Almost eight in 10 holiday-let owners spend at least four hours a month managing their properties, with guest damage emerging as their biggest frustration, new research reveals.
A survey of 100 holiday-let owners by holiday home insurance specialist Schofields finds 79% spend four hours or more each month dealing with management, maintenance or administration, while 12% spend more than 15 hours.
More than half (53%) encounter an unexpected problem at least once a month, highlighting the day-to-day management demands behind operating short-term rental properties.
And 88% of owners have interrupted or cut short personal plans at some point to deal with an issue at their holiday let.
MANAGEMENT PRESSURES
Guest damage is identified as a source of frustration by 80% of owners, with one in three naming it as their single biggest headache.
Cleaning and changeovers cause problems for 61%, while 58% cite ongoing maintenance and repairs.
More than three-quarters (77%) say owning a holiday let has proved more stressful than they expected, including 16% who describe it as significantly more stressful.
The findings highlight the operational burden facing owners and the range of tasks that either need to be managed personally or outsourced to property managers and other service providers.
UNEXPECTED PROBLEMS
Phil Schofield, Head of Sales and Marketing at Schofields, says: “And it isn’t just damage causing headaches. Cleaning and changeovers, maintenance and unexpected costs all ranked highly, while 88% of owners told us they’ve had to interrupt their own plans at least once because of a problem with their holiday let.
“With 70% of those surveyed using Airbnb or similar platforms, it’s clear that making a property available to guests has never been easier, but owners shouldn’t underestimate the work that can come with it.
“Being prepared for those unexpected problems can make managing a holiday let considerably less stressful.”
