There's a condo sitting on the beach in Biloxi right now that stays fully booked almost year-round. A couple of years ago it wasn't renting at all — it was just a family place, passed down from parents to their son, full of furniture that hadn't been touched in decades.
The bones were good. The location was incredible. But the photos looked like every other outdated Gulf Coast condo on the internet, and nobody was clicking.
That's where I came in.
We repainted, replaced the flooring, and furnished the entire space specifically for short-term rental. Not just to look good — to hold up, photograph well, and make guests feel like they got more than they paid for. Now it stays rented.
That's what design actually does for a rental property. And it's why I started offering Coastal Rental Design as a dedicated service.
If your Gulf Coast rental isn't booking consistently, most owners go straight to pricing. They drop the nightly rate, run a discount, maybe tweak the listing title. Sometimes that works short term. But if the photos aren't stopping people mid-scroll, no price adjustment is going to fix it.
Guests book with their eyes. They're making a split-second decision based on a handful of photos before they ever read your description or check your reviews. And on platforms like Airbnb and VRBO, you're competing against dozens of other properties in the same area at similar price points.
What makes someone click on your listing instead of the one next door? The space looks different. It looks designed.
There's a difference between decorating a space and designing it for rental performance. A lot of STR owners either furnish a property the way they'd furnish their own home — which doesn't always translate to great listing photos — or they go the opposite direction and buy the cheapest furniture they can find, which guests notice immediately and mention in reviews.
Designing for rental means thinking about three things at once:
Guest experience. Does the space feel welcoming the moment someone walks in? Is it cohesive? Does it have personality, or does it feel like a hotel room that forgot to try? Guests who feel like they got something special leave five-star reviews. Five-star reviews drive bookings. Bookings let you hold your rate.
Durability. Beach rentals take a beating. Humidity, sand, high turnover, guests who aren't always careful — your furniture and finishes need to be able to handle all of it without looking worn six months in. On the Gulf Coast specifically, fabric and material choices matter more than they would in a dry climate. I source with that in mind.
Photography. Everything I specify for a rental property is selected with the listing photos in mind. Scale, color, light — all of it affects how the space reads on a screen. A room that looks flat and dark in photos doesn't get clicked. A room with the right furniture scale, the right tones, and proper styling photographs beautifully even with a phone camera.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast STR market has grown significantly over the last few years. Biloxi, Ocean Springs, Bay St. Louis, Pass Christian — there are more rental properties competing for the same guests than there were five years ago.
That's actually good news if your property is well-designed, because most of your competition isn't. The bar for what a Gulf Coast rental looks like is still relatively low. A property that feels intentional and coastal — not just generic beach house — stands out immediately.
The Biloxi condo I mentioned at the top of this post didn't need a massive renovation budget. It needed fresh paint, new flooring, and furniture that made sense for the space and the market. The investment was reasonable. The return was a property that now generates consistent rental income instead of sitting empty between family visits.
If you're a Gulf Coast property owner wondering whether design is worth the investment, here's how I approach STR projects:
It starts with a property assessment — either in person for local properties or virtually for remote owners. I look at the layout, the light, the existing bones, and what the listing photos currently look like. From there I put together a furniture and finishes plan built specifically for rental durability and guest appeal, handle all the sourcing and procurement, and coordinate styling for listing photography.
I offer this as a flat-fee e-design package for remote owners who want a complete design plan they can execute themselves, and as a full-service option for local properties where I manage everything.
Either way, the goal is the same — a property that earns its nightly rate and stays booked.
If you have a Gulf Coast rental that isn't performing the way it should, I'd love to take a look. Schedule a call here and let's talk about what's possible.
MLR Interior Design is based in Ocean Springs, MS and serves the Mississippi Gulf Coast including Biloxi, Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, and surrounding areas.
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