Somerled Designs Review: Is Somerled Airbnb Design Worth It?
Somerled Designs is gaining increasing popularity in the short-term rental design and furnishing industry, but is it really worth it for Airbnb investors and hosts? The short answer is: Not necessarily!
This Somerled Designs review will take a detailed look at the company history and structure, the Airbnb design services that it delivers, the step-by-step process of working with them, the available markets, and the pricing level. In addition, we’ll have a look at what customers think about the company in their reviews and whether they consider it worth it. Finally, we’ll conclude with the top 3 alternatives to Somerled Designs for owners with different portfolios and needs.
Looking for pre-made Airbnb designs or end-to-end design and furnishing services tailored to your space, guest persona, and budget? Check out Showplace. With their services, hosts experience an average revenue boost of 22%, while saving 75 hours and $10,000+ off retail prices. Try the free Airbnb furnishing cost estimator to see what total cost you can expect for your property.
Somerled Designs Overview
Somerled Designs is an interior design and furnishing company that specializes in short-term rentals. Bri West and Jordan Patchell McDonough launched Somerled Designs in 2022. Although the company has its headquarters in Highland, UT, it operates nationwide.
The mission of Somerled Designs is to provide Airbnb design services that make vacation rentals stand out in the competitive STR market, get more bookings, and earn higher revenue to boost ROI. Their concept of designing cash-flowing Airbnbs is based on combining market research with customized strategies.
The work of Somerled Designs rests on three pillars:
Valuable research: Developing strategies that increase performance based on target audience analysis and data study
Strategy: Determining the right Airbnb amenities, guest count, and design concept on the basis of research
Superior designs: Standing out from the competition with one-of-a-kind designs
To date, the team has designed more than 500 Airbnb properties and installed over 100 short-term rentals. This covers all 50 US states. However, the company does not provide an estimate of the average boost in performance that hosts achieve as a result of the professional Airbnb interior design and furnishing services.
Somerled Designs Airbnb Design and Furnishing Services
Somerled Designs offers two different service packages to cover the needs of diverse hosts: 1) Design and project management and 2) Virtual design.
So, let’s take a look at what exactly goes into each of these two options:
Somerled Designs Design and Project Management Services
The design and project management package is equivalent to full-service design and furnishing including painting, installing wallpaper, and adding light fixtures. This end-to-end service could be a good fit for the needs of remote investors, hosts who have a full-time job, and those who have zero experience in interior design.
With this package, Airbnb hosts receive the following deliverables:
Document with research summary and design strategy
Design boards for all interior and exterior spaces
Floor maps for all spaces within the property
Comprehensive furniture and decor shopping list with links to the items
Cosmetic upgrades including paint, wallpaper, and light fixtures
Placement of orders
Coordination of delivery
Management of contractors
Management of furniture installation
Decoration
Property staging
Professional photoshoot directing
In other words, Somerled Designs handles all aspects of the designing and furnishing process to provide vacation rental investors with a hands-off experience.
Somerled Designs Virtual Design Services
Meanwhile, the virtual design package provides STR owners with detailed design boards and floor maps as well as an installation guide, but hosts remain responsible for purchasing the furniture, organizing delivery, and setting up their property. This service could work out for DIY hosts who invest close to home, who want to be personally involved in the furnishing of their Airbnb, and who don’t mind doing some legwork.
The deliverables included in this package comprise:
Document with research summary and design strategy
Design boards for all interior and exterior spaces
Floor maps for all spaces within the property
Comprehensive furniture and decor shopping list with links to the items
Cosmetic upgrades including paint, wallpaper, and light fixtures
Staging tips and recommendations
5-week installation guide
These remote services give Airbnb hosts more control over the furnishing of their rental and help them save on the total cost of the project.
Somerled Designs Airbnb Design Process
The process of designing and furnishing an Airbnb rental with Somerled Designs is different for the two types of services that the company provides.
Somerled Designs Design and Project Management Process
When hiring Somerled Designs for comprehensive services, hosts can expect to go through the following steps:
Market research and strategy: Somerled Designs researches the local Airbnb market to collect data to inform the design vision. The market study focuses on the typical travelers, the target guests, the best guest count, and the top amenities.
