Everyone was under the illusion that all the holiday lettings agents and owners were in for a bumper summer.

Then came the rain and the very disappointing summer weather! Due to the terrible weather that England encountered, bookings seemed to come to a grinding holt and agencies and owners alike were forced into offering huge discounts and late deals in Summer Sales, this was seen throughout the board! The Summer sales and discounts seemed to entice and encourage guests to book which resulted in the trend of very last minute bookings.

The Autumn bookings for holiday cottages in general now seems to be Continue reading →

"Personal circumstances may dictate one route or another as it is clearly impractical to arrange the lettings and management if you are far away. However, many owners in the current climate are now looking at letting their holiday cottage completely on their own to save money and avoid agents fees. From experience, I would suggest that they think long and hard before going down this route’

‘In 2005 I decided I was such a novice that the best thing would be to use an agent whilst at the same time I dabbled in online sites , putting up an ad myself to Continue reading →

Firstly, it’s important to pick the location very carefully to ensure year round appeal.  So a picturesque seaside town or a cathedral city are sure winners.  Secondly, consider access to your property (train stations, ports, bus stops and parking spaces) as visitors usually reserve the hours travelling to a holiday cottage for their main holiday and will look a lot closer to home for a weekend break.  This is where properties within 2 hours of London are a savvy choice as you can reach anywhere between sunny Sussex and the trendy seaside town of Aldeburgh in Suffolk in a couple of Continue reading →

She says:

"We are really delighted with the statistics for the first quarter of 2012 which have exceeded our expectations.

"The South East remains buoyant as a holiday destination with visitors recognising the combination of beautiful countryside, fabulous beaches, lots of things to do and see and above all the easy access for those living in Greater London and northern Europe saving visitors time and money.

"This coupled with the Olympics and the Queens jubilee is all adding up to a bumper year.’ ‘Staycations’ and short breaks are much in demand and the most recent research suggests that this trend is set to continue."

Have Continue reading →

Bookings for the Olympics started last year as soon as the tickets became available, a very early sign that we were going to be busy!”

“Traditionally, the really early bookings for cottages tend to be those prime seaside ones that the same family book year on year but last summer it was the properties around Ashford in Kent that performed the best.  Why?  Well they are only 30 minutes by train from the Olympic Village, considerably closer (and cheaper) than many parts of central London.  This early indicator has continued with a steady stream of bookings focusing on good public transport links” 

“Reflecting Continue reading →

Margate and the surrounding areas saw not only an immediate increase in bookings for houses within 20 minutes of the gallery but a positive effect on the towns tourist driven economy as a whole, resulting in the opening of a variety of upmarket cafés, restaurants, gift shops and smaller art galleries in the nearby Old Town area.

The whole area surrounding Margate (consisting of Westgate on Sea and Birchington, as well as the more well-known seaside resorts of Ramsgate and Broadstairs) have benefitted from enhanced local and national media scrutiny, resulting in bookings rising by 20% year on year.  

Sarah is expecting the Continue reading →

Mulberry Cottages- the luxury holiday cottage provider based in Kent and Sussex, have promised to oppose this by signing up to the Fair Pricing and Practise Charter, which ensures that products are priced in a reasonable and fair way during 2012.

The current economic downturn in Great Britain coupled with this summer’s guaranteed boost to the tourist trade makes the prospect of artificially inflating prices for accommodation beguiling for some. Sarah Wood, Director of Mulberry Cottages, take a more positive view of the situation arguing that accommodation providers who offer a fair deal to those visiting Britain this year, coupled with a Continue reading →

The vast majority bought their properties in the last six years, following the boom in UK house prices in 2007 which resulted in a huge rise in equity that owners quickly put to good use buying a second home in the UK or abroad.

More than 90% of respondents stated they had property in Europe, with France and Spain unsurprisingly the top two countries, but 53% stayed closer to home in the UK.

Although the rise in equity helped finance these purchases, 44% of respondents still had to take out a mortgage to help fund the investment, with an average loan-to-value of just Continue reading →

"The emphasis has been on increasing numbers of visitors taking their main holiday within the UK with lettings growing particularly for weekly or fortnightly stays.  Again this has been driven by the economy, exchange rates and the trend for UK based holidays for family holidays.  There has been a slight drop (4%) on short breaks overall but there are marked differences between different sized properties and this will be analysed further in the next report.

"This overall increase in demand is also encouraging many new landlords into the market, who perhaps in the past would have let their property as an assured Continue reading →

"2011 has been an excellent year for holiday homeowners. The number of European visitors grew by 10%, and the domestic market also saw a sizeable increase of just over 12%.  This was based on year on year bookings for the agency 2010-2011, but concurs with the latest statistics from the EU, where overall international visits grew by just over 1% across all the EU countries. 
 
"Mulberry Cottages can say that bookings have been particularly buoyant from Germany, Belgium and Holland, where the economies are strong and the exchange rate of euro to sterling has offered excellent value. 
 
Continue reading →