In this episode, Jon interviews his in-house expert in the practical set-up for holiday homes, his wife and partner in Spa Properties, Lynn Stanton. They discuss the 45 properties they have worked on over the fifteen years in the business, common errors made by holiday homeowners when setting up, the advantage of local knowledge, appropriate and practical design choices and furniture, and why you can trust Spa Properties with the setup and running of your holiday home.    

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Furnishing and decorating a holiday home can take time and money so local knowledge and networking of the type offered by Spa Properties can be invaluable. 
• In a pinch, such as damaged furniture, Jon and Lynn have the local knowledge to find replacements quickly and cheaply. 
• Second-hand goods are more accessible and easier to source so furnishing does not have to cost the earth. Spa Properties keep items in stock in case of emergencies that have been purchased in readiness. 
• Get paintwork and decoration right first, then get furniture appropriate for the décor. You are better off not following the fashion as the look can quickly date and leave you with a property that, again, needs updating.  
• Source kitchenware to at least one and half times the expected occupancy of the property. 

BEST MOMENTS

‘We usually have time limits on some, which is a bit stressful, when we need to get them ready in a week. There’s other ones where there’s no time limits but we still get them ready in a week or less even. And we are getting better at it as time goes on.’ – Lynn   

‘We’ve had one or two pieces that people have managed to damage and we’ve been able to replace them quickly because we’re not waiting for brand new stock to be made and delivered. We know where we can go to find something that will work.’ - Lynn 

‘Now, that’s a three-bedroom cottage that we finished and decorated in a week for 2.5k so you don’t have to spend a lot of money doing this.’ – Jon 

‘People want something that’s fresh and well decorated and with any home, if you get the decoration right, the paintwork, the basics, then from there you can put the appropriate furniture together.’ – Lynn  

‘Some people want the joy of being able to set the place up and exercise their interior design bones, but then others just want to hand you the keys over and tell you to sort it out.’ – Lynn

‘Trust us, we can do it.’ – Lynn  

VALUABLE RESOURCES

• Website: https://www.spaproperties.co.uk/

ABOUT THE HOST 

Jon Stanton

Jon left a successful career spanning thirty years in IT to pursue his passion for property management and has been leading the team at Spa Properties for almost fifteen years.

As well as leading the team at Spa Properties, Jon is an advocate of ongoing business development and professional networking, as well as a senior member of the Scarborough Hospitality Association.

CONTACT

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-stanton/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonspap

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