10 Tips for Renting Out Your House

Are you thinking of renting out your house this summer? We have listed below some practical tips to get the most out of your income without making your schedule a living hell. The trick is all in the planning!

1.    Consider all the legal aspects necessary to start marketing your property for rentals:

a.       You should go to your local tax office and open up a business activity as a self-employed individual who provides accommodation services in Portugal - “Alojamento mobilado para turistas” (CAE 55201);

b.       Register your property as “Alojamento Local” at your City Council who will, in turn, communicate with the “one stop internet clearing house” that acts as the go-between, linking the national tourism board, tax authorities etc;

c.       Follow all the Safety and Taxation requirements.

2.      Carry out market research on how you should price your property for holidays by comparing it with properties of the same typology and in the same area - check rental websites or consult a local agency.

3.       Take good photos and promote your property online.

4.     Create a calendar so you can plan the guests' check-ins and check-outs. Depending on the size of your property, leave at least half a day to clean the property between guests, this is because it will entail changing all of the linen as well as doing a thorough clean in time to welcome the new guests.

5.     Property inspection - before guests arrive you should check that all the legal safety requirements are in place; make sure everything is tidied away and that all devices are working. Carrying out this part of the process should prevent guests contacting you in the middle of the night to say, for instance, that a bulb is blown.

6.   Prepare documentation for guests - we advise you to put together a host’s manual to include all the relevant information about the property. In this manual, you should have the operating instructions for all of the devices, such as the television, washing machine, coffee machine etc., as well as Wi-Fi passwords and useful contacts (e.g. emergency numbers).

7.      Try to attend to and be available to your guests - sometimes things do not go as well as planned, so always try to be contactable in case of any eventualities. This means that you should welcome your guests, whatever time they arrive.

8.    Check out any external services you use - you have to make sure that services such as cleaning, laundry, and possibly maintenance, are all in place and are available if required. This is paramount so that everything can be prepared for the guests on time. Because they are external services unforeseen issues can occur so you should always have a backup plan.

9.   Create customer value for your guests’ holiday - provide a list of activities available such as places to visit, recommended restaurants etc., because it adds value to a clients’ holiday experience. Create partnerships with local companies and make them available to customers.

10.   Satisfied guests, positive comments - always ask your guests for their opinion on their stay. Not only will this help you gauge those areas that can be improved on but positive feedback can be a constructive tool on social media networks.

Do you own a property in the Western Algarve that you’d like to make an income from but you don’t have the availability to follow all the above steps? Casas do Barlavento provides Property Management Services that are able to do all of this for you. There is also an area reserved for owners on our website in which you have access to account movements as well as your reservation calendar. You will not have to worry about taking professional photos, the promotion of your property or even the availability of cleaning services, because we deal with all of this, and more.

Contact us to find out more about this service and the value you gain from using our Property Management Services.