BORING LIGHTS

A lot of decorative light fixtures now look great in photos. They’re affordable, modern, and usually more interesting than the plain fixtures we used to buy.

But for rental properties, I’d keep the lighting simple.

Use fixtures that take normal, easy-to-find bulbs.

Because the more elaborate the fixture, the higher the chance it uses a less common bulb, a special LED module, or some odd replacement part that becomes annoying to source later.

I learned this the hard way.

Before a tenant’s move-in, we had to replace one busted bulb. Simple job, right?

Not exactly.

We checked True Value, Ace Hardware, MC Home Depot, and Wilcon. None of the branches we visited had the G9 LED bulb we needed.

Eventually, we found Chinese suppliers on Shopee. But the cheap replacements did not last long. A few months later, we had the same problem again.

That is the problem with “nice” fixtures in rental units. They look good during turnover, but they can create unnecessary maintenance issues later.

For your own home, buy whatever design you like.

But for rentals, choose boring if boring means reliable.

Easy bulb. Easy replacement. Easy turnover.

Sometimes the best fixture is the one your caretaker can fix in five minutes.