Are you considering holiday letting your property without an agent? Here’s a bit of advice.
What type of holiday property owner are you?
2nd home owner / investment?
Letting your primary residence for part of the year?
Letting an annex / apartment / part of your primary residence?
What is your aim?
Investment?
To help finance a holiday home that you / your family will enjoy part of the year?
To earn a bit of extra income from renting out your primary residence for part of the year?
It’s important to establish out what your end goal actually is.
Is your property ready to let? What needs to be done?
Do you need to furnish the property?
What equipment should you provide?
What should you take out / leave in a home that you are renting seasonally renting?
Do you need a spring clean and property refresh?
Have you got linen & towels sorted?
How to begin?
Have you thought about recycling and refuse collection?
Ask a professional, do some research or perhaps make a start and ask a trusted friend to view your property for things that you may have missed. Having another input to the process can make a huge difference.
What are all the rules and regs?
It is so important to understand what your legal requirements are when operating a holiday let. Too many people can let this essential part of letting fall to the wayside as it is currently under regulated. We believe this will and has to change.
If in doubt seek professional advice or do your research.
Are there tax implications?
Find out if your property qualifies as a ‘Furnished Holiday Let’ and ensure you are aware of the tax rules and implications on council tax / business rates.
Do I have the right insurance?
Ensure that you have the correct holiday home insurance even if only renting your home out for a few weeks a year to avoid costly mistakes.
There are many brokers who specialise in home insurance for this scenario.
Phew, now… where/how should I advertise?
There are many options or roads you could take. Do you want to go the journey alone? Should you have a website, which online portal should you choose? Where should you advertise? Do you need a booking system? How do you manage your diary?
These questions should be considered and every owner and property is different. It certainly isn’t one size fits all and that is the way it should be.
What should I provide?
Right, now you are ready to roll, let’s get down to the nitty gritty. What on earth, should you include? A well kitted out property can stand one property miles apart from the next. A good and well monitored inventory of items can be the difference between guests returning year on year or booking the apartment next door.
Now - you need a great housekeeper.
If you are managing the property yourself, a great housekeeper is like gold dust. A clean and well managed property is an absolute must.
Check out our downloadable cleaning checklist coming soon.
Sit back and relax???!
Depending on the route you choose perhaps you can to some extent! If you are choosing a more hands on affair, then with the right preparation holiday letting can be a rewarding and enjoyable experience. Yes, there can be headaches at times but everything can be overcome if your approach is right.
