7 tips to buying an Overseas Holiday Let

Buying an Overseas Holiday Let?  7 tips to avoid a costly mistake

Almost everybody has harboured a dream to buy a property overseas but many make a rash, un-planned decision, which can end up being an expensive mistake.  One way of off-setting the cost of owning a property, is to consider the rental potential, particularly as a holiday let. 

The holiday rental market is vibrant and growing, but there are some important issues to consider, to ensure that  you differentiate your property, attract the right clients and critically, avoid competing on price. 

Even if you don’t plan to let your overseas property out initially, you never know what’s around the corner and when another income stream might be of use.  For many, the income that has been generated by their holiday let over the last 18 months has been very welcome.

Here are my  7 key tips to think about before you buy an Overseas property:

1)      Plan, plan, plan!  If you're planning on buying a holiday property abroad, do a business plan and treat it like a business.  Ask yourself how much income the property needs to generate and make your decisions based on that. A good overseas property agent can provide guidance on what to buy too.

2)      Niche!  Before you buy, identify a niche that will allow you to maximise the number of bookings that you get every year. So what do I mean by “niche”? I mean what part of the market do you want to occupy? Or who is it you want to attract? And then think through what is needed to be most attractive to this group of people? eg. Small kids, sky divers, foodies, I could go on! 

3)      What does the market want?  Understand the needs and wants of your niche market and seek to exceed expectations.  Think outside the box and seek to delight! So if you are offering golf week breaks, make sure there is space for golf clubs, or a cooking experience, make sure the kitchen is well-equipped.

4)      Pool side:  Have a pool and enclose it – this will set you apart from the crowd, particularly if your property is outside France.  This may seem like an expensive outlay but it will seriously boost your sales by attracting families with small children and can be done for as little €350.00.

5)      Say no to granny’s old sofa:  Don’t just ship out the things that you don’t want in your own home, find a niche, understand your market and equip your property accordingly.  Ask yourself what ‘look’ your market would love. If it is traditional and local, then the local furniture is going to be quite different to what we might find in the UK (unless it is Ikea, but even then there are country differences)

6)      Market to your niche:  Use a lettings company that understands and caters for the niche that you are trying to attract.  If you want to attract families with small children for example then choose an agent that targets mums and dads.

7)      Ask your lettings agent lots of questions:  Agents know what what sells and what doesn’t.  Pick their brains to make sure you’ve done as much as you can to attract the best customers

Some of the most successful Overseas landlords are the ones that have thought through what they are buying, before they buy it. But even if this is not the case, you can still take on board these tips and be a successful "accidental" landlord.

Author Wendy Shand-Tots to Travel.

Edited by Louise Reynolds-Property Venture^®  Posted 3rd November 2010

Wendy Shand started multi-award-winning, Tots to Travel after her two year old son fell into an unenclosed swimming pool whilst on a family holiday.  She realised there was a need for a service offering safe, family-friendly accommodation. Her marketing ‘system’ gives unprecendented support to holiday property owners, maximising  rentable weeks, in countries like: Spain, Italy, Portugal and France. She has written “Empty Weeks?”, a free guide to letting overseas property  

Property Venture^® is an independent, UK-based agent. We help time-strapped investors and holiday home purchasers, buy abroad more easily and safely than they can on their own.

We visit the countries you buy in, so we can offer common-sense, grounded advice. Overseas members of National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA). This means we have been subjected to the membership criteria and have signed up to follow the professional Code of Conduct established to help you, the potential buyer or investor, buy overseas property with confidence