Kickoff call: The Somerled Designs team holds a meeting with the owner to present the research findings and the design idea that will drive the best results. The budget is also discussed.
Design period: Somerled Designs selects the necessary designs and furniture items for the pre-approved strategy. This takes 2 weeks.
Design handoff: The owner is presented with design boards and floor maps.
Ordering furniture: The company oversees the ordering of the required items and tracks delivery.
Managing contractors: The team finds, hires, and manages the contractors needed to complete the installation.
Furniture installation: Somerled Designs spends a week on site to manage the installation of the furniture and the decor.
Decorating and staging: The team decorates and stages the Airbnb property for the best possible photos for an optimized listing on Airbnb and other booking channels.
Directing the photoshoot: Somerled Designs directs the professional photoshoot to ensure that the photos highlight all the best aspects of the property. High-quality photos are an indispensable part of the Airbnb checklist when preparing to launch your listing.
After this, properties are ready to be listed and to start welcoming guests.
Somerled Designs Virtual Design Process
When owners opt in for remote design services, they need to go through significantly fewer steps, namely:
Market research and strategy: As described above.
Kickoff call: As described above.
Design period: As described above.
Design handoff: The Somerled Designs team hands off the design boards, floor plans, staging tips and tricks, and a 5-week installation guide for DIY installation.
From there on, hosts need to handle furniture and decor purchase, delivery, and installation. They also have to take care of the property cleanup and final setup as well as of taking high-definition photos of all rooms and spaces.
Somerled Designs Timeline
The time that it takes to finish a project depends on the Somerled Designs package that you go for:
Virtual design: 4-5 weeks
Design and project management: 10-11 weeks in total
The full-service design and furnishing services take longer than what most other companies require, which means that Airbnb hosts need to postpone the launch of their business by a couple of weeks.
Somerled Designs Locations
Our review of Somerled Designs shows that the company has experience designing and installing short-term rental properties in all states. However, installation services might not be available for some remote markets due to complicated logistics and travel.
Somerled Designs Airbnb Design Pricing
A detailed Somerled Designs review reveals that the cost of designing and furnishing an Airbnb property with the company includes a few components:
Cost of furniture: The company provides estimates of the average Airbnb furnishing cost by room. In specific, bedroom furniture adds up to about $5,000/room, while common space furniture (living room, dining room, game room, or others) comes at around $6,000/space. Lower and higher prices are possible depending on the size of the room, the furniture brand, and the level of decor.
Contractors fees: Owners need to pay for the work of painters, wallpaper installers, photographers, and other local contractors hired and managed by Somerled Designs.
Service fee: The company charges a design and installation fee that covers travel expenses for full-service. However, it is not clear how this fee is calculated.
The Somerled Designs website does not provide estimates of the average contractors fee or a breakdown of the service fee. While the costs per room sound within the averages in the US market, the total cost of furnishing a vacation rental home might add up to a significantly large sum when factoring in all expenses. It’s important for hosts to get an estimate of the total price before deciding whether to work with Somerled Designs.
Somerled Designs Reviews
There are no customer reviews of Somerled Designs on third-party review websites. This is rather unusual for a company that has been around for 3 years and has worked on hundreds of Airbnb properties.
It’s a good idea for STR owners to try to connect with investors who have already worked with Somerled Designs and ask about their impressions and feedback. This can be done on online real estate investing forums.
Somerled Designs Portfolio of Airbnb Properties
To get a better idea of the work of Somerled Designs, following are examples of rooms within themed Airbnb rental properties that the company has designed and installed:
1. Desert Dreams, Living Room, Phoenix, AZ
2. The Mountain Mansion, Living Area, Massanutten, VA
3. The Dolly Den, Kitchen, Nashville, TN
4. Lake A-Frame, Stairview, Michigan
5. Modern Cabin, Upper Loft, Massanutten, VA
6. Cactus Casa, Game Area, Phoenix, AZ
7. The Pink Flamingo, Bar Area, Fort Lauderdale, FL
8. Timeless Traditional, Poker Room, Asheville, NC
9. Cool Tropical, Master Bedroom, Tampa, FL
10. Colorful Contemporary, Primary Bathroom, Austin, TX
11. Music City, Outdoor Patio, Nashville, TN
12. The Sunny Escape, Fire Pit, Phoenix, AZ
Somerled Designs Airbnb Design and Furnishing Pros and Cons
Hiring Somerled Designs for your Airbnb home design and furnishing comes with some advantages and disadvantages that need to be taken into account to make the right decisions.
