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o succeed in these days of tough competition inthe short-term rental property market, you haveto hold yourself and your property up to higher

standards. The first goal is to entice the guests to stayat your property rather than someone else’s. Whenyou’ve done that, your aim is to keep them comingback, as well as recommending your property totheir friends and colleagues.

How do you do that? And what are the things thatwill give you more of an advantage over another villaowner? Some can be quite time consuming andcomplex, while others are simple and inexpensive.

First impressions We’re not necessarily talking about having a big,impressive- looking villa, but rather one with a well-maintained exterior. Even the smallest, most basic-looking house can be an excellent candidate for rentals,provided that some fundamental rules are followed. Inmost neighbourhoods, the local homeowner’sassociation will be watching closely to make sure allproperties are maintained to a good standard, whichhelps to keep up property values in the long run.

Inside the house, the old saying still applies –cleanliness is next to godliness! When it comes tochoosing between fancy or clean, guests will choosebasic and clean any day over fancy and dirty.Remember those basic white sheets and towels you seein successful hotels? They use them because they’re theeasiest to bleach clean. The one thing that guests will belooking for is the absence of dirt, so your propertymanagement company should make sure that theproperty is kept clean and fresh at all times, and thatany tired, worn-looking items are replaced regularly. It’sa good idea to have a ‘deep clean’ a couple of times ayear, to get to those places which are normally missed.

Decor is where you can really add a personaltouch, and where you can develop a theme, to makeyour property unique. Some ideas for themes, whichcan be either throughout the house or room-by-room, are: golfing, wildlife and nature, beach and, ofcourse, the ever-popular Disney. Sports and moviesare good themes for games rooms, while Disney ispopular for children’s rooms. Designer touches thatemphasise your theme can be found on e-Bay and atflea markets and retail stores

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How to be top…in Florida

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Planning to buy a Florida villa for holiday lets in 2007?It can be a success, say Orlando estate agentsLesley Dolby and Steve Schaffer, if you really try

Theme rooms and plentyof games can give yourvilla extra appeal

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Marketing Given the amount of competition in the short-termrental market these days, it’s imperative that yourproperty is well marketed. Many people rely on theirproperty management company to obtain all or mostof their rental bookings. However, the mostsuccessful owners rely on their own efforts to getmost of the rental bookings, looking to theirmanagement company only for ‘back-up’ rentals.

Many rental firms have contracts with tour operatorsand travel companies, which not only means that therates they obtain are lower, wholesale rates, but thequality of the rentals tends to be a little lower. This is allright if you want volume bookings, but many ownershave expressed concern that although their property isbooked out often, they fail to see any profit. Weigh upwhether you want constant rentals at low rates andmore wear and tear on your property, or fewer, higherquality rentals at higher rates, with less heavy wear.

So, how do you get these private bookings? Buildan attractive website which shows off your propertyin the best possible light. Virtual tours, lots of photosand tons of information about the villa and thesurrounding area are a must. You need to give

people a reason to want to stay at your property. Although they aren’t difficult or expensive to create

and maintain, it’s not enough to have just a website.You have to make sure that people actually see it!Ensure your website address is included in theadvertising you do in magazines such as Holiday Villas.Print business cards, brochures and flyers for yourproperty and spread them around anywhere you canin your local area. Give incentives for your hairdresserto get bookings for you. A free week at your villa cansound great to someone who can find a few peoplewho want to rent your villa throughout the year.

Team up with other owners in your neighbourhoodand see if you can help each other. If another villaowner gets a request for a booking at a time whenthey’re booked, they may be able to pass it on to you,and vice versa.

Asking your guests for feedback is also a good idea.It gives you an opportunity to know if something isn’tworking as well as it should.

Keeping an eye on the businessIncome (in the form of bookings) is only one half ofthe profit equation. The other half is expenses.Although you can’t do much about certain costs,there are some which can be controlled, adding toyour bottom line. Some of the fixed expensesbeyond your control include property taxes, whichfor an average Disney-area villa are about $4,000(£2,140) a year, mortgage interest, property insurance– averaging more than $1,000 (£540) a year –homeowner’s association or condo fees, monthlyproperty management fees, charges for cable orsatellite TV, phone lines and internet service.

