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Property Life
ful Olympic landlord. Onefi
nestay.com, which specialises in renting out upmarket primary and secondary residences in central London on a short-term basis is off ering all their hosts a special Olympics package with weekly rentals of between £700-£11,000 a week. They’ve been taking Olympic bookings for nine months now and according to Madeleine Ito, demand is still strong. “We’ve only been able to cope with the interest because we’re signing up new hosts every week,” she says. Sara Russ and her husband are renting out their fam- ily home in Highgate during the Olympics through one- fi
nestay.com while they go on holiday to Scotland. “We don’t
Find out more
Short let experts: Conran Estates 020 8312 8312
www.conranestates.co.uk Onefi
nestay.com 0207 097 8948 www.onefi
nestay.com Ivy Lettings 020 7349 7016
www.ivylettings.com Knight Frank 020 7881 7722
www.knightfrank.co.uk Fine & Country 020 7079 1515
www.fi neandcountry.com Hamptons 020 7963 0614
www.hamptons.co.uk
have a second home but we were interested in renting for the Games to give us some extra income,” Sara explains.
A concierge team from onefi
nestay.com will organise the cleaning, linen, towels and toil- eteries; greet the guests on arrival and check their photo ID to make sure they are who they say they are. Within a few days of signing up, Sara’s home was booked out over the Olympic period and she’d also received a booking for the Easter holidays, which gave her a chance to test drive
the procedure. The concept of strangers using her home seemed a little odd at fi rst, she admits, but she returned home after Easter to fi nd their home in impeccable order. “Initially I’d only wanted to secure an Olympic rental but now we’ll use onefi
nestay.com whenever we’re away.” Van der Westhuizen adds that securing an Olympic let requires a certain amount of skill,
but if you happen to be successful, there is a good chance that you will be able to make a revenue from your property whenever it’s empty. “The types of home that are popular with
tenants during the Olympics, will be popular at other times too,” he says. “For many families the Olympics will mark the start of a perma- nent extra revenue stream.”
You can contact Jo on 01666 838813 or 07746 364882, or email
jo@joanna-wade.co.uk
We take the time you haven't got
www.joanna-wade.co.uk
www.fi rstelevenmagazine.co.uk Summer 2012 FirstEleven 79
Do’s and Don’ts for a successful short let
Do ● Bear in mind that homes in Cen-
tral London, near an Olympic venue or in a historic city, or location, make the best short let propositions. ● Make sure your property is scrupulously clean before your tenants arrive. ● Leave instructions for the televi- sion, sound system, and appliances. ● Create a list of your favourite local restaurants, cinemas and parks. ● Leave an emergency contact number for your tenants. ● Make sure you have the necessary licences and certifi cates and permission from your mortgage lender (your letting agency will advise further). ● Off er your home fully furnished and presented to the highest standard with crockery, Sky and Broadband. ● Provide linen and off er a maid/ cleaning service (your lettings agency might provide these for you).
● Ensure you are protected by a deposit in case anything gets damaged.
Don’t ● Count on your property to be let
out whenever you are absent. ● Expect to make a fortune; short term lets can be unpredictable and there’s lots of supply. ● Do drastic refurbishments without consulting your letting agency. The goal is to make money! ● Pull out of a short let at the last minute. You are likely to be penalised.
A house in Highgate Hill available through onefi
nestay.com
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