Behind The Scenes: Holiday Let
As we approach the summer, many of you will be thinking of taking that much awaited holiday, getaway, escape, vacation , whatever you want to call it. All those months of working and sacrifices and now is that awesome time of planning and you would like to go to some place that feels luxurious but at the same time offers all the home comforts and does not have a commercial feel like a hotel? The answer is holiday lets. These little beauties have gained a lot of popularity in recent years and in the dawn of the Coronavirus Pandemic there was a massive increase in these types of staycations. This led to a number of houses combining onto the market as investors saw the potential to double if not triple their investments. ‘Buy-to-lets’ are great but ‘HMO’ are better (more rental capacity from a single dwelling) and coming in on top spot are Serviced Accommodation. So much so that it was flooding the market. Whilst this was good for tourism and did help stimulate growth in the economy. It came with its own set of drawbacks.
Consumers were so impressed that they started placing their house on sites such as Airbnb, Bookings.com and expedia. As the industry wasn’t regulated, pretty much everyone started doing it. This caused a ripple effect in the industry and whereby major shortages were noted in the sector. Families could not find rental properties to rent or purchase as first-time buyers. Locals were infuriated by this and led to heavy legislation in some parts of the country like Wales. This was necessary as the situation was getting pretty bad. As long as the house was relatively safe and your Local Council was aware of this, with a few tweaks you could be the proud owner of a ‘Holiday House’. See below a simplified list of what was required to set up shop:
All Gas safety/Electrical certificates in date and good order
Let your mortgage provider know of your plans and get approval
Get all necessary insurance policies & paperwork in order
All white goods/furniture in good working order and provided
Installations of locks, security systems, alarms and key fobs
Spruce-up interiors with a splash of paint & fresh carpeting
Fire doors, good to have but not a necessity (I did it anyway)
Buy soft furnishings, curtains, cushions & throws
Get glitzy with jazzy lighting, ornaments, paintings, floral arrangements and the list can pretty much go on forever.
Bedding: Duvets/Pillows, mattress protectors and (don’t forget the coat hangers). Yes, I said ‘coat hangers’ you have to provide this.
Kitchenware: Tools/gadgets, appliances, dishes, cookware/tableware, crockery & cutlery.
Miscellaneous: Hairdryer, toiletries, tea/coffee making facilities & replenishes, baby highchair/cot and (toilet-paper)!!!.
Let’s not forget Netflix subscription and/or Welcome Pack.
Congratulations, once you’ve survived the cost of the above then you can give yourself a pat on the shoulder for drastically under estimating the above and for clearing out your bank account lol; you have now entered the realms of ‘Hospitality’. A lot of people fail to understand this very simple but crucial transition. It’s all about hygiene, customer ratings/reviews, customer expectations/expectation, google ranking, effective advertising…! My intention is not to put you off but can you see how quickly this turns into a full-time job? Then you have the decision to self-manage or outsource to a reputable agent that specialises in this kind of business. Their fees can range anywhere between 12 percent from very basic to 20 percent for a full service. Just in case you're thinking, what is a full service? It's advertising your property on their platform, taking care of bookings, checking-in guests, meeting and greeting, taking payments, making sure everything runs smoothly and deploying a good system for when things go wrong and believe me they do!!
These agents don’t come cheap either! There is also the booking fees platform to consider. They deduct the money as soon as a reservation is made (20%). Cleaners take a big chunk too which further squeezes your margins and affects the bottom line. Utilities or utensils, the costs keep spiralling out of control! Honestly, for what it;s worth it really is so hard. There's seasonalities to consider, drought in the winter and monsoon in the summer. Mini peaks and troughs such as Easter & Christmas, half-term and Bank Holidays. Guests will run away with your duvet, have a food fight in your house and smash a window for no apparent reason. All this you have to budget for. Your guests are demanding, they want everything not today but yesterday.
If the description states Beach House (which mine was) they want a beach view, ocean view. Not a five minute walk to the beach, ‘hell no’ that would be a big ask and I learned that the hard way. Honestly, the list just goes on and on. Oh yeah, there's this thing called ‘Chanel Manager’ to block entries. If for whatever reason you would like to take the house off for a short period of time you must ensure this is done against the master scheduler aka channel manager, which also prevents double bookings! Pricing is always tricky and a constant battle to make sure it’s in line with all the other holiday lets. Too little and you're practically giving your house away for free, too much and the house sits empty…you have to get it right! Laundry laundry…you can never have enough. Please purchase hotel grad laundry that will withstand the test of time.
Just to give you a flavour see below our ad:
“No 23 High St, is a beautiful house that sits in the market town of Wainfleet-All Saints in Lincolnshire. It’s picturesque with plenty to see in the village greens. Although a quaint and quiet area this little gem offers the best of both worlds. Just a few yards from the house you have the market square with the local Co-op, a tearoom and Suttons Award winning Chippy. A short ten minute drive you will find yourself in busy SkegVagas with all its dazzling lights and entertainment you will ever need. If casinos or theme parks are not your thing then come take a dip in the sea or lounge on the shore with a book or two. Then after a hard day of fun and frolics be sure to return back to the sleepy town of Wainfleet where your accommodation awaits you.
Upon entry you will be welcomed by the breadth and depth of this enormous yet practical kitchen with an American Style fridge freezer, dual ovens and a showstopper island, traditional yet contemporary, to invigorate all your senses. If culinary execution is not your thing then head straight upstairs to any of the four spacious boudoirs for that quick pick-me-up or wash away the day’s stresses in the master ensuite or family tub. The property has undergone an extensive renovation bringing the old and the new to a perfect sync to make your stay as enjoyable as possible. There is a cozy TV Room with the latest streaming devices, additional dining and a separate picnic area to the rear. Then at dusk grab a blanket or two and sit in the sun room to soak up that beautiful orange hue bringing a perfect close to your day.”
Don’t be put off, plenty of people doing really good