exceptionally large, but more as to cater for the essentials. Pots, pans, plates, cutlery and wine glasses and let’s not forget a bottle opener for celebrating and entertaining guests whilst cooking up local gastronomic delights! 

5. Themes

Dress your property in a theme according to its location. Ideally if your property is by the beach, then opt for neutral tones. If your property is in the mountains, then opt for the traditional wooden like features throughout.

Don’t mix up the themes, it will only confuse your guests. 

6. Choosing of linens

When choosing bed linens, classical styles never go out of fashion. Fresh, soft and even lines are an excellent choice and always make sure your bed linen is matching! 

7. Services

Make sure that you provide the necessary services and items for an excellent stay; air-conditioning, heating, WIFI, TV, Cooker, kitchen facilities and excellent lighting.

8. Outdoor area

If your property has an outdoor space, make sure it is utilized to its maximum potential and create a beautiful space whether it be an outdoor dining area, so that your guests can dine alfresco under the stars, or some comfortable deck chairs so that they are able to watch the sunset from their terrace overlooking the sea.

Whatever your outdoor structure offers, make sure you are purchasing weather resistant furniture that is of a good quality! 

9. Photoshoot

Last but not least the photoshoot. Now how you present your property to the market, whether it be via the regular Holiday Rental portals such as Airbnb, or Booking, individually, your photos MUST take priority.

Could it be the stunning coastline which connects the Adriatic Coast with the Ionian Sea; hundreds of kilometres of crystal clear warm turquoise waters, the iconic trulli houses, the historical sea side towns with charming city centres, the Baroque style architecture and did I mention award winning wines and delectable gastronomy?

Sound convincing enough? I think so! 

I have been living on and off in Puglia for the past few years; my journey to this beautiful region started off in Monopoli. I was immediately enchanted by this beautiful coastal town for various reasons. The historical centre is a labyrinth of little alleyways and nooks, bustling with a variety of local restaurants, bars, coffee shops and boutiques. 

So what is the price of living in such a beautiful place? Not as much as you may think! Independent terraced properties in the historical centre, some with roof terraces offering uninterrupted sea views can start from €150,000 (to be restored). 

For those of you who wish to live on the outskirts of the city, villas and trulli in the countryside of Monopoli start from around €180,000.

Monopoli is a hugely popular tourist town, so many properties for sale have been designated in mind for the overseas investor looking to rent the property out a Holiday Rental and generate a seasonal passive income. 

Long term rentals in Monopoli are extremely difficult to come by. Due to the demand of holiday rentals, many landlords have opted against having long term tenants in favour of renting out their properties only in the summer months at a much higher rental premium.

However, if you are lucky, you can find a 1-2 bedroom apartment in the city centre from around €600 per month. 

The cost of dining out in Monopoli is relatively inexpensive. An aperitif in a local trendy bar can cost from €3 onwards and is usually accompanied by local produce such as “taralli” and olives, for which Puglia is famous for! 

Dining out in a local pizzeria for two could set you back approximately €20 and there is also some higher end restaurants which specialise in local seafood which has a more expensive price tag. 

Fruit and vegetables at the local markets are incredibly reasonable and every Tuesday there is a street market where you can buy a wide range of household items, clothing and local produce at excellent low cost prices.

So what about some of the other towns in Puglia?

Let us take a look at Ostuni, otherwise known as The White City. Ostuni is incredibly popular as a summer tourist destination, it is pretty quiet during the winter months. Ostuni is perched up high on the hill overlooking the coast, which is approximately 6km away. 

One bedroom apartments located in the historical centre which need restoration start from as low as €30,000 and can range up to €99,000 for a one bedroom restored apartment with roof terrace and sea view.

Countryside villas and trulli can range in prices starting from around €50,000 right up to the grand masseria (farmhouses) which go for well over €1,000,000.

For those of you who don’t mind getting your hands dirty with a renovation project there are plenty of opportunities to be had! 

Ostuni is also another tricky spot to find a long term rental due to the popularity of Holiday Rentals in the summer months, however a 2 bedroom rental property can set you back around €500-€600 per month.

If we take a visit further into Valle d’Itria, away from the coast, you will come across a town called Martina Franca, which is where I live. Martina Franca is a beautiful town with Baroque style architecture and an incredibly charming historical centre.

Property prices here are cheaper in comparison to Monopoli due to the fact you are at least a 30-minute drive to the coast.  One bedroom apartments in the historical centre start from around €30,000 (to be restored) and villas and trulli in the countryside also start from around the same price (also to be restored). 

Rents in Martina Franca are also cheaper and one can find a 2 bedroom spacious apartment for around €500 per month. 

Martina Franca is well known for its agricultural produce with meat being a popular choice. The city is full of butchers (macelleria) offering fine local meats all at extremely inexpensive prices. 

Local cantinas sell excellent wines for as little as €2 a litre. 

Puglia is famous for its olive oil, which has such a smooth texture and delicious taste, you could literally pour it over everything (and I do!).  There are many olive oil distributors in the region where you can purchase a 5 litre barrel of oil for as little as €20. 

If you are looking to move to Puglia, a car is definitely advisable as the transport links are rather non-existent, especially if you are living in a rural area. 

The one thing I love about my experience in Puglia is the community feel. The locals are welcoming and warm and always happy to help. 

It’s the Mediterranean lifestyle at its finest! 

In 2019 the holiday rentals industry exceeded $38B worldwide with more and more people opting to stay in a holiday home versus a traditional hotel.

But considering what we have gone through with the pandemic, the desire for holiday rentals has only increased. Holiday goers are preferring to stay in holiday homes with their families versus staying in hotels that are crowded environments requiring a more personalized touch and therefore the health risk is higher as opposed to staying in your own holiday home.

For this reason, some experts predict the short term rental industry is going to be one of the fastest growing sectors in the holiday rental industry.

So what does this mean for the prospective buyer looking to purchase real estate in Italy?

Forbes Magazine recently wrote that Italy is the #1 country worldwide to purchase a property that is under market value. You can read the article by clicking HERE. 

Right now we are in an extremely favourable buyers market. There are properties for sale in Italy at reduced prices in some of the most beautiful parts of the country. Think stone cottages in the rolling hills of Tuscany, seaside properties in Puglia, homes in historical hamlets in Umbria, all for a price tag less than €100,000.

These areas, and many more are areas in high demand for tourism in Italy. Therefore taking advantage of the buyers market, and putting the property on the holiday rental circuit, which can potentially generate you a long term passive income, is a win-win situation.

Buying an under market value property does not mean that you are buying a property that is completely in need of a full restoration, many properties on the market are completely habitable with some already being utilized as a Holiday Rental, generating an income. 

The opportunity to purchase your own piece of Italian history has never been more attractive and let’s face it, the attraction of Italy will never fade. Why? The answer is “cosi semplice” (so simple!)

Because it’s Italy of course!