Private Sublet Set-up Services

IN THE BEGINNING

The management of South Devonshire Holidays have been managing private subletting since 2018 and have learnt, often the hard way, their way around the holiday subletting market.

The things to think about when privately subletting are;

Are you allowed to sublet to holidaymakers in your deeds/mortgage terms? Some mortgage lenders do not permit short term lets,
Do you need a private sublet licence (if within a holiday resort)?
The need for public liability insurance in case a guest injures themselves.
There must be smoke alarms fitted in the property and if you have any solid-fuel appliances, fit a CO detector.
PAT Testing, together with Gas safety checks, must be done yearly
fire safety checks
Fit a fire blanket in the kitchen.
Chimneys should be swept once a year (if applicable).
Hot tubs and swimming pools must be cleaned and maintained. If the property has a swimming pool, be very aware of the safety concerning young children. Where possible, erect a fence around the pool to prevent tragic accidents.
Provide torches if guests are at risk of tripping over steps or other obstacles at night.
Decore. Ensure the decor is not dated. Walls painted white or hint of grey are welcomed by guests with a feeling of freshness and cleanliness.
Go for neutral colours and simple but comfortable furniture. Since sofas and beds may suffer more wear and tear than a longer-term let, be prepared to replace every 3-5 years. Avoid light coloured sofas and furniture as they are more likely to need regular cleaning to stay looking good.
The kitchen should be well fitted with a good selection of dinnerware, cookware, pots, pans, cutlery, glasses, etc. Dishwashers and other white goods are essential. Invest in an appliance repair policy, so you can have it fixed fast if anything breaks down.
Broadband is a must-have these days. So many people won’t even look at a holiday let without internet access.

ALSO CONSIDER

Guests will also expect a working TV. Ditch the old TV and buy a decent flat screen model. Consider adding SKY or Cable if you want to attract families. The more entertainment options your property has, the more people it will appeal to. Extras such as a wood-burning stove and a high-end coffee machine can work wonders if you want to go the extra mile. We all appreciate the little extras when we go on holiday, and in the colder months, a toasty log burner is a definite plus. Don’t neglect outdoor space either. People on holiday want a nice garden or decking where they can relax and unwind on a warm summer’s evening. Add a garden table and chairs and make sure the area is nicely landscaped and well-maintained. A gas or charcoal BBQ is a useful additional extra but remember to keep it clean.

For seaside properties, consider providing beach toys, such as buckets and spades, sunbeds, beach umbrellas, etc. Optional extras include kayaks, dinghies, bodyboards, and snorkelling gear. In short, anything that might attract guests and sets your property apart from others is a worthy investment. If this was or still is your home, lock away any valuables and personal items. Either store them in a secure area, such as a locked room/cupboard or put them into storage.

Pets in Holiday Lets

Whether you allow pets or not is a personal decision. However, if you say no to pets, you are reducing your pool of potential guests. After all, we are a nation of animal lovers, and many of us can’t bear to go on holiday without our beloved pets in tow. However, if you allow pets, expect extra wear and tear and factor in more time between holiday goers for cleaning. In addition, people who are allergic to animals likely won’t want to stay in a property where pets have been, so make sure you are clear in your advertisement whether your holiday let is pet friendly. If you decide to welcome pets, be clear about how many pets are allowed, and if you have any restrictions on where they are allowed to roam, state this on the booking form. Check your insurance policy to make sure it covers pet damage before you allow pets on your property. And if you are happy to welcome pets, feature it as a selling point.

WHAT EVERY HOLIDAY RENTAL SITE SHOULD HAVE

South Devonshire Holidays can off you a dynamic website with the ability to easily update your own content at any time without the need for any technical programming skills or the need to hire a developer. Users viewing travel websites on mobile devices and tablets are set to overtake desktop computers. This is because our holiday rental websites are responsive and provide an optimal viewing experience across multiple devices. In addition, if your site is mobile-friendly, it will rank in mobile search results – a growing segment you can’t ignore. We offer a professional template designed for holiday rentals that prominently displays your beautiful screen-filling images, supported with copy that converts visitors into bookings. A picture’s worth a thousand words – especially in travel.

