London Self Catering - Help for Landlords
London Self Catering - Help for Landlords
If you have a property in London that you are thinking of setting up and operating as a self catering unit, this section has been set up to help you understand:
- more about self catering holiday/short term lets and who uses them
- some of the differences between self catering holiday letting and longer term letting.
- what you should think about when deciding whether to let your property short term
- the tax position
- how to prepare your property for holiday /short term letting
- what you will need to equip a self catering holiday lets. A sample inventory of the equipment required is provided in this section.
What is a Self Catering Holiday Property?
A Self Catering holiday property is let for periods of less than 6 months, often just for a few days or a week, but they can be let for 2 or 3 months. They are usually fully furnished and items such as bed linen and towels are supplied. The owner will retain responsibility for utilities and council tax, so the payment for the accommodation includes payment for utilities.
Many of the people who use self catering/short term lets are visitors who are on business, attending conferences, undertaking courses etc. 'Edinburgh Flats Partnership' marketing targets these people as well as the tradition London holiday maker. We approach colleges and universities, theatres, conference organisers and companies and provide them with links to our website.
Differences between self catering holiday lets and longer term lets?
| Holiday/Short Term let |
Longer Term | |
| Gross Income | Greater and more irregular. Income can vary by time of year |
Lower and regular |
| Costs/Expenses | Higher - includes utilities, council tax (but see preparation), internet access etc. More Marketing is needed |
Lower as the owner does not pay for bills such as heat, broadband etc |
| Occupancy | Lower - there are more times when the property is empty |
Higher - there is usually have a 6 month or more contract |
| Equipment (including furniture) |
The owner will usually provide TV, DVD players and internet access as well as bed linen, towels, etc, so more equipment and furniture is usually provided |
The tenant usually provides bed linen, towels etc and electrical equipment such as TVs |
| Workload | Higher - Cleaning and laundry is needed after each changeover. Each new tenant/guest will need with keys, and they have to be returned |
Lower - The only support normally required is for maintenance |
| Risk of damage to property or non-payment | Lower. There is less likelihood of parties, things being attached to walls etc. Minor maintenance is dealt with during chageovers. Payment is usually taken before people stay in the property so there are few bad debts |
Higher. People staying in a property that is their main home tend to make more changes and are more likely to hold parties than people staying for a short time . Sometimes tenants don't pay rent on time and it can be difficult and expensive to evict them |
| Bureaucracy | Lighter. There does not need to be a lease as terms and conditions are used, so people staying do not have tenant's rights. |
Heavier. The lease gives the tenant's rights which means the owner may not be able to get access to the property. There are more regulations, such as HMO, which have to be followed |
| Flexibility | Greater - the owner has control and access to the property as they want it. It is common for owners to use holiday let properties for themselves for some of the time |
Less - The lease provides the tenant with prime control over the property. If the owner wants to visit or inspect the property, even to do maintenance, they have to agree this with the tenant |
There can be significant financial advantages in short term lets over longer term lets. Even though the initial costs for holiday lets are higher than a long term rental due to the additional equipment provided, and running costs are higher because the owner pays for cleaning, laundry and utilities, gross income should be significantly higher for properties as well. Properties in good locations that are marketed well will generate a good net income.
A Holiday Let can be used by the owner and their family and friends from time to time. If you let out your property as a 'long term' let, then you will not have this flexibility. You have full access to do maintenance or upgrades to the property as you choose.
There is less bureaucracy and a lower risk of damage to your property with a holiday let due to a combination of:
There is less bureaucracy and a lower risk of damage to your property with a holiday let due to a combination of:
- Holiday lets are covered by terms and conditions rather than a lease. Long term tenants have many rights over your property. Terms and conditions should ensure this does not happen in short term lets.
- Full payment is usually taken between 4 and 8 weeks before arrival so bad debts are rare.
- Frequent changeovers allowing simple maintenance to be done when required
- Facilities such as a washing machines are often requested but not used
- People staying for a short period don't normally re-arrange furniture or attach thing to walls
Preparation for Holiday Rentals or Short Term Letting
Getting a property ready for holiday letting is covered in self catering property preparation . This gives guidelines on how to set up your property.
Should I consider letting my property as a self catering holiday property?
If you are interested in using a property for holiday letting, here are some of the aspect that you should think about in Self Catering Factors to consider
The Tax Position
HM Revenue and Customs refers to 'furnished holiday letting' by which they mean properties that are usually described as holiday lets or short term lets. These properties are let for periods of less than 6 months which is the more common period for letting buy-to let properties. They can be let for anything from days to weeks. There are currently important tax advantages for holiday lets over longer term lets so the HM Revenue and Customs definition matters. "Furnished Holiday lettings" are treated as a business rather than as an investment by the tax authorities, so owners can clain business tax reliefs. This tax position is subject to change. Last year it was proposed that these tax benefits be removed and furnished holiday lets were to be traeted as any other property that is let. this was stopped before the change was implemented. It is
The definition of a Holiday Let/ Self Catering property ( as defined from the 2005-2006 tax year when the definition was updated) is:
- available for holiday letting to the public on a commercial basis for 140 days or more, and
- let commercially for 70 days or more, and
- let for periods of longer-term occupation (more than 31 consecutive days) for not more than 155 days during the year.
(Each person's tax position is unique. You should use your own professional advisor)
Advertising on Self-Catering-Online
Our web-site has been designed to be easily found by people looking for holiday let/short term properties in London. It:- costs nothing to set your property up on the site. To set up a property, you sign on as a landlord, then enter your property details.
- Your property details include a description, photographs and a map that uses the post code to show the location of the property.
- Prices are can be entered for standard, high and low seasons. Daily, weekly and minimum prices are entered for each season.
- the availability calendar allows you to update your bookings. Bookings taken over the web-site are updated automatically and the calendar is used to show enquirers only properties that are available for the dates they want.
The Sample Inventory provides information about what equipment you should provide in your holiday let.
