Does Your Holiday Rental Need a Spruce Up?

The Holiday Lettings industry has a very seasonal nature, that’s why its important to take stock towards the end of season and begin thinking about your low season to do list. So, has your holiday rental property had a bit of a battering this season? Are you planning on a bit of a spruce up this winter?

Part of the work we do with holiday property owners is to advise them on getting their rental looking great, to attract more guests & repeat bookings.

With this in mind, here are our top tips for those end of season jobs:

• Walls – Grubby fingers, knocks and scratches, can make a property look tired and unloved. It’s amazing how quickly you can remedy this situation with a small tub of polyfiller a spatula and a lick of paint. Even if you do not have the time or resources to do all of the walls, concentrate on those that have the most traffic and in particular think of which areas are most important to those first impressions.

• Skirting boards – A top tip for making your skirting boards look fantastic is to run a bead of sealant along the top.

• Light switches – The first thing your guests will see. Are they sparkling clean? Have you removed any stray bits of paint? How about a complete overhaul and changing them for some modern chrome or brass ones?

• Bathrooms – Does the grout between the tiles look a little grey – or has the mildew had a field day this season? Not to worry, a scrub with an old toothbrush and some bleach will do the job. How is the sealant looking around the bath and the sink? There is nothing worse than seeing black mould covered sealant. Best to pull it out and re-do it, it will look a million times better and doesn’t actually take that long.

• Kitchen – Check out all your crockery and glasses. Are they still looking OK? It’s best to stick to plain white crockery so if a few get slightly cracked or chipped you can replace one or two instead of the whole set which is costly.

• The sink and tiles – As with the bathroom, look closely at the grout and sealant could it do with some TLC?

• Windows – Re-putting window panes – could save you an expensive window repair in the future by re-doing the putty now.

• Locks & hinges – A quick squirt of WD40 will keep them loose and squeek free.

• Outdoor areas – Thank goodness for pressure washers! Blast off all the mildew from your house and pool terraces and get them all fresh and clean again. The same goes for any outdoor furniture- after all this is where holiday makers are hoping to spend most of their time. The furniture is bound to feel the strain and need some care. Could your wooden furniture do with sanding and re-oiling/ staining? Can the cushions be washed or recovered? Maybe you need to buy some new ones?

• Shutters- These can take such a hammering in hot climates or those properties close to the sea. Check out this great article on Restoring wooden shutters.

We hope you like these tips and here are some more ideas for you too:

27 tips for painting a room with no mess

Ideas for paint, flooring and furniture