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Your guests may be new to the area, so give themas much information about it as possible. This can bedone with bulletin boards, information books, a well-stocked brochure rack and, most important, a goodhouse manual, which explains local and state rulesand regulations. Lastly, a family portrait and a guestbook will help to personalise your home and makeguests feel more connected to you.

For that something extra Keeping the kids happy is always a good idea, sohave pool toys readily available. They are usuallyinexpensive and last at least the whole season. Yourentertainment unit should be stocked with board andvideo games, CDs and DVDs and paperback.

Many successful villa owners are now starting toconvert their garage into a games room, which isvery popular with guests, especially on rainy days.Some ideas for the games room are: table football,indoor basketball, darts, pool, air hockey, ping-pongand even pinball machines and other arcade games.Padding, painting or carpeting the floor, as well asdecorating the room with a theme, are also popular.

Providing extras such as bicycles and golf clubs canalso be a good idea – if your property is located whereguests will be able to use them. Having internet access,preferably high-speed or wireless, is almost a mustthese days. It’s surprising how many of us still want orneed to stay in touch with the office while on holiday.

‘Many successful villaowners are now starting toconvert their garage into agames room, which is verypopular with guests’

For sale in OrlandoBoth of thesevillas have fourbedrooms andheated pools. TheNorth HamptonDrive property(above) was built in2004, is close to agolf resort and is forsale at $320,000(£168,600). On Highland Drive(left) – ten minutesfrom DisneyWorld –this home, built in2002, is on themarket for$245,000(£129,100). Fulldetails from DolbyProperties – Tel 001 407 3523664,www.dolbyproperties.com

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Variable expenses – which depend on how oftenyour property is rented – include electricity, gas,water, repairs and maintenance, reserves forreplacement of furniture and housewares. Morerentals means more wear and tear and higher costs,so if you’re finding that these bills are extremely highduring times when you haven’t had many bookings,it’s time to start looking at them more closely.

Although there are many hardworking, honestproperty management companies, the sad fact is thatthere are also some unscrupulous ones; it’s notunknown for some to conveniently ‘forget’ to reportto you that there is someone staying at yourproperty. If you’re on top of everything and yourproperty management company is aware that youare, you shouldn’t have too many problems. Payingyour own bills, especially online, can help you tokeep on top of the business, as well as making sureyou don’t get hit with any late payment charges.

For the more adventurous, who can handle most ofthe bookings themselves, a good way to keep tabson what’s happening is to hire your own people forcleaning, maintenance and gardening. This is strictlyfor those who want to be actively involved in theirvilla rental business; it isn’t for the faint hearted!

Owning a short-term villa rental is a business, so ifyou don’t feel like being actively involved in bothmarketing and maintenance, then perhaps youshould consider using your property purely as avacation home or as a long-term rental – althoughthe latter would mean you wouldn’t be able to use itfor your own holidays.

Either way, owning a villa in Florida is a veryviable proposition and can be a lot of fun, providedyou know why you wanted one in the first place, canstay focused on the long-term goal, and know howto ask for help when you need it and before thingsget out of hand. Enjoy! HV

Our top six tips

■ Managing your own bookingsincreases your prospects forsuccess

■ Ensure the house is kept clean

■ Use attractive decor to give yourvilla stand-out appeal

■ Keep a close eye on theaccounts, especially your costs

■ Have an informative website, andmake sure the website address isused in your advertisements

■ Understand and observe the lawsgoverning holiday lettings

And then there’s the law…

Making sure you have theproper licences and thatyour various tax returnsare filed on time will keepyou on the right side of thelaw. You’ll probably needhelp with this, so a goodteam comprising aproperty manager and anaccountant will beinvaluable – but be surethat you know what’sgoing on with your ownproperty at all times.

Dolby Propertiesspecialises in sales –

mainly to UK buyers –

of investment

properties for short or

long-term rental, villas,

vacation and second

homes in Orlando,

Kissimmee,

Davenport, the Disney

area, Lakeland,

Auburndale and the

Gulf Coast.

Tel 001 407 352 3664, e-mail lesley.dolby@dolbyproperties.com or visit

www.dolbyproperties.com

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