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Furniture for a rented beach apartment: what to take with you and what the Tenancy Law requires
By Lucy Home. Published 14/11/2026, updated 14/11/2026.
Furnishing a rented apartment has a rule that an owned apartment does not: everything you buy has to fit the next address. At the beach, another one is added: everything has to withstand humidity without leaving a mark on the wall, the floor or the landlord’s furniture, because the property goes back to them in the condition you received it. This guide brings together what Brazil’s Tenancy Law requires of tenants and owners, with what I check in furniture for anyone who will rent in Praia Grande, on the Baixada Santista or in any beach apartment.
A modular sofa in the Lucy Home showroom: in a rented apartment, the module that fits in the elevator today is the module that comes out of it at the next move.
What the law requires of tenants and owners
Law 8.245/1991 divides the duties. From the landlord, in article 22: deliver the property in a condition fit for its intended use and provide a detailed description of the property’s condition at handover, with express reference to any existing defects. From the tenant, in article 23: use the property for the agreed purpose and treat it with the same care as if it were their own; return it, at the end of the lease, in the condition received, except for wear from normal use; repair damage caused by themselves, their dependents, family, visitors or agents; not modify the internal or external form of the property without the landlord’s prior written consent; and allow inspection by the landlord.
I am not a lawyer, and the contract you sign may have additional clauses. What I take from the law for my work are three habits: photograph everything on move-in day, mount nothing on the wall without a written answer, and choose furniture that leaves no mark.
Furniture that moves with you
The question I ask before any piece: does it fit through the door of the next apartment, which you do not know yet? That is why, for rentals, I prefer:
- A sofa in modules. Most Lucy Home sofas are delivered in modules; each one goes through the elevator and the door separately, and the sofa is reassembled in a different configuration in the new room. The Diamond sofa runs from 2.10 to 3.90 m by adding modules; a 2.10 m fixed leather sofa is a single piece and needs the door and elevator checked. The guide will the sofa fit through the door and the elevator shows how to measure.
- A table whose top and base come apart. The Âncora rectangular, from 1.80 to 2.70 m, and the Enjoy are large tables; ask at the store how each one disassembles for a move. A round table up to 1.40 m, like the Cone, serves today’s small living room and tomorrow’s.
- A floor-standing TV unit, no panel. A unit resting on the floor leaves with you and leaves no holes. The guide TV unit for the living room has the measurements.
- An armchair instead of a second sofa. A good armchair changes role and address more easily than a two-seat sofa. The guide armchairs for the living room helps you choose.
The inspection and the day-one photo
Article 22 speaks of a detailed description with reference to existing defects; article 23 speaks of returning the property in the condition received. What links the two is proof. On the day you move in, before any furniture of yours, I recommend:
- Photographing every wall, floor, door, window and outlet, with the date.
- Photographing every piece of the landlord’s furniture, from the front and in the details that already show wear.
- Noting what does not work and asking for it to go into the contract’s description.
- Keeping it all in a folder with the contract, and repeating it on the way out.
If the apartment comes furnished, those photos also tell you where your own things fit. The guide new apartment checklist has the reference measurements for the living room.
Walls, holes and panels: ask in writing
A TV panel, a shelf, a hammock hook on the balcony, a curtain rod: all of them are holes in the wall, and article 23, item VI, requires the landlord’s prior written consent to modify the internal form of the property. It is not for me to say whether a hole is a modification; it is for me to say that a message answered in writing costs nothing and avoids the argument on the way out. While the answer does not come, a floor-standing TV unit, a floor lamp and pictures leaning on the sideboard take care of the room.
Humidity and sea air without marking the property
Purdue University explains that wood swells and shrinks with the humidity of the air, and the coastal tenant finds this out in the drawer that jams and the top that warps. What I do in a rented apartment:
- furniture a few fingers away from the wall, so air circulates and the wall does not stain;
- felt or protectors on the feet, so the landlord’s floor goes back without scratches;
- no unfinished wood against an external wall;
- a window open every day the weather allows, and a dehumidifier in the closet if humidity is high, as I explain in dehumidifiers in a beach apartment.
For what sea air does to each material and how to choose hardware, see sea air and furniture and furniture that lasts at the beach; for the mold that appears after weeks closed up, mold on the sofa and furniture.
Measurements that hold for the next apartment
Two measurements serve as a ruler at any address. For the dining table, the design guide Kin Store recommends at least 90 cm between the table edge and the wall or piece of furniture where someone pulls out a chair. For the sofa, the width of the front door and the diagonal of the elevator in the building where you live today, noted on your phone, because the move comes sooner than you think. The guide sofa size shows the math.
Come choose what will leave with you
The Lucy Home showroom is at Av. Presidente Kennedy, 3870, Aviação, Praia Grande. Bring the measurements of the living room, the door and the elevator of your rented apartment; the team shows which sofas come in modules, how each table disassembles and which TV units stand on the floor, and room planning is at no cost. Delivery and assembly are included, and anyone living in São Paulo or on the Baixada schedules the date. If you prefer, message us on WhatsApp. See also the sofas page and the tables page.
Frequently asked questions
Can I drill the wall of a rented apartment to mount a TV panel?
Brazilian Law 8.245/1991, article 23, item VI, says the tenant may not modify the internal or external form of the property without the landlord's prior written consent. It is not for me to say whether a hole counts as a modification; what I recommend is asking the owner first and keeping the answer in writing. A floor-standing TV unit, with no mounted panel, avoids the question.
Who pays to repair a landlord's piece of furniture that broke?
Under the law, article 23, the tenant must return the property in the condition received, except for wear from normal use, and repair damage caused by themselves, their dependents, family, visitors or agents. I am not a lawyer; that is what the law says, and what settles the argument is the move-in inspection with photos.
Is it worth buying a good sofa for a rented apartment?
It is, if the sofa moves with you. At Lucy Home most sofas are delivered in modules, which makes it easier to get through the door and elevator of the next apartment and lets you replace a module instead of the sofa. The guide on furniture that lasts at the beach explains what to check on the spec sheet.
What should I check at the move-in inspection?
The law, article 22, requires the landlord to provide a detailed description of the property's condition, with express reference to any existing defects. I photograph floors, walls, doors, windows and every piece of the landlord's furniture, from the front and in the details that show wear, and keep the dated photos with the contract.
