Starting holiday lets

Pennylane

Anybody else on here doing holiday lets? Come April 12 we will be!  We have a small house we have rented out for nearly 12 years and have been really fortunate with tenants. One stayed about 18 months and the others 10 years.  When they left we took the opportunity of freshening it up so we had a lovely new kitchen installed, decorated top to bottom, new flooring, updated bathroom etc. We advertised it and got loads of enquiries but a lot of them were time wasters and as soon as I mentioned references, credit checks and deposits they didn’t get back to me.  Others just didn’t seem suitable.  

We live in a lovely part of the country, popular with walkers, birdwatchers, cyclists etc so now we are going to have a go at letting it for holidays.  We have got all the furniture, bedding, kitchenware, linens etc and are almost there.  We are going to try it for a year and see what happens.  We are going with a very reputable company which several local people have recommended to me and if it isn’t successful then we will either sell it or let it long term again.  We have made approx £54,000 on the property value in that time plus  12 years rent money so I feel we have done OK  so far. Minus of course the work we’ve just had done, probably £4,000.  Would love to hear other people’s experiences.  

maxsteam

Have you considered booking.com or AirBnB? I've used both to provide short-term accommodation but not as a provider. A company which "several local people have recommended" sounds like someone about whom you have yet to form your own opinion.

Pennylane

maxsteam said:

Have you considered booking.com or AirBnB? I've used both to provide short-term accommodation but not as a provider. A company which "several local people have recommended" sounds like someone about whom you have yet to form your own opinion.

originally a friend told me that her mother in law uses this company for 3 properties she uses for holiday lets.  She’s used them for several years and recommended them.  I was then talking to a couple of other  people who are also using them and recommend them. I have had 3 phone appointments with them going over all the details and have another later today so feel confident they know what they’re doing.  I did look into AirBnB but prefer this company.  Thanks for replying.

AdrianC

The people round here who do best from their holiday lets put effort into marketing them directly. They're listed through various of the platforms, but they do the legwork themselves...

Pennylane

AdrianC said:

The people round here who do best from their holiday lets put effort into marketing them directly. They're listed through various of the platforms, but they do the legwork themselves...

We decided to go with a company because they deal with all the marketing, bookings and payments.  They also list on all the major holiday letting sites.  This suits us as we have fairly busy lives.  Believe me, as there are lots of holiday lets around here we have done our homework and they seemed the best option.  Thanks for replying though. 

macman

Who is responsible for doing the changeovers? That's a major committment one day a week if you do it yourselves.

Pennylane

macman said:

Who is responsible for doing the changeovers? That's a major committment one day a week if you do it yourselves.

There will be a keysafe so they can let themselves in and out. It’s only a small property and I reckon I could could clean it and cleansheet the bed etc in 1.5 hours. At the moment holiday homes are supposed to only have what is necessary due to covid restrictions so no throws, books, jigsaws etc.   I plan to do it myself to start but a couple of friends have already said they would be willing to do it. I would be happy to pay £20 for that and they say that’s fine.  Thanks for replying.

AdrianC

Your friends say that now, but just wait until they realise they have a three hour window on a specific day to do it, which means they can't be doing things they'd rather do... then they turn up to find the previous occupants had a bloody good party last night, and the place is a right mess...

ellie99

Pennylane said:

macman said:

Who is responsible for doing the changeovers? That's a major committment one day a week if you do it yourselves.

There will be a keysafe so they can let themselves in and out. It’s only a small property and I reckon I could could clean it and cleansheet the bed etc in 1.5 hours. At the moment holiday homes are supposed to only have what is necessary due to covid restrictions so no throws, books, jigsaws etc.   I plan to do it myself to start but a couple of friends have already said they would be willing to do it. I would be happy to pay £20 for that and they say that’s fine.  Thanks for replying.

On the other hand, cleaning guidance at the moment is do your normal clean and then disinfect. Basically every hard surface your guests may touch. So expect it to take a bit longer than normal. 

Also, it sounds like your friends would be paid cash in hand? Or are they self employed? Do you have liability insurance for people working on the premises? Just something to think about.

YellowCarBlueCar

If you've done your research, and invested in furnishing it sounds as though you've pretty-much decided?

We've been running a FHL for 12 years now, and are still doing it, so must think it's worth the effort.

We've found that most guests are respectful of a well-presented property, and will make an effort to leave it in a good state.  A growing number seem to just live for the week and leave without making any effort to clean at the end, so a bit more work at changeover.  Then very small minority (I can think of 2 in 12 years) make you wonder how they live at home - think food on carpets and soft furnishings, ink on the sofas, muddy carpets, ruined bedding.  When you arrive for a changeover, you don't know which you'll have, so any plans for changeover day need to be flexible, as will any help you enlist.
Don't forget to factor in the time and/or cost of laundering bedding and towels obs!

A few other considerations (compared to a long term tennant):
-Self catering doesn't always seem to mean self help.  Be prepared to be called to explain how to use the TV/Oven/Microwave (even though you've left detailed instructions)...
-Minor maintenance issues like a blocked sink are your job to fix, and promptly.
-You need to keep the garden/grounds attractive & tidy.
-You need to have 105 nights occupancy to qualify as a FHL for tax purposes.
-You should be on business rates, not council tax
-You need to pay for commercial refuse disposal
-Some areas consider it a "change of use".

ratechaser

AdrianC said:

The people round here who do best from their holiday lets put effort into marketing them directly. They're listed through various of the platforms, but they do the legwork themselves...

From a couple of places we've been to, I've seen them going through platforms initially, and once they have built up a repeat customer base they then switch to direct marketing - and also offer regulars a discount that splits the difference on the 3rd party fees. It's worked well for us as one of those regulars!