Let’s have a look at them:
Somerled Designs Pros
The main benefits that Airbnb owners get access to with Somerled Designs include:
Professional interior design and furnishing services: Somerled Designs provides Airbnb-specialized design which takes into account the hospitality industry standards, the local market expectations, and the target guest needs.
Data-based design decisions: The team conducts market research and analysis to gather data to use in the development of the design strategy.
Option to choose between a hands-on and hands-off approach: DIY hosts can go for virtual design services, while passive investors can select the design and project management package.
Potential for a passive approach: Busy STR owners or those with no experience in the field can access full-service design and furnishing to optimize results.
Somerled Designs Cons
Having said that, the most important drawbacks of working with Somerled Designs are:
No estimate of the average expected performance enhancement: While Somerled Designs specializes in STR design and installation, they don’t provide the average increase in performance that hosts see as a result of their work. Meanwhile, other best Airbnb design and furnishing companies report an average boost in performance, whether in terms of average daily rates (ADR), Airbnb occupancy rate, bookings, or revenue.
Not much owner intervention: Somerled Designs seems to ask for host’s feedback less frequently than other service providers. This is suboptimal for owners who’d like to be involved in the design of their Airbnb.
Unclear total price: Somerled Designs mentions the average cost to furnish a bedroom and a common space but doesn’t offer a range of the total cost for different types of properties, including contractor fees and their own service fee.
No cost estimator: Most other furnishing companies offer a free calculator on their website so that homeowners can get a rough estimate of the expected price for their property, but Somerled Designs does not have this option.
Lack of full-service coverage in remote markets: The company designs Airbnbs in all US states, but installation services are not available in absolutely all markets.
No reviews: The lack of Somerled Designs reviews on third-party websites makes it impossible to confirm the quality of services that hosts ultimately receive.
Hiring Somerled Designs helps hosts save time and effort and design their property with the requirements of the short-term rental market in mind, but the cons outlined above make it look like owners should consider alternative options for the best possible outcomes.
How to Get Started with Somerled Designs
To get started with Somerled Designs, interested hosts can schedule a consultation to learn more about the services and to discuss their property.
Top Somerled Designs Competitors and Alternatives
Our review of Somerled Designs shows that while the company can help vacation rental owners, there are certain limitations that mean that hosts might get better value for money from other Airbnb furnishing services.
Here are the 3 best competitors of Somerled Designs in the short-term rental design space:
Somerled Designs vs Showplace
Showplace is a host-favorite Airbnb design and furnishing company that helps owners boost revenue by 22%, on average, while saving 75 hours and $10,000+ off retail prices when getting their property guest-ready. The reason for this substantial performance improvement is that the company tailors each design concept and implementation to the specific space, the property details, the local market and culture, and the target guest persona in addition to the owner’s budget.
Showplace offers two options: 1) Pre-made designs and 2) Custom design.
With Showplace pre-made design packages, hosts can choose from over 10 top-performing styles including but not limited to:
Bohemian
Scandinavian
Cabin
Coastal
Modern Minimalist
Midcentury Modern
Transitional
Modern
These packages provide owners with design concepts that can be easily customized to the needs of properties of different types and sizes. Each package comes with an itemized list of suggested furniture and decor pieces that can be added, removed, and exchanged until the design is personalized to the needs of the rental and the preferences of the owner. Importantly, once you are happy with the design, you can easily order all furniture directly from the Showplace website for a convenient checkout.
