When a property owner makes the decision to enter the lucrative short-letting industry, one of the main questions they face is whether or not to partner with a short-letting management company or work independently. As short letting has become increasingly popular in the UK, a whole host of property management companies have emerged to help property owners manage their holiday lets. 

But as with much else, there are a number of pros and cons to hiring a property management company, so if you are new to short-letting or thinking of investing in a holiday let's read on to find out more.

The Cons -

1. Reduced autonomy 

Hiring a company to manage your property doesn’t sit well with everyone. Many people enjoy the independence of running their holiday let themselves and dealing with guests first-hand whereas a property management company tends to remove the entire process from your hands. 

The company are likely to limit when you can use the property for personal use, and you are likely to have less control over the guests that stay in your property and how complaints are handled. 

2. Added costs

It’s no secret that management fees will eat into your profits. You are likely to face an initial onboarding fee, followed by a commission fee per booking alongside other management fees that allow the company to continually support the running of your property. If you have the experience, you may prefer to take on the management yourself and save your pennies.

3. No guarantee of income

Just because you partner with a property management company and pay a monthly fee does not guarantee success or a steady flow of bookings – no matter how experienced the company is.

The Pros +

1. Expert short-letting management 

You may be new to the short-let industry, or looking to increase your bookings with the support of a professional company. With Pass the Keys, you will be supported with an end-to-end property management service that covers all the time-consuming labour associated with short letting.

From listing, arranging professional photographs, key handling, professional cleaning services, hotel quality toiletries, laundry changes, guest management, holiday home welcome packs and booking administration; we will take care of it all. Our hosts can monitor the performance of their properties using our handy client portal and use it to block off dates they wish to use the property themselves. 

For hosts that do not live in proximity to their holiday let, we offer a 24/7 guest support service for all urgent needs and will manage the process from check-in to check-out. We are industry leaders with over eight years’ experience providing a quality short-letting experience to guests. 

2. Fine-tuned marketing

Many hosts struggle to market their property to reach the right audience. Pass the Keys will remove that stress from your hands. We professionally market and list our properties on the UK’s leading short-letting websites using industry leading technology to get your holiday let noticed! We a trusted company with a 4.8* Trustpilot rating and a trusted Airbnb Professional Co-Host. 

3. Improve your income 

As we mentioned before, this is not guaranteed for every host, but there are services Pass the Keys provide that ensure your management fees are used most effectively. For example, we use dynamic pricing strategies to keep your nightly rates competitive and fill any last-minute cancellations or open dates to get the most out of your property. We hire local maintenance and cleaning suppliers at a cheaper rate than an independent owner and are proud to support the local community. 

4. Hassle-free hosting

Our property management service is end-to-end, allowing our hosts to focus on growing their short-letting portfolio and hit the ground running. Pass the Keys pride themselves on providing nationwide support to local branches; and it is this mix of local and national that allows us to continually deliver first class hosting to thousands of guests. Our local property managers will provide you with support on every stage of hosting: from advice on how to furnish your holiday let, mortgage recommendations and keeping you updated on the latest short-letting rules and regulations. Pass the Keys also have a strict vetting process for all guests to prioritise the safety of your property.

Whether or not you choose to partner with a holiday let management company will be dependent on your personal circumstances such as your other commitments, the location of your second home and the prior experience of short letting.

To find out more about our management services, please visit Services & Pricing (passthekeys.com).