Payment for Gite

[Les Trois Papillons]

I am just starting out as a gite owner having spent last year getting it up to scratch.  Could anyone please advise the best way of asking for payment for a let.  Also what sort of deposit.  If you take a deposit on booking when do you ask for the balance?    I still have an English bank account.  Is it easier to get payment into that account but where does that leave you with the tax man?   Any information would be gratefully received.

[Owens88]

25 % on booking, balance + security deposit at at 8 weeks. Some French won't pay in advance - your decision whether to take the risk Take money the easisest way for both parties, but declare all income whatever.

If you hunt about a bit on here and some of the booking agency sites you will get booking forms and lots of useful stuff.

Good luck

 

[Eslier]

A lot depends who your clients are likely to be. If the majority are Brits, then you will probably find it easiest to collect UK bank cheques from your clients and simply put them in the post, along with a paying in slip, to your UK bank. That's exactly what I do.  A few people take up the offer of direct payment by Internet Banking but a lot fewer than I originally expected. As your clients will need to return a completed and signed Booking Form, it's very easy for them to send a cheque at the same time.

We take 20% at the time of booking and the balance eight weeks before. We always send a reminder about two or three weeks before the balance is due and include a form for them to send back with the payment asking confirmation details of ferry crossings and arrival times etc. I don't send out directions until we've received the final balance.  There's no problem with a UK bank account as far as the tax man in either country is concerned but make sure you can justify every credit entry on your bank statement and include all income on your tax return.

[alnmike]

As the others, 25% deposit, balance 8 weeks before. We will take payment via PayPal which is popular with guests. However I know others on the forum are not always too keen as it is a bit costly, and some have problems with payments. The other point is to ensure that you request a completed booking form, and have clear Terms & Conditions, including guest responsibilities. Our insurers are ok about insuring our cottage when rented, but advised that they may seek to recover any money they may pay out from the guest and so your guests need to have liability cover themselves, usually part of their travel insurance. Good Luck!

[ChezShells]

If you still have a UK account get them to put a deposit or all into that account and check online.

 

[Les Trois Papillons]

Many thanks to all of you, it was very helpful.  No doubt I will have further questions as I go along.  Thanks again

[Harvey]

Where is the advantage of paying all the money into a UK account if you live in France? You, then have the cost of transferring the money into Euors. Unless, of course you have included this cost in the rent. I did it this way when I first started renting a Gite, but lost out big time with exchange rates and bank charges.

[The Riff-Raff Element]

[quote user="Harvey"]Where is the advantage of paying all the money

into a UK account if you live in France? You, then have the cost of

transferring the money into Euors. Unless, of course you have included

this cost in the rent. I did it this way when I first started renting a

Gite, but lost out big time with exchange rates and bank

charges.[/quote]

Purely done for customer service purposes - some people simply prefer

cheques. We take credit cards (not Paypal - to damned expensive) which

many of our customers prefer, but I reckon about 35% of our revenue is

in sterling.

My first trading manager had 5 "cardinal rules" that he had made into

mouse mats for us. Rule 3 was "always make it easy for people to give

you money."

[Les Trois Papillons]

Back again.  I accept what you say Harvey about exchange rates, so what would you recommend.  If you accept payment by credit card.  How does that work?  Excuse my ignorance on this.

[Harvey]

I now only advertise the house in euros, people pay me in euros, this way I know exactly where I am. I must admit I still have a UK account which is used as an option, but very rarely. This is my busines, and I run the way that suits me.