Meanwhile, the Showplace custom design services means that your dedicated interior designer starts all work from scratch to develop a design concept that matches your requirements, your Airbnb, your location, and your guest personas. Your feedback is taken into consideration throughout the process, and your comments are incorporated until you are fully satisfied with the design. Then, the Showplace team takes care of sourcing and purchasing the furniture and decor items.
In both cases, hosts can choose between DIY installation and professional assembly and setup with vendors from the Showplace Preferred Contractor Network, who can provide white-glove property signoff.
Showplace can get your property ready in 6 weeks with end-to-end services. Furnishing an Airbnb with a pre-made package takes 3-4 weeks for delivery; the timing of the design process depends entirely on the availability and commitment of the host. Services are available in all US locations, including all the best short-term rental markets for investors.
In terms of cost, the average price of furnishing a 3-bedroom house with a pre-made package is $12,000-$15,000, which covers the cost of furniture as Showplace does not charge any fees for this service. At the same time, the cost of custom design and furnishing is between $10,000 and $50,000+, depending on the market, the square footage, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and the maximum number of guests. You can use the free Showplace furnishing cost estimator to get an idea of what total price you can expect for your specific property.
Somerled Designs vs STR Cribs
STR Cribs specializes in the renovation, design, and furnishing of Airbnb properties. Unlike Somerled Designs and most alternatives, it engages in large-scale renovation and repair projects, which makes it a potentially good option for the owners of distressed houses or other properties in need of major works.
STR Cribs renovation services cover interior services (painting, stairs, insulation, carpentry, etc.), utilities and system installation (electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and solar panels), structural and exterior services (structural engineering, fencing, gates, roofing, etc.), outdoor and landscaping (decking, pools, etc.), amenities, specialized installation (audio and video, noise reduction, etc.), and safety and environmental services.
With regards to design and furnishing, STR Cribs offers 1) Remote e-design services and 2) Full-service design. The former is similar to the Somerled Designs virtual design package, while the latter is the same as the Somerled Designs design and project management services. The process and deliverables are comparable though STR Cribs gives more opportunities for owners to provide feedback and keeps them better updated.
One of the main pitfalls of STR Cribs is that Airbnb hosts have no way of estimating the expected total cost of furnishing their short-term rental before talking to the team. The company website does not provide a range of budgets or a calculator to estimate the cost.
STR Cribs market coverage is nationwide.
Somerled Designs vs Furnishr
Furnishr is an interior design and furnishing company that works with different types of residential properties including vacation rentals. While the service is not specialized in Airbnbs, the company has plenty of experience with short-term rental designs.
Furnishr offers turnkey solutions for busy hosts who have enough capital to completely outsource the design and furnishing of their investment property. The list of included services covers style curation, budget tracking, project planning, sourcing, shopping, shipping, setup, and final cleanup.
The most popular styles with which Furnishr works include Scandinavian, Bohemian, Industrial, Glam, Contemporary, and others, but the company customizes the style of each property based on the preferences of the owner. On the flip side, as Furnishr doesn’t focus on STRs, their design concepts don’t take into account the local vacation rental market and the specific needs of Airbnb guests.
The potential range of budgets that Furnishr works with is wide. Furnishing a studio costs between $5,000 and $9,000, while getting a 4+-bedroom property ready is between $18,000 and $48,000. This is comparable to the per room estimates offered by Somerled Designs, but the Furnishr website has an estimator that hosts can use to get a preliminary range.
Furnishr installs rental properties in all US states except Hawaii.
Bottom Line
Our Somerled Designs review shows that the company has significant experience in Airbnb design and furnishing, nationwide. Moreover, they give owners the option to choose between virtual design and full-service installation. However, the total cost of projects implemented by Somerled Designs is unclear. Additionally, the lack of online customer reviews of Somerled Designs and the absence of average performance boost makes it impossible for hosts to verify the quality of services and the ultimate result.
Meanwhile, Showplace helps Airbnb investors increase revenue by an average of 22% in addition to saving 75 hours and $10,000+ off retail prices. Our designs optimize the space, align with your market, and exceed the expectations of your target guests, while considering your preferences and staying within your budget. Check out our free cost estimator to see what total cost you can expect based on your Airbnb’s specifications.