Going Away? Read this article BEFORE renting out your Property
Are you going away?
Great you've booked a long holiday and the thought has crossed your mind "why not rent out my property and use the rental to cover my mortgage/rent."
Sure, you might be able to rent our your property and make money while you are away but BEFORE you list your holiday rental property and advertise online you'll need to consider some very important things.
1. Proper Authority
Do you have the proper authority? If you rent the property, most likely you will need written express permission from your Landlord or Property Manager. If you co-own the property you may also need permission from the other owner. It's imperative that you obtain property authority as you may breach listing terms and the booking may fall through, funds would be withheld and the landlord or owner may take action against you.
2. Feasibility
Property managers will generally take on properties if there is at least 3 months availability to manage, or if the property is high value and the availability is over the peak period eg. 4 weeks at Christmas.
Its probably not feasible for real estate agents to list a property for a short duration by the time they inspect and appraise, prepare documentation, post the online advert and then manage the booking, payment, arrival and departure as well as any maintenance issues during the stay.
Perhaps you could consider an extended break to make the short term rental more feasible ie. change from a 2 month holiday to 3 months!
3. Management - who will look after the property?
Managing a property involves significant responsibility. It's not something you can ask as a favour from a friend. You'll probably find things undone like the plants not being watered. But more importantly, if the property manager does not attend to the visitor requirements they may put your property and the booking at risk. Consider a leaking tap: your friend might not arrange immediate repairs and the property might be damaged and the guest may depart and demand a refund if not fixed in a reasonable time.
4. Preparation
There are several things that need to be prepared such as storage of personal effects, cleaning, preparation of instruction manuals, auto utility, bill payment, mail forwarding.
For a more comprehensive checklist view some of our other helpful articles online.
Most customers book properties well in advance. So you'll need to consider your lead time.
For peak periods such as Christmas time you'll find customers book from July onwards so listing during November will not achieve the best results.
Consider tenants renting for 6 months will generally enquire 2-4 weeks prior but book only once they arrive after inspecting.
Tenants booking for 1-4 weeks may book well in advance if peak season or may do so last minute.
If you are trying to find one tenant to fill the gap perfectly from end to end you'll need more lead time.
Listing at least 3 months prior to your departure is ideal.
In Summary
It can be very rewarding renting out your property when you go away on holidays but you'll need to plan and prepare thoroughly to ensure you have a great time away.
