Holiday home/rental

[LotusFella]

Thinking that most Loti owners are fairly affluent.  Do any of you have any properties abroad.

 

I may be coming into some money and was thinking about buying a place in the sun.  What are peoples experience in having a place and perhaps renting it out.

 

thx

[Rambo]

Waste of time and money. You could get many years of staying in top class hotels over the world for what you'd have to shell out.

Spend it on cars instead 😉

[ChrisJ]

We've also been thinking about it.

While I'd like a rustic gite or similar, the upkeep/maintenance may well be a pain. I think I'd go for a flat so that this isn't a concern - just need to sort out cleaning if renting out.

We rented a flat in St Cyprian Plage for a couple of years running. The owners were Danish and would fly out for the start/end of the rental period to do the handover/cleaning.

I was tempted to go and look at some apartments for sale in Tulum Mexico when we were there a couple of weeks ago - from 99,000 USD - but the 10 hour flight to get there put me off, as they aren't exactly somewhere you can pop over for the weekend. My sister has owned a house in Florida for 10+ years, she goes out and stays there fairly regularly, and rents it for the remainder of the time - so it works for her.

 

[Dave Eds]

Buy in Britain, holiday abroad, works for me.....

[Choppa]

We brought a French holiday cottage project near the coast in the Charente  back in 2004. Essentially what we got for our money was  1300sqm of land  and "4 walls and a roof" in the middle of the plot. Through our efforts and by employing local craftsmen where necessary we got it habitable in 18 months and continued to improve it over the following 2-3 years to the point where we were happy to rent it out to any friends who wanted to use it, while keeping it as our main  holiday destination each year until the Covid lockdowns.

Points to note in our experience,

• it really helps if you speak the language and have local people who you trust to help out when something happens to the place and you aren't able to get out to visit
• The French keep the best wine for themselves
• You really get to know the area and the local customs well
• Holidays costs drop significantly but in our case, especially in early years of ownership, were replaced with building and maintenance projects, which can be "fun" in a foreign country. It is a little worrying when you know your way around the local Mr Bricolage better than the B&Q down the road in the UK.
• Buying and selling in France is quite different but French estate agents are miles better than their English counterparts. Ever had an UK estate agent take you out for lunch after they'd sold your place? Didn't think so.
• A few months ago when we sold the place, it had quadrupled in value, and even allowing for the expenditure above we made quit a handsome profit

Not so good points in our experience,

• It hurts when you still have to pay all their taxes when you can't visit the place
• Frequent trips back and forth can become tedious, for example I have come to loath the Billi terminal in Bordeaux airport
• Not quite as much income as we were expecting from renting, but we wanted the place as a true second home rather than a rental gite, we furnished it and equipped to a high standard and were a bit selective in who we rented it to. 
• Maintaining 1300sqm of garden can be quite costly when you can't do it yourself, and it's challenging mowing that amount of grass in summer temperatures.
• Getting good reliable cleaners and that whole change over thing can be a nightmare.
• You get to know the area too well, there are only so many times you can enjoy visiting the same town/beach/bar/beauty spot etc
• Capital Gains Tax is a pain

[LotusFella]

Thx all.  I was thinking of somewhere like La Manga, where although there’s quite a hefty annual communal charge 4k ish.  The rental incoming is possiblly better as Sun and Golf.

It appears you can get quite a nice villa for around 350-400k 

 

Trouble is the Misses is not keen, but I work in IT so have realised I can work from anywhere. So in the off peak times I could spend a few weeks at a time there.

[C8RKH]

I actually totally agree with @Rambo , holidays are about travel and seeing new places and you can have some amazing experiences for the cost of a holiday home.

Wife and I have looked at it many times but always decided against it as we felt like @Choppa intimated we'd get bored going back to the same place every year.

I suspect from your posts what you are really looking for is an investment with income, not really a holiday home. So in that case too me it's a purely financial decision isn't it?

