Self Catering is a very ‘hands on business’. As noted, you have to organise to meet the guest (in some form or fashion) at the apartment – which can be done in a variety of ways. The damages deposit is probably a similarly tricky task. Although it is very common practise to ask for a damages deposit before a guest arrives; there appear to be a minority of guests that are quite hesitant about this process. How do we make this part of the process less painless?

The most popular method of taking the damages deposit is to ask it to be paid in cash on arrival. Of course the first question from the guest is: ‘How do I get it back?’ Many of the guests expect the refund to happen just as they are leaving the flat. Is this practical? Not only does it involve the landlord returning on each guests’ departure, but it also means that if a guest were to ‘hide’ a problem, it is unlikely that it would be spotted on a quick inspection of the property. Making this procedure time consuming and not even cost effective. I had one guest move a picture on the wall. When I noticed that it had been moved, I returned it to its original spot, only to find a large hole in the wall. I would have never spotted this on an inspection with the guests on the day of their departure. So guests that book through me, are told (in advance) that a damages deposit is refunded within 14 days of departure. Although most guests are fine with this condition; there are a small minority that complain, and a handful that will not book. I feel it is worth it, as it has limited my exposure to a financial loss. I was wondering what does everyone else do?

Are there landlords that accept some form of credit card waifer, as is commonly done when you book a hotel room? Are there any other suggestions with regards to damages deposit. Although it seems like a very small part of the whole self catering experience; to me it appears to be one of the more time consuming and controversial issues I have with my guests.

Look forward to hear how everyone else handles this matter.

Self Catering – 10 steps to guest management

Here is a set of steps that a self catering landlord should follow to help ease the workload involved.

1. Advertise (this will be a blog in its own right; and important for the success of your investment
2. Pricing the self catering accommodation
3. Guests Book Accommodation
4. Organise to meet Guest for their arrival
5. Guest Arrives – Meet & Greet
6. Take Damages Deposit
7. Guest sign Ts & Cs
8. Guest Departs
9. Prepare apartment for next set of guests
10. Refund Damages Deposit

As I noted I will discuss forms advertising in a blog on its own, however, suffice to say that you may have the most wonderful self catering apartment, but if no one can find it you won’t get any bookings.  As a self catering landlord it is important to ensure that your property is advertised and its photos help make the final sale.

Pricing your accommodation is a very important task.  Firstly you should compare the market, find other similar holiday/self catering apartments in your area.  See how they are priced, and see how well they are booked.  If you have an apartment in London you should be aiming for 70% capacity.   For self catering letting, the overheads for running the apartment and changing over between guests is high – so you will need to consider this cost when setting prices.  Most landlords have a minimum stay period – as a changeover is expensive, so there is no point in letting a property for 1 night – as you would probably not take home any profit from a 1 night stay.  Most self catering properties have a min. of a 3-4 nights stay, while it is not uncommon to ask for a 1 week stay.  Again, I will discuss pricing in another blog, as there are several more points to consider.

Once a guest decides to book your property, you will need to have a process in hand to document this booking.  You will need to take a deposit (non-refundable); and schedule in the arrival and departure.  As it gets busy, you need to ensure that you don’t miss meeting a guest on their arrival, and also to ensure that you don’t do any ‘double bookings’  If you only have one property, you should easily be able to manage this with a simple spreadsheet.  But if you own more than a few, it may get a bit more complicated, and you may want something a little more sophisticated.

Meeting and greeting guests is a nice personal touch – which is not always necessary.  You do need to consider how the guests are going to receive the key for the property.  If you are going to meet and greet the guest at the property – don’t forget to advertise this as one of your features. Damages Deposit (again a subject for another blog); but don’t forget to take one.  In essence, the guests tend to take more care in your property when they know you are holding a damages deposit for them.

Terms and Conditions are a necessary component of Guest Registration in self catering.  You may refer to a version or our terms and conditions which will give you some guidance as to what the guest is agreeing to.  I would suggest that you modify them as per your requirements. The final 3 steps all involve letting the guest leave the self catering apartment, getting the apartment ready for the next set of guests, and the refund of the damages deposit.

To summarise, this is a brief set of guidelines on how to manage your guests.  Please feel free to contact either Lenore or Janet at self-catering-online.com where we would be more than happy to help with any further advice you may need on these matters.