Why use an estate agency for your holiday let?
What are the obvious and not-so-obvious advantages of using a holiday rental agency when choosing a holiday destination or on a business trip ? Interview with the founder of specialist holiday rental agency Olam Properties, Michaёl Assouline.
What's in it for the owner?
When you’re the owner of a property, working with a professional agency gives you peace of mind, because it’s 100% your business and the agency only deals with seasonal rentals and is fully equipped for the job. In general, the owner is not a property professional.
What’s more, the agency has all the tools at its disposal: IT, hotel services (in terms of linen, cleaning and maintenance of the flats), service providers (photographer) and digital technology. We’re really very well equipped. On the other hand, the owner is on his own ‘in his corner’ to put his flat online (it’s true that with Airbnb it’s not difficult), but we know how to optimise the adverts, we know what to write and what not to write, we have the techniques in terms of natural referencing, we also have the revenue manager, who helps to optimise occupancy, the channelmanager, a tool that helps to distribute the advert on a very large number of portals and the digital communication specialist, who works with social networks as well.
We have two websites (a showcase site and one for online bookings). We also have a database of customers and prospects. So, for an owner, it’s true that this multiplies the possibilities of renting out his flat.
What’s more, when we’re in the summer period, as we are now, we are sometimes contacted about a flat that is no longer available. And because the agency has a large stock of properties, a whole range of products, we’re able to switch to another advert. If the owner is on his own, he has no way of recommending a property to replace the one that is no longer available, and he loses the customer. And the agency is able to direct the customer to another private individual’s flat to increase the number of properties filled.
We have two websites (a showcase site and one for online bookings). We also have a database of customers and prospects. So, for an owner, it’s true that this multiplies the possibilities of renting out his flat.
What’s more, when we’re in the summer period, as we are now, we are sometimes contacted about a flat that is no longer available. And because the agency has a large stock of properties, a whole range of products, we’re able to switch to another advert. If the owner is on his own, he has no way of recommending a property to replace the one that is no longer available, and he loses the customer. And the agency is able to direct the customer to another private individual’s flat to increase the number of properties filled.
What is the advantage for an owner of working with an agency on an exclusive basis?
Already when we have exclusivity, we tend to work more. That’s the first thing, it’s just a mechanical thing. And then, in purely technical terms, when we don’t have exclusivity we can’t work with certain portals: Booking.com, for example, where we have instant booking. And if the agency doesn’t have the certainty of exact, up-to-date availability, it won’t take the risk of working with an instant booking portal. And it’s the same with other portals, because there are portals like Expedia and Hotels.com, where we, as an agency, have no choice. So when we don’t have exclusivity, we’re already cutting ourselves off from half our partners; we only work with Airbnb and Home. Away Abritel and already on the portal side we are less well referenced (when it comes to instant booking), and also on the customer side, they all want to go quickly when they book: as before they spent days in research, they want to book straight away, and if they have to add a step and contact us about “is it available?”, it can take another day or half a day, the customer will take something else, and we’ve lost the rental. That’s the advantage for the owner of going through the agency, and especially on an exclusive basis.
What happens on the customer side?
We already welcome them! We’re there physically, and compared to other concierge services that use the “key box”. We have a team, so when someone can’t be there, there’s bound to be someone else available. We also know the region well, so we can point them in the right direction when it comes to activities. We can help them with all the services that go with it – a driver, a babysitter. Another added value is that we are able to guide our clients, if they ask us, to make their stay in Cannes and on the French Riviera an unforgettable experience.
It’s also about peace of mind and tranquillity for the tenant. If anything happens in the flat, they’re on their own to deal with the problem in front of the owner, or even more so with the gate… On the other hand, we’re there – locally. And if there really is a big problem in the flat and we are not able to solve it within half a day, we will always be able to move the customers to a flat in our park. In the same situation, the owner may not have another flat. And customers are forced to embark on a new search instead of going on holiday.
And in relation to the hotel business - why an agency and flat rental and not a hotel?
Flats are always bigger than a hotel room, even if it’s a studio. The obvious advantage for a tenant is always space. In financial terms, it’s generally cheaper to rent a flat. A hotel room isn’t enough for 3-4 people. And when we’re in a flat, we don’t need to go to a restaurant, because there’s a fully equipped kitchen. So we can prepare a meal or have it delivered. That’s an economic gain.
Is it possible to offer breakfast to tenants, as in a hotel, for those who expect this service?
We offer all the services that clients ask for. We know how to deliver breakfasts, fruit baskets, we know how to organise events and we also have villas in our portfolio, so we have the experience to organise cocktails, receptions, lunches, business meetings, so yes, of course! At Olam Properties, we offer more than accommodation, we meet (and often anticipate) the expectations of our guests, whether they are corporate or holidaymakers.
One of the not-so-obvious reasons is the authentic decor. In general, hotel rooms are very standardised, whereas we try to have flats with local character. They’re all practical, all air-conditioned, all well-equipped, but they also all have a soul. And that’s not even mentioning the fact that we know Cannes like the back of our hand.
And if there is a problem? In a hotel, you can always call reception.
We too will receive calls 24 hours a day. We’ve never had a case of neighbours complaining about our tenants. But there are always ways of solving the problem. You can call the landlord or the police, that’s normal. That’s also part of our job. We normally work with landlords and flats for years, and we already know both the managing agent and the neighbours, who also know how to call us.
Another reason – the extranet for owners:
Private individuals who entrust their property in Cannes to Olam Properties, whether on an exclusive basis or not, we give them access to a secure extranet which allows them to see the occupancy rate of their flat, and therefore the schedule, and which also allows them, when they come to spend a few days in Cannes, to directly block the dates they need for their stay. There’s never any risk of double-booking.
We can say with certainty that short-term seasonal rental is reserved for professionals. If the owner deals directly with these issues, he is only turning into an agency, which takes up so much time and resources.