thinking of a holiday let

[weardalebeka]

Hi all, very glad to have found this site!

We are trying to plan out a change in location and lifestyle. We want to move to weardale (north pennines) bt need to work out how to fund it as DH job is where we live now and I'm still qualifying.

We've been looking at property and we can afford to buy somewhere if we sell our existing house but that would mean we had to move straight away plus DH would have to commute 2-3 hrs to work.

My solution is to find somewhere we like and rent it as a holiday let for 1-2 years while I qualify and DH manages to get relocated/new job.

We're looking at a 3 bed stone cottage type house with garden in one of the pretty villages. We could raise a mortgage on our family home + savings so the rental property would be bought outright

questions
does anyone have experience of this area (north england not yorkshire or lakes)

whats a reasonable expectation for number of weeks booked each year

I think we'd need to rent out about 20 weeks for it to work out financially. I'm not looking to make money, just enough to cover the increase in our mortgage payments.

cheap and cheerful or luxery and specialI have done some research into the market in the area, going rate seems to be £250 - £400 for 2 bedrooms.
Whislt trying to do my intial 'can we afford it' budget I wondered whether its better to let at slightly under the going rate, and not go overboard on the extra's. Or to go for more upmarket. I know every time i've stayed in a rental its been those extra touches which have made a real difference- welcome packs, real fire, nice furniture, contemporary styling.

(As we would want to use the property ourselves occasionally I thought of keeping the 3rd bedroom as a space for our stuff - ie one room that could store things/be scruffy etc.)

running costs - cleaning, wear and tear
how do you find a cleaner and what other costs should you consider?

[Musetta]

OK...so I know NOTHING about your area so just some general advice...

I would NOT buy a home I could not afford if, for some reason, I had NO bookings.

I am not suggesting at all that you will have no bookings just that I think that is VERY risky when your home is at stake (being used to finance!) I have my own home, a long-term rental and a holiday rental...I COULD pay for all three if both rentals were vacant...I do not WANT to...and it would stretch us quite a bit...but I would be in no danger of loosing my house.

So...if your 20 weeks is the IDEAL and you would break even etc., I say go for it...but...if you NEED 20 weeks booked to pay the mortgage? no way I would risk it. There are all sorts of costs you will need to factor in...homeowners insurance, taxes, utilities, etc. (I know you probably know all this - but make sure your calculations are accurate...and then add some!) replacement furnishings and general maintenance....credit card/paypal fees...what if something happened and you could not let it that season? you don't want to be stuck! also...first year bookings, for me, (I advertised WAY too late!) were slow...only a few weeks...have 8 booked now, but if I were needing 20 I think I would be a basket case with worry.

I hope this doesn't sound negative (!) I actually think your idea/plan is a rather good one and I'm having a blast with this new hobby/obsession of holiday rentals

[Hells Bells]

I live in NE england. I would have though you would struggle to let 20 weeks up in Weardale, perhaps it would be more likely on the Northumbrian coast.

[weardalebeka]

thanks for the replies, I've looked at cottages in the area and at this point in the year the average (for those with online availability) is that they are booked for 15 weeks.

Helen, why don't you think the North Durham Pennines would be a good area? Its pretty, touristy and still has good links to durham and newcastle for travel/big shops.

Mussata, we would be able to afford it even with no bookings, as I said the idea is to allow us to buy the house a year or two earlier than we would otherwise, we would end up with a mortgage of less than 50% of the total value of our properties. It would be tighter if we didn't manage to rent it out at all but doable. Obviuosly I'd prefer not to have to tighten our belts!

thanks for input!

[Hells Bells]

I agree it is pretty, but it is not as well known outside the NE. Perhaps I am mistaken there. It is so close, I don't really think of it as a tourist destination. The weather alone would shorten your season, and road links are not as good as they are from the Northumbrian coast.Many places a very remote, but i guess you already know the area. I think there was another owner who posted a long time ago with a weardale cottage, but I haven't been able to find them.

[Hells Bells]

viewtopic.php?t=1952&highlight=weardale

Link to other LMH post about weardale.
Don't get me wrong here, as I love the place.

[kirkland]

I think you could use the fact it`s not as `well known` to your advantage, especially if you showed it on a website, people are always looking for somewhere new. We are in Cockermouth, when visitors come to the Lakes most of them don`t venture North of Keswick, but we are trying to change that.

[Stephen]

Our cottage is located in a small village on the edge of the north pennines on the Northumbria/Cumbrian border, the nearest shop & pub are 4 miles away, we rent out approximately 20 weeks a year, there are people who want this type of location, as there are people who want coastal regions, we have had people from Germany,Canada,USA,Holland stay and they all say the scenery and location is lovely even in winter it is beautiful.

We have lots of guests who have stayed 4-5 times.