A Guide to Dorset Holiday Let Management

When choosing to buy a holiday let, you might be wondering where to start with holiday let management. Some owners choose to run and manage their holiday let on their own. For others, the ease of off-loading this responsibility is high on their priority list.

At Lyme Bay Holidays, we take the stress away from holiday letting your property. Combined with our local team of property managers, we offer different holiday let management.

Read on for our guide to holiday let management options for your Dorset or Devon holiday home.

Owner Managed Holiday Let

You may be thinking to manage your holiday let yourself. This is a great option if you live close to the property, or you already have an existing housekeeper/caretaker. Managing the laundry, maintenance and cleaning will be your key responsibility however, this could work out financially better for you with a larger return in investment.

Bear in mind also, you’ll need to be available for check-in days to carry out the property changeover. This could tie you down in the long run making it difficult to plan your own time off and holidays.

If you decide owner managed is how you’d like to run your holiday let, you can still hugely benefit of Lyme Bay Holiday’s full booking and marketing facility.

Partially Managed Holiday Let

If you’re looking for a happy medium, the partially managed service option is a great option if you’d like the laundry taken care of for your holiday let. With this option, you can sit back take control of your bookings calendar and leave the changeovers to our expert housekeeping team.

Furthermore, you’ll be able to benefit from the Lyme Bay Holidays full booking and marketing services. However, make sure you factor in property maintenance checks throughout the year to ensure your property is in tip top condition for your guests.

Fully Managed Holiday Let

The fully managed service is perfect if you’re an owner who lives abroad or away from your property. Perhaps you’d like to minimise the stress of fully managing the property yourself, we can absolutely take care of this for you.

At Lyme Bay Holidays you will be assigned a property manager who will be your contact for any queries and issues. We’ll keep you up to date and recommendations for your property during the peak season through any feedback that arises.

You’ll also have changeover management so you can be assured your property is cleaned to our standard.

Choose Lyme Bay Holidays for Holiday Let Management

With over 300 properties across Dorset and East Devon, Lyme Bay Holidays would love to welcome your property to our portfolio. As part of the Sykes Holiday Cottages, we have both local and national opportunities for your property.

Our friendly and local team would love to discuss any holiday letting questions you have.

You can call us on 01297 443363 or download your free owner pack here.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) – Holiday Let Management in Dorset

1. What are the different levels of management offered for a holiday let?
There are three main options:

• Owner-Managed: You look after cleaning, laundry, maintenance and changeovers yourself; the agency handles booking and marketing.

• Partially Managed: You keep control of the bookings calendar; the agency handles changeovers and laundry.

• Fully Managed: Ideal if you live far away or do not want to deal with day-to-day operations. The agency assigns a property manager and takes care of bookings, marketing, changeovers and maintenance oversight.

2. What situations make a self (owner)-managed holiday let good value?
Owner-management may work well if:

• You live close by or already have a reliable local caretaker/housekeeper.

• You are prepared to handle check-in days, changeovers, laundry and maintenance.

• You believe you can achieve higher net return by doing the management yourself (because you save on management fees). However, you must also be realistic about time commitments.

3. What are the drawbacks of managing the property yourself?
Some potential challenges:

• You’ll need to be available for changeover days which may restrict your own flexibility or holidays.

• Maintenance needs and guest issues may fall on you directly.

• You may miss out on professional marketing, booking optimisation and the benefits of an agency’s network.

4. Why might a part-management service be a good “middle way”?
With partially managed service you get to:

• Keep control of your bookings calendar (so you decide what stays you take, when you block out for personal use).

• Outsource the labour-intensive parts (changeovers, laundry) to professionals.

• Benefit from agency marketing and booking reach while reducing your hands-on involvement.

• Be aware you still need to monitor maintenance and condition of your property.

5. When is the fully-managed option most appropriate?
Fully managed service is a strong fit if:

• You live abroad or far away from the property and cannot be on-site regularly.

• You prefer to minimise your involvement and let the agency handle everything from bookings to changeovers and guest-services.

• You value a single agency contact (a property manager) and expert oversight of your property.

6. What are some key benefits of partnering with Lyme Bay Holidays?
According to the blog:

• They have local expertise (covering Dorset & East Devon) and national marketing reach (via their membership of the Sykes Holiday Cottages network).

• Many years of experience (25+ years in letting holiday properties) are cited.

• They provide different management service levels so owners can choose how much involvement they wish to have.

• They assign a dedicated property manager for fully managed owners to streamline communication.

7. What should an owner consider when choosing which management level is right?
Consider:

• Your proximity to and availability at the property.

• Whether you want to be hands-on or hands-off.

• The time and resources you are willing to commit (cleaning, laundry, changeovers, guest support).

• Your desired net return vs. the fee you pay for management.

• The importance of professional marketing, booking reach and guest services.

• Maintenance regime: even in part- or fully-managed options you still need good oversight to keep your property in top condition.

8. If I choose to manage myself, can I still benefit from agency marketing?
Yes — the blog suggests that even with the owner-managed option you can use the agency’s full booking and marketing facility while handling the hands-on operations yourself.

9 How do changeover services work under a fully-managed model?
Under the fully-managed service the agency:

• Handles the professional cleaning and laundry between bookings.

• Keeps you updated with any guest feedback and recommendations.

• Assigns a property manager who acts as your main contact for any issues.

10. What region does Lyme Bay Holidays cover for holiday let management?
Their guide specifically refers to properties in Dorset and East Devon.