PErsonally, I've realised that as I've got older it's not about how much you have in the bank/assets you have that matters. No point being the richest guy in the village if you never get out there and see the world and experience everything. So the holiday home thing is off the agenda, we've been maximising our SA allowances every year and I have been buying physical gold (all can be used for tax free income in the future). That's funding our increasing number of holidays every year now.

I Guess my point is, decide based on why - if you genuinely want a bolt hole, great. But if it is really an investment, then great too. But be clear which it is and get the best advice.

[LotusLeftLotusRight]

Never been to the same place twice on holiday. It’s a big world out there. Currently in Cape Verde for a holiday originally booked for two years ago. Our next door neighbour has a house in Southern France, which they now only use for the max. allowable 6 months per year. It has become much more difficult for him since Brexit, since he has to fly back every so often due to visa rules. His wife, who also holds an Irish passport doesn’t have to. They also get stung for local taxes, which is fair enough really. His pet hate is his swimming pool out there. He reckons he spends hundreds of hours tending to it for every hour he himself spends in it!

[Kimbers]

On 20/08/2022 at 21:00, LotusFella said:

Thx all.  I was thinking of somewhere like La Manga, where although there’s quite a hefty annual communal charge 4k ish.  The rental incoming is possiblly better as Sun and Golf.

It appears you can get quite a nice villa for around 350-400k 

 

Trouble is the Misses is not keen, but I work in IT so have realised I can work from anywhere. So in the off peak times I could spend a few weeks at a time there.

Have you looked at Almeria? 20% cheaper 20 mins from the coast than near Mar Menor!

Its a tough one isn't it. I would ignore those saying "Holidays are for travel not owning a place". I have many friends who own places across Europe and one in Thailand and one in USA. I can honestly say it's been on my radar for several years. We have gone to Cyprus virtually every year since we were Married 23 years ago. Its not saying we haven't been elswhere but who says you can't go on holiday 10 times a year if you want?

We are a bit posh and both of us "Dislike" people. After going back to Cyprus in 2019 and staying in an excellent hotel we both agreed we would never ever stay in a hotel again on holiday. Being on their time for eating, bars closing at 11.00, people.........ARG! People everywhere. A huge pool but people!!! And then twice a day they had "Water Aerobics" and you weren't allowed in the pool cause all the rich old couples were making like it would make a difference if they did 20 mins of waving their arms!

That was our only 3rd experience of Hotels in Cyprus. Every other year we have had our own Villa, car and Pool. Definately the way to go. However we have spent more than a decent sized villa in those years and have nothing to show for it. So we are now looking at a Penthouse Apartment in a small complex with a large pool away from the hustle and bustle where we can go at least twice a year for 2 weeks to 3 months. Cyprus is hot in Prime months so we would rent for July August & Sept. The apartments we are looking at are circa £450-600 a week. That pays the bills for the whole year then all we do is pay for flights.

Like you my sticking point is the Mrs, despite me having the cash to buy she wants to "Save it for a rainy day". Essentially for the kids weddings (so wasted money, last one we contributed to lasted 3 months) I think Bollox. Not only will it save is £2-4000 a year renting a villa, but the saving we can put to our second or third holiday a year.

Lastly, Wendy is retiring next year and my job I just need a phone and the internet so plan is to spend 3 months in Spring and 3 in Autumn out there. Kids get cheap holidays as well!

 

[PaulCP]

2 hours ago, Kimbers said:

Have you looked at Almeria? 20% cheaper 20 mins from the coast than near Mar Menor!

 

Almeria, Hmmmm, the area where the Junta de Andalusia (regional government) passes new planning laws and then makes them retrospective.
Yes, I’m speaking from experience. Finally got paid compensation last year after various court cases going back to 2006.
Take a look at the AUAN website for a flavour of what has been happening in the province of Almeria for the past 16 years.

[windymiller]

buying a place in the sun on our wish list too !!! go for it and if it doesnt work out sell it !!