Furnished or Unfurnished? What Borders Renters Are Actually Asking For

"Should I let my property furnished or unfurnished?" is one of the first decisions a Borders landlord has to make — and one of the most commonly asked questions in our inbox. Here's how to think about it practically.

The quick decision tree

1. Is your target tenant here for under 12 months? If yes, lean furnished. If no, lean unfurnished.
2. Is your property within 30 minutes' drive of the Center Parcs site? If yes, furnished is the clear commercial choice through 2028.
3. Is it a family house with 3+ bedrooms? If yes, unfurnished almost always wins — families have their own furniture.
4. Is it a 1-bed flat in a commuter town? Test both; this is the segment where preferences genuinely split.

The general rule (and the Borders twist)

Nationally, short-stay markets favour furnished, long-let markets favour unfurnished. The Borders is unusual because two very different demand streams operate simultaneously:

• Short-stay, furnished demand driven by the Center Parcs construction phase (2026–2029) and, to a smaller degree, by contractor work across the Borders on ongoing projects.
• Long-stay, unfurnished demand driven by the rural-relocation market — families and remote workers moving to the Borders for lifestyle reasons, usually arriving with a van full of furniture.

Both streams are real and both are growing. Choosing between them is less about which is "correct" and more about matching your specific property to the most plausible tenant.

Tax treatment differences

The tax picture is worth getting right. A brief overview:

• Replacement of domestic items relief: if you provide furniture and replace it, the cost of the like-for-like replacement is deductible. The cost of the original purchase isn't.
• Capital allowances: generally not available for furniture in a standard residential let (only in FHLs — furnished holiday lets — which is a different regime).
• Wear and tear: the 10% wear-and-tear allowance was abolished in 2016. Don't rely on old guidance that still mentions it.

This is not tax advice; speak to a specialist landlord accountant before committing to a particular route, especially if you're considering the FHL regime for short-term letting.

What you legally can't avoid

If you provide furniture or white goods, the following apply:

• Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations: all upholstered furniture must meet fire-resistance standards. Pass the match test; keep the labels.
• PAT testing: portable appliances you provide should be PAT tested annually. Not strictly mandatory in Scotland but strongly recommended — a clear defence if something goes wrong.
• Interlinked smoke/heat/CO alarms (mandatory in all Scottish homes since February 2022, regardless of furnished status).
• Valid EICR every 5 years covering the fixed installation; the EICR does not cover portable appliances.

These apply to any furnished residential let. The burden is modest but it's not zero.

What renters are actually searching for on this portal

The data below will be populated once we have a full quarter of filter-usage analytics for this financial year. Treat the placeholders as an indicator of structure, not value.

• Proportion of searches using the Furnished filter: TBD
• Proportion using Unfurnished filter: TBD
• Proportion using Part-furnished filter: TBD
• By town, how the split changes: TBD

Anecdotally, 2-bed flat searches in Hawick show a much higher proportion of Furnished filter use than 3-bed house searches in Kelso — which matches the decision tree above.

Halfway-house options

Part-furnished is a useful middle ground — and often the commercially best answer for a 2-bed flat that could go either way:

• White goods only: fridge/freezer, washing machine, sometimes dishwasher. Widens tenant pool without the cost or fire-safety overhead of soft furnishings.
• Fully furnished kitchen and bedrooms, unfurnished living spaces: gives a tenant the essentials (bed, wardrobe, kitchen equipment) but lets them style the living area themselves. Common in the Edinburgh flat market; underused in the Borders.

Recommendations by property type

• 1-bed flat, any Borders town: furnished or part-furnished. Test the market.
• 2-bed flat, Hawick/Selkirk: furnished, bills-included. The Center Parcs arithmetic is clear through 2028.
• 2-bed flat, other towns: part-furnished as the default.
• 3-bed house, any town: unfurnished. Families bring their own.
• Rural cottage: depends on target tenant. Short-let holiday market = furnished; long-term let = unfurnished.
• Room in shared house: furnished, every time.

When to switch

If your furnished let sits empty for 30 days with fewer than 5 enquiries, consider reducing the rent before unfurnishing. The cost of removing furniture, storage, and re-marketing usually outweighs the saving on voided rent. If unfurnished stock is sitting empty for 60+ days, furnishing it is often the right move.

List your property either way — you can toggle the furnished status at any time from your dashboard. Related reading: the Center Parcs 5-year demand forecast covers the short-stay side of the market.