An all-in-one solution with:

Simple to understand and easy to update the calendar. The ability to input flexible rates and instantly adjust them.*
Reviews from your past guests, a trusted source to drive bookings.
SEO features that allow you to write meta titles /descriptions, headers and focus on keywords.
Carefully crafted descriptions, maps, a list of amenities, about us section and contact details.
A blog so you can be the definitive, authoritative resource about your local area.
*South Devonshire Holidays can offer an integrated software package to manage bookings, a channel manager that synchronises with listing websites where you advertise and the option to accept credit cards. These tools are designed to save you time and be more efficient and give your website that professional feel. This software can also call to action, whether an ‘enquire now’ button that links to your enquiry form or a ‘book now’ button that allows users to book and pay securely online.

CREDIT / DEBIT CARDS

South Devonshire Holidays is an established holiday rental property management company. As such, we have negotiated very low fees with online payment merchants for taking online credit and debit card payments. If you take out our fully managed or hosted booking system service, and your guests chose to pay via credit/debit card, you will be charged only 1% of the transaction fee (pass-through cost), which is highly competitive.

Credit Cards Offer Increased Security

We all know that credit and debit card payments are much more secure than bank transfers. In addition, guests paying by card receive additional protection from their banks and/or card providers. Following the recent pandemic, holidaymakers have become more aware of the risks associated with booking holidays privately. Some holiday homeowners refused refunds for holidays cancelled due to the government lockdown, which was widely published in the press. As a result, many holidaymakers now look for accommodation accepting debit or credit card payments.

Since the #Staycation boom, also many scammers have been posing as holiday homeowners taking bookings and payments for fictitious properties. As a result, people lost thousands of pounds, and it has been widely publicised in the media. The main word of advice to holidaymakers is to always pay by credit or debit card via the property’s website. However, scammers are unable to offer this payment method due to the checks completed by card merchants. From our perspective, accepting card payments is the quickest way to secure a booking, as the payment is made instantly upon placing a booking. Booking is confirmed and paid at the same time. No chasing, no follow-up hassle.

An added benefit is that many credit/debit card providers offer zero per cent interest on spendings over a period of time, allowing the holiday owner to afford a breakaway. In addition, it improves the chances of your property remaining occupied throughout the year.

* 1% is charged by WorldPay per credit card transaction, this is cross-charged to property owners as a pass-through cost (South Devonshire Holidays Ltd do not charge for this service), we simply pass on our corporate savings from our merchant to the owners

SOUTH DEVONSHIRE HOLIDAYS SET - UP SERVICE

Being experienced in the field, we fully appreciate that many customers would like to go private and gain full control of their properties management and advertising; however, they may not have the time, expertise, or contacts to get started. We can help. The South Devonshire Holidays Private Sub-Let Set-Up Service sets everything up for the owner before handing over the keys to the owner (usernames, passwords etc.)

The Set-Up Service contains;

Obtaining and setting up a personalised domain name and IMAP hosted email based on your property.
Creation of an SEO (Search Engine Optimised) website.
Set up Google Analytics to monitor Web traffic.
Set up Google MyBusiness, putting your property on the map (literally).
Setting up Instagram and Facebook Business Pages, linking them together – allowing management through Facebook Manager.
Setting up preferred supplier cleaner and hot-tub maintenance team.
Supplying you with a Preferred Supplier List catering for several trades may be needed to support you within your private rental.
Supplying a helpful hints guide in terms of social media and advertising your property.

Optional Extra

Integrate our Hosted Booking System, which automatically adds you to the South Devonshire Holidays Agency website, or integrate your own stand-alone booking system and call to action option. Easy handover at a future date should you wish to undertake our Private Sub-Let